One of the good things that I think happened from the pandemic is that more and more people are realizing that tying up your identity and sense of self-worth in your job is a bad thing, that's why I'm very glad to see compensation so high on this list.
Sure, everyone wants to work in a good working environment, but I think the idea that "nobody left because of the money" is finally being put to bed.
The fact is that corporations and VCs have always realized that business is primarily just about the money, and their ability to get people to work for their "passion" has resulted in people getting underpaid. I'm always especially amused when people are expected to have "passion" when they're working at like a bank or an insurance company.
You work to make money. There are plenty of opportunities for hobbies and volunteering for passions. I'm not saying you shouldn't enjoy what you do at work, but don't lose sight of why someone is paying you to do it.
There's another side of the coin. For people who's identity was "I am X job" then maybe the comp is a reason to go get better pay and not be so intrinsically tied to it. The other side is people realizing that in many ways, that thing you are spending 40+ hours a week doing is, in some very "slice the pie" of your time ways, a large part of you. Even if it's not an identity, it's a lot of your daily existence. So spending all that time somewhere miserable is also a problem, even if the comp is great. I don't think most people need to have some hyper fulfilling work life, as it is ultimately a business transaction, but it probably should at least be a neutral feeling and not a negative one.
An easy one here is the commute disappearing. People realizing they were giving away an hour or two or three that they aren't getting back that all of a sudden they did have back. Starts putting the perspective of your time writ large front and center.
Both those scenarios boil down to balance and people being skewed too far one way or the other.
My passion is not doing stupid shit. As software developers we should be focused on automation so that we don’t have to do stupid shit.
Instead, at least in JavaScript land, it is only about tools. Automation be damned, because that means writing original code, god forbid. Thus we just do the same mistakes over and over like a mistake factory. Instead of doing any amount of self reflection we look for better tools. Rinse/repeat.
I have found quitting my job to work somewhere else means me risking what I have currently for something substantially less mature for more money and crappier benefits.
It's hard to ask broader questions without it feeling awkward though; "what do you do" is so cliched it's "approved" small talk. Whereas something like "what are your hobbies" or "what do you dream of doing" or "what motivates you" feels very personal. There are some in betweens, but they all will likely be interpreted to mean job in the same way that "what do you do" is interpreted that way (despite being open ended).
Yes, “but” company projects often reach a certain size because of the fact that they’re driven by potential profit and have large investment. Whatever hobby/volunteer task you may find, while it might be interesting it probably will not be as far-reaching as what a job could entail. (That’s not to say they couldn’t still reach a lot, e.g. thousands of downloads, just maybe not what a company project could do.)
The trouble is you soon get used to the extra money. So if you have only taken the job for the renumeration then you can become trapped in a role that you don't like but can't get out of.
Sure, everyone wants to work in a good working environment, but I think the idea that "nobody left because of the money" is finally being put to bed.
The fact is that corporations and VCs have always realized that business is primarily just about the money, and their ability to get people to work for their "passion" has resulted in people getting underpaid. I'm always especially amused when people are expected to have "passion" when they're working at like a bank or an insurance company.
You work to make money. There are plenty of opportunities for hobbies and volunteering for passions. I'm not saying you shouldn't enjoy what you do at work, but don't lose sight of why someone is paying you to do it.