I went the IC route (Sr. Principal or an IC7). It's difficult to get there but rewarding. In either route, you're still a leader. Managers have formal power, an

I went the IC route (Sr. Principal or an IC7). It's difficult to get there but rewarding. In either route, you're still a leader. Managers have formal power, and deal with a lot of process (budgets, pay, promotions, etc.). Tech leads are influencers, we focus a lot more on technology and growth of the team in a different way. You forgo all the messy (boring for me) details of project management, and focus more on the technology and getting the right people to move projects forward, but this requires persuasion. There's not one way to do this job, you have to find your own. The hardest part is probably that of picking the right thing to delegate, to maximize growth and project success. There's some overlap with managers especially as you climb the ladder and your focus is more strategic than tactical.