Yes of course there are different experiences and paths, I certainly wasn't implying that there was only one way. The company you worked at sounds like it had

Yes of course there are different experiences and paths, I certainly wasn't implying that there was only one way. The company you worked at sounds like it had a really good structure and really put in the work and time to help employees grow, and unfortunately that's not the case everywhere. But I would say from my experience across many jobs, and from speaking with all my peers, consensus is that doing diagonal moves in your first 10-15 years on the job will land you in a better place than staying put that whole time, both from an experience and skills perspective, and from a role/seniority/salary perspective.