Your question applies to me. I can only speak for myself, but I wanted to be able to call myself a proper researcher at least once, and I got the PhD because I

Your question applies to me. I can only speak for myself, but I wanted to be able to call myself a proper researcher at least once, and I got the PhD because I was curious about the subject. At the same time it disillusioned me about the field, more than I expected, so the decision to leave academia was an easy one. I also realized I simply wasn't cut out for that kind of work in a highly competitive field. The pay barely played a role in my decision.