If it's any consolation, I did the same. Skipped on the academic career partly because I hate the pretentiousness of academia with a passion (while loving scien

If it's any consolation, I did the same. Skipped on the academic career partly because I hate the pretentiousness of academia with a passion (while loving science), partly for a desire to get hands-on with industry and "the real world" quicker. I think either path is fine and we can still develop to do meaningful things. Working for a paycheck to increase some random companies profit feels less and less enticing though. In general, people in my bubble seem to gravitate towards more free time than increased salary. 32h weeks are not that rare anymore and for many jobs 37hrs is the normal full time nowadays. Working 5 days a week will die out, as most office jobs will have people wasting time anyways just to match the clock.