High Earners on MN?

[BitOfFun]

How? The actual leader of my county council doesn't earn more than £100K- where and what are all these super-maxed out occupations? I genuinely don't understand how mumsnetters (often relatively young) access these magic jobs I've never heard of.

YABU- they are there for the taking, you just made poor choices

YANBU- people here are very creative and there's an outside chance they may be lying exaggerating.

I also agree with Frazzled, there’s nothing wrong with having a normal average wage. I wouldn’t say I actively sought to have a high salary, it’s more that I started on a career path that pays well and I didn’t accept a drop in salary when I changed jobs during my career.

At the same time, I don’t think we should be shy about acknowledging higher salaries exist and girls shouldn’t feel like they can’t achieve those sorts of salaries. I never would have thought it possible myself and feel I’ve been lucky not to have turned away from this path at an earlier stage in my life.

I work in recruitment, trust me they are there for the taking!

Sorry to elaborate - I’m not one of these mega high earners but I recruit people who are into these roles.

I don't know whether to be annoyed that my younger self was so flipping idealistic. I studied law but worked in noon-profits before moving sideways into HE, so at 46 I earn in the high 30s and don't expect to earn more. I know there are some charities where the top figures earn quite well, but that doesn't sit right with me either. Single parent, with very little financial input from the other parent and I'm geographically restricted.

I don't think I could have made very different choices based on financial reward. Would appreciate more financial freedom now, of course, but I wanted other things more.

My husband used to work in commercial refrigeration. He would bring home over £100k and this was in 2000-2005 so a while ago.

Who would have thought commercial refrigeration was so lucrative. It just wasn't worth doing a normal job even though he was qualified.

Sometimes it's a specific market that's is lucrative. I knew of people around that time earning up to £120k as an independent experienced plumber/ gas engineer in London. They were leaving their £75k Jobs the southwest in droves to earn more in London. I know this as my friend owns a large electrical company and just couldn't recruit or retain engineers at that time. Long hard days but worth the income.

"My husband used to work in commercial refrigeration."

Is his name Bob Vance?

Girls need to hear from women like me to understand that they can achieve the high flying careers and the high salaries. They need to know that their options are more than marriage, babies and part time roles and an unfulfilling life if they don't want that

Ahh, yes. Let the girls know won’t you. Because having children and working PT is just a boring, lifeless lump of shit that nobody should aspire to

YANBU, you can be whoever you like online as no one knows how unimportant you really are in reality, 100k or not.

I never realised there were so many detached homes until MN informed me of this.

Over 700 posts and I still don't understand why any woman who says they're a high earner is automatically assumed to be a fantasist?

I have become rl friends with about 15 mumsnetters. So far, everyone has turned out to be who they said they were. Maybe it's my naïveté but I assume that most people posting knowledgeably on a thread about "high earners" are in fact.....high earners

I earn +£300k pa. Doesn't make me rich by naice London suburb standards. Btw the reason there can seem to be so many high earners here is that posting on a thread like this is a way to feel smug. But the quid pro quo is less family time and more pressure, so it's not all good.

Dh teacher £74k
Me psychotherapist (self employed £5k a month but last employed job was £65k, same industry)

London

I’m really interested in the posters saying they’ve got to a level of seniority where they don’t have to work so hard. I’m in early 6 figure bracket and probably getting to the stage of looking for my next move in the coming year or two, but with a small DS and pregnant I’m scared to rock the boat and possibly end up in an unmanageable situation. I can just about manage now, it’s certainly not easy yet although I do have quite a lot of autonomy and don’t work until 11 every night like I did a few years ago. But this is how women’s careers stall I guess!? Any tips or advice would really be appreciated.

I’d say the majority of people I know are on 60-90k. A handful over 100k. I earn 85k and I’m 35. I also have friends who think earning £20k would be a lot more than they could imagine and make a living by working in Tesco and topping up with tax credits and housing benefit. In fact I’m probably a lot worse off in terms of debt! It’s all relative as well. 70k probably sounds decent to a northerner - it would just scrape you a mortgage for a 1 bed with no garden and you’d still have to put up 50k deposit. Doesn’t seem like such a great salary now does it?

@UncleBunclesHouse

1. Moved within same company. Would not move to another company with small children at a senior level. Only plan was to prove myself for the actual job hired for. This was at home country.
2. Transferred to the UK at middle management/GM level and focused on company processes and culture
3. Within first two years at this role(executive), solely established trusted teams and act more in an advisory role - note this back at home country.
4. Down side, personal drive decreased.

@MrsKramer

I earn +£300k pa. Doesn't make me rich by naice London suburb standards

It makes you extremely rich by any standard. It puts you well into the top 1% of earners. But, hey, you aren't rich

@icedgem85

I’d say the majority of people I know are on 60-90k. A handful over 100k. I earn 85k and I’m 35. I also have friends who think earning £20k would be a lot more than they could imagine and make a living by working in Tesco and topping up with tax credits and housing benefit. In fact I’m probably a lot worse off in terms of debt! It’s all relative as well. 70k probably sounds decent to a northerner - it would just scrape you a mortgage for a 1 bed with no garden and you’d still have to put up 50k deposit. Doesn’t seem like such a great salary now does it?

You don’t seem to know a mix of people then if the majority of people you know earn £60k minimum. Given the average wage is just over £29k, and that of course includes the south.

It’s not a true reflection of society

unclebunkle

I would probably not move in your position. Not with small dc. The effort you will need to put in to make your mark in a new company would i think necessitate a lot of hard work.

Most of the high earners i know have got to the point of not having too much to do in their day to day because they've stayed at the same place and done the work to show they are needed there over a few years usually before they had dcs. I did that and actually have had some crazy work hours while having kids but within a company i know and that knows me so I'd get the sort of flexibility i imagine you don't walk into a new job expecting.

It's bloody hard. I have contemplated moving on for a big jump or a promotion to next level but with 3 primary aged dc i have to be realistic about how much i could honestly give to a fresh company that might be expecting me to make waves!

@Ifloviescare

In the previous financial/tax year, I earned an equivalent of about £500k and my husband makes even more as a senior counsel in international law.

To be honest, on a day-to-day, I don't have as much to do. The pressure is only I take the final responsibility for the division I head.

I have more freedom/flexibility/benefits than most would imagine as others on the same level in the company I work for.

What is your profession @ifloviescare? Is this including benefits/shares or base salary? This sounds like an absolute dream!

I know theres been a lot of discussion on the credibility of this thread but I personally find it very motivating in its pushing me in the right direction. I'm on a low salary but just applied for a promotion at my work place as well as studying independently for a non related subject and just passed my first exam! 🤛 Ultimate goal is to qualify in this new subject, work my way up and after a few years start my own company on the side until the stage were I can solely work in my own company

I work at a large prison in the north west employing hundreds of people and even our governing governor doesn't earn £100k.

My full time salary would be over £60k, and everyone in my team earns at least as much as me. I know a few people who earn more than that but most of the people I know earn around £30k.

By the way OP, unless your county is tiny, its very unlikely that the leader earns less than £100k. Have you looked at their accounts as these things are disclosed - a county council will usually employ several members of senior leadership earning £150k or more, they will also likely employee some headteachers earning approaching £100k.

I earn 600 per day as an IT developer (contractor). So 130k ish based on working 220 days a year. Technical work but rarely work more than 7 hours a day, no real responsibility, nobody to manage etc.so I can't even say i work hard to get it. Although I have made sacrifices and had long stints of working away from home to get where I am.

My house is worth less than my yearly salary so you wouldn't guess to look at me.

@UncleBunclesHouse I certainly think staying out is a key reason why women’s careers stall. Only you know your situation and opportunities at your current workplace.

My experience: I only found the drive to find a new role no matter what the consequences when I was looked over for promotion and lesser bonus compared to other favoured team members (mates with the male bosses) which finally tipped me over the edge. I’d known for a while I was being held back there but I had a lot of flexibility and trust, I was comfortable, had small children and only just coping, the usual. Maybe I got lucky with my new job, I think I definitely did in some respects, but it wasn’t just luck - job hunting with everything else going on was really really tough. However it all worked out. I find I have just as much flexibility in the new job, I received a huge salary increase on joining which is soaring as time goes on, I have tonnes of respect and investment from my boss and senior folk. Life is really good. Working hours are generally fine although sometimes (like now), I do have to put in a lot of hours that stretch through the evening, however the kids are much easier now. I’m so happy I didn’t stay out put of fear of how a new job might affect my family. It can never be worth the demoralising experience of not being valued and developed.

@Rapunzel91

About 40% of that is bonus/share scheme.
I have a 4 year degree in IT and MPhil in business law.

Started in statistical analysis for first 10 or so years, took about 2 years out for an MPhil full time, back at a new UK listed financial services company in strategy analysis.

*staying put

@UncleBunclesHouse my experience is identical to that of @Autumnchills
I got to a very low point in my job and it was very demoralising.
However I would actually say it was fine until the last year or so and still worth it because I took an extended time out when I had the DC and also took a couple of leaves of absence while they were very small. And worked very part time for a while. That place allowed me to do that and for that I am grateful. I probably stayed 2 years longer than I should have. But it’s ok. I’m in a good place now but I feel I now need to catch up with my ambition.