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I don't know any actuaries, but it always struck me as odd that the hardest working people in my last company were the actuaries. I mean these guys were on pre

I don't know any actuaries, but it always struck me as odd that the hardest working people in my last company were the actuaries. I mean these guys were on presumably amazing salaries, were some of the smartest people, could work at any related insurance/finance/whatever company (of which there are a LOT hq'd in Sydney) and had worse hours than most other teams. I just don't understand it.

mehrdadn 8y ago
Is it implausible that they might be getting amazing salaries because they are the hardest-working? (Why?)
- barrkel 8y ago
  There's often an inverse correlation between hard work and salary. People who have to work extra jobs to make ends meet work harder than anyone else. If you have a salary that makes you comfortable, you're less likely to try and kill yourself for the marginal money. Generally, rewards come from working smarter, not harder. Also, it's hard to make a lot of money purely on a wage. You usually need capital appreciation or other income streams for that.
  - mehrdadn 8y ago
    Extra jobs kind of misses the point... we're talking about working harder on your job in a given company, not working harder as a person in general on whatever life throws at you. To be honest I'm not even sure how you'd measure how hard someone is working when you're comparing across different jobs, but I would find it interesting if there was any kind of data on this. I'm not sure if I'd find it more surprising if the correlation was positive or negative, but what I do know is that in an ideal world the correlation would be positive...
    - barrkel 8y ago
      The better paid your job, the more unique it is, almost by definition: limited supply means the price of labour is higher. Well paid jobs aren't very fungible. Even within a single company, people with the same title don't do the same work. And working smarter - aligned with the company goals - still pays much more than longer hours.

mehrdadn 8y ago

Is it implausible that they might be getting amazing salaries because they are the hardest-working? (Why?)

barrkel 8y ago
There's often an inverse correlation between hard work and salary. People who have to work extra jobs to make ends meet work harder than anyone else. If you have a salary that makes you comfortable, you're less likely to try and kill yourself for the marginal money. Generally, rewards come from working smarter, not harder. Also, it's hard to make a lot of money purely on a wage. You usually need capital appreciation or other income streams for that.
- mehrdadn 8y ago
  Extra jobs kind of misses the point... we're talking about working harder on your job in a given company, not working harder as a person in general on whatever life throws at you. To be honest I'm not even sure how you'd measure how hard someone is working when you're comparing across different jobs, but I would find it interesting if there was any kind of data on this. I'm not sure if I'd find it more surprising if the correlation was positive or negative, but what I do know is that in an ideal world the correlation would be positive...
  - barrkel 8y ago
    The better paid your job, the more unique it is, almost by definition: limited supply means the price of labour is higher. Well paid jobs aren't very fungible. Even within a single company, people with the same title don't do the same work. And working smarter - aligned with the company goals - still pays much more than longer hours.