5 ms·

Why did you assume that everyone is motivated by money? After $100k, what difference does it make for one's happiness? Personally, I wouldn't want such a shall

by davisr 3y ago

Why did you assume that everyone is motivated by money? After $100k, what difference does it make for one's happiness? Personally, I wouldn't want such a shallow individual working in my government.

deleted 3y ago
[deleted]
pdabbadabba 3y ago
Depends on where they're living, I guess. But in DC, additional income above $100k would make a huge difference in quality of life.
usaar333 3y ago
> After $100k, what difference does it make for one's happiness? Probably a lot. Can't raise a family in the Silicon Valley on that which makes people unhappy. This is far more of a cut than say at CZI.
mortallywounded 3y ago
That's something someone would say that has never made 500k before :)
- jrockway 3y ago
  Yeah, you don't have to spend it. Save it and retire early. Donate it all to a charity you believe in. Send your kids to the best school. Buy a nice home. Travel the world. The high salary only allows more options, it doesn't close any doors. (Just be careful about "getting used to it" and ending up having to change your lifestyle if market conditions change.)
antisthenes 3y ago
A lot, actually. In a country like USA, you can get slapped with $100k worth of medical bills, and keep fighting them for years. If you said $100k and a safety net (that actually works), I would agree with you.
pjlegato 3y ago
The cost of living varies widely in different areas. In many parts of the United States, 100k is a very low salary, due to extremely high living costs. For example, the government classifies a family of four with an income of $149,100 as "low income" in San Francisco, and thus eligible for government welfare benefits.[1] The median house price in San Francisco is currently $1.3 million.[2] An average 776 square foot apartment (which is rather small for a family of four) rents for $3,336 a month.[3] [1] https://www.hcd.ca.gov/sites/default/files/docs/grants-and-funding/income-limits-2023.pdf https://www.hcd.ca.gov/sites/default/files/docs/grants-and-f... [2] https://www.redfin.com/city/17151/CA/San-Francisco/housing-market https://www.redfin.com/city/17151/CA/San-Francisco/housing-m... [3] https://www.rentcafe.com/average-rent-market-trends/us/ca/san-francisco/ https://www.rentcafe.com/average-rent-market-trends/us/ca/sa...
jjcm 3y ago
> After 100k, what difference does it make for one's happiness? Fairly significant depending on the location. Keep in mind that for Washington DC, the average cost of living required income is 91,388 for a family of four[0], or 76,894 after taxes. This role pays $105k after taxes. One way to think about this is this means you have $2.3k per month in discretionary funds, versus 16.5k per month of discretionary funds for a big 5 job. If you're considering retirement, you'll achieve your savings goals 7 times faster with big tech. That's a big difference in happiness. If you're considering education for your children, you can afford private school or an ivy league education with big tech. With the government role you can't. Certainly there are a select few who will look at this and be motivated to serve their country, but more and more what we're seeing is that patriotism is at a record low[1]. If we're looking to attract the best of the best, we're culling the selection pool greatly by underpaying significantly. Relying on patriotism and asceticism is a hard thing to bet on. [0] https://livingwage.mit.edu/counties/11001 https://livingwage.mit.edu/counties/11001 [1] https://news.gallup.com/poll/394202/record-low-extremely-proud-american.aspx https://news.gallup.com/poll/394202/record-low-extremely-pro...
rockemsockem 3y ago
Where do you live that you think this comment is remotely correct? Try living comfortably in DC on $100k.
JCharante 3y ago
100k is very little.. I’d want my government workers to have enough disposable income to frequently travel abroad and experience different ways of life.

by davisr 3y ago

Why did you assume that everyone is motivated by money? After $100k, what difference does it make for one's happiness? Personally, I wouldn't want such a shallow individual working in my government.

deleted 3y ago

[deleted]

pdabbadabba 3y ago

Depends on where they're living, I guess. But in DC, additional income above $100k would make a huge difference in quality of life.

usaar333 3y ago

> After $100k, what difference does it make for one's happiness? Probably a lot. Can't raise a family in the Silicon Valley on that which makes people unhappy. This is far more of a cut than say at CZI.

mortallywounded 3y ago

That's something someone would say that has never made 500k before :)

jrockway 3y ago
Yeah, you don't have to spend it. Save it and retire early. Donate it all to a charity you believe in. Send your kids to the best school. Buy a nice home. Travel the world. The high salary only allows more options, it doesn't close any doors. (Just be careful about "getting used to it" and ending up having to change your lifestyle if market conditions change.)

antisthenes 3y ago

A lot, actually. In a country like USA, you can get slapped with $100k worth of medical bills, and keep fighting them for years. If you said $100k and a safety net (that actually works), I would agree with you.

pjlegato 3y ago

The cost of living varies widely in different areas. In many parts of the United States, 100k is a very low salary, due to extremely high living costs. For example, the government classifies a family of four with an income of $149,100 as "low income" in San Francisco, and thus eligible for government welfare benefits.[1] The median house price in San Francisco is currently $1.3 million.[2] An average 776 square foot apartment (which is rather small for a family of four) rents for $3,336 a month.[3] [1] https://www.hcd.ca.gov/sites/default/files/docs/grants-and-funding/income-limits-2023.pdf https://www.hcd.ca.gov/sites/default/files/docs/grants-and-f... [2] https://www.redfin.com/city/17151/CA/San-Francisco/housing-market https://www.redfin.com/city/17151/CA/San-Francisco/housing-m... [3] https://www.rentcafe.com/average-rent-market-trends/us/ca/san-francisco/ https://www.rentcafe.com/average-rent-market-trends/us/ca/sa...

jjcm 3y ago

> After 100k, what difference does it make for one's happiness? Fairly significant depending on the location. Keep in mind that for Washington DC, the average cost of living required income is 91,388 for a family of four[0], or 76,894 after taxes. This role pays $105k after taxes. One way to think about this is this means you have $2.3k per month in discretionary funds, versus 16.5k per month of discretionary funds for a big 5 job. If you're considering retirement, you'll achieve your savings goals 7 times faster with big tech. That's a big difference in happiness. If you're considering education for your children, you can afford private school or an ivy league education with big tech. With the government role you can't. Certainly there are a select few who will look at this and be motivated to serve their country, but more and more what we're seeing is that patriotism is at a record low[1]. If we're looking to attract the best of the best, we're culling the selection pool greatly by underpaying significantly. Relying on patriotism and asceticism is a hard thing to bet on. [0] https://livingwage.mit.edu/counties/11001 https://livingwage.mit.edu/counties/11001 [1] https://news.gallup.com/poll/394202/record-low-extremely-proud-american.aspx https://news.gallup.com/poll/394202/record-low-extremely-pro...

rockemsockem 3y ago

Where do you live that you think this comment is remotely correct? Try living comfortably in DC on $100k.

JCharante 3y ago

100k is very little.. I’d want my government workers to have enough disposable income to frequently travel abroad and experience different ways of life.