To think a lot of people earning 6 figures aren’t actually that smart, just lucky?

[SnarkyDenimFox]

I’ve met plenty of high earners and honestly, a lot of them don’t seem any sharper than the rest of us. Right place, right time, right connections. AIBU to think it’s often luck, not talent?

I work in an industry with some very very high earners (7 figures for some). I'm not one of them sadly!!
They are clever people for sure, but what they're really good at is networking, knowing people and bigging themselves up constantly on LinkedIn. They will tell you how brilliant they are at every opportunity (sometimes in a subtle way but this is what they do).
I suck at networking and linkedin so I don't think I'll ever be hitting that type of salary.

Snap! Live in Cornwall, (used to - retired now) work all over the UK and EU.

Of course background and luck play their part: the cultural capital advantage is a huge factor in traditionally high paying jobs. This is partly why the City has been so difficult for many people historically because it’s very much about being the “right sort of person” with the right sorts of networks and social pursuits (cricket/tennis etc).

But I think there are some innate skills needed too. I do think a lot of it boils down to:

a) personality and soft skills - the ability to read a room, to be diplomatic and to build relationships is huge in these sorts of roles. A person who is super intelligent but lousy at people skills is going to struggle with managing people or handling clients. You do need to be emotionally intelligent and confident.

b) resilience and stamina - six figure salary jobs involve a heavy time commitment. Someone who prioritises “work life balance” over money is likely to struggle to step up in this position. Which is partly why so many women baulk at the demands when trying to manage children.

c) ability to manage competing challenges: these sorts of roles require ruthless time management and good delegation and you need to have people around you who can rely on and not try to do too much of the work which will bog you down.

I dunno. My late husband made his rep before Linkedin existed. I could imagine many high earners reading your post and going "if only it was that easy" I think in the main, the people who emply/headhunt high earners will need more solid proof than self posts on linkedin!

No it varies. 6 figures here. 26 years of very hard work and overachieving at school, uni and in work. Constantly striving. Educating myself to the eyeballs. And always taking a chance and pushing myself into situations that meant a chance of a promotion. No privilege, no inherited wealth, no private school. I’ve worked very hard. Intelligence is part of it, to achieve very high grades which were needed in my field, however I doubt you can interpret someone’s intelligence just by talking to them. It doesn’t always work like that. Emotional intelligence is also important.

Yep. My partner’s like this.
He has got a book called ‘Why C grade students manage A grade students’. It’s pretty interesting. He doesn’t earn 6 figures, but close.
Grew up in near poverty and didn’t go to uni. Got a job at 17 and worked up, worked very hard for years including in Europe.
Now a small business owner. He knows a hell of a lot about computers and IT systems but has little English skills and sometimes needs my help to write emails.
What he is : very confident verging on arrogance in his own skills, not a worrier and able to teach himself all kinds of solutions. He’s also manipulative and able to talk people into doing things. He doesn’t apologise easily and doesn’t get flustered by much. I’m just being honest!

@mrlistersgelfbride my son is like this at 27 - works in tech, not software but hardware side of things - very very good with people and solutions.he stands out in tech because he isa people person - and at all levels, from senior CEOs to a new junior - thing is he was a C grade student, literally has 6 GCSEs , a total mix of grades including A* in IT plus a BTEC in networks and telecoms. Started A levels, hated it, went and did an apprenticeship in networks and comms at 16 and has worked in it ever since. He works with people an awful lot smarter on paper, but actually he is the smart one that clients ask for

@mrlistersgelfbride my son is like this at 27 - works in tech, not software but hardware side of things - very very good with people and solutions.he stands out in tech because he isa people person - and at all levels, from senior CEOs to a new junior - thing is he was a C grade student, literally has 6 GCSEs , a total mix of grades including A* in IT plus a BTEC in networks and telecoms. Started A levels, hated it, went and did an apprenticeship in networks and comms at 16 and has worked in it ever since. He works with people an awful lot smarter on paper, but actually he is the smart one that clients ask for

@mrlistersgelfbride my son is like this at 27 - works in tech, not software but hardware side of things - very very good with people and solutions.he stands out in tech because he isa people person - and at all levels, from senior CEOs to a new junior - thing is he was a C grade student, literally has 6 GCSEs , a total mix of grades including A* in IT plus a BTEC in networks and telecoms. Started A levels, hated it, went and did an apprenticeship in networks and comms at 16 and has worked in it ever since. He works with people an awful lot smarter on paper, but actually he is the smart one that clients ask for

No idea why my posts are multiple posting by the way - weird!!

I don't mean it's the only reason, but certainly there is a direct correlation between highest earners in my industry and their own ability to network and self-promote.

I am interested in how you know "loads" of people that earn 6 and even 7 figure salaries given that only around 5% of the population so about 1.3 million are in this catergory. Guess you live in London?

They are well connected. We still live in a deeply hierarchical society with your class position at birth dictating your position in life. Some escape that but social mobility is increasingly rare as people pull the ladder up to preserve their own advantages.

I guess it depends.

I think this is a fair enough observation. It’s certainly not a straightforward intelligence and drive = success. There’s also this common misconception or cultural belief that high earners are somehow superior as humans..
I think it’s the classic means, motive, opportunity that ultimately dictates how people end up high earners, and all 3 must be fulfilled. So 1) means? Like others have said, you must have something - be it privilege, family backing and guidance, or a real special intelligence, or excellent people skills and strategic acumen, or simply a really attraction persona. Or maybe a combination of these. 2) Motive - you can have all the means but do you actually want to be a high earner? Do you aspire for “success” in that way? Inevitably is most likely going to mean work comes first - potentially sacrificing personal aspirations. Basically does it matter all that much to you? You can have all the means in the world but if you don’t really what to, it won’t happen. And finally c) You can have means, you can have motive, but if opportunity does not present itself, and that can very easily happen, then it wont happen. And I guess that is in part a bit of luck - so yes I would say luck is part of it!

I also reckon that a lot of people who want to make the world a better place and help people won't be happy in the jobs where you get that sort of money.
Its a shame these professions are not valued and paid more as people who are in them are very talented. Having a high income has nothing to do with being cleverer . It's more about confidence, which often stems from childhood and therefore can be attributed in part to the opportunities one received as a child/teenager.

Yes I live in London, but I know a lot because I have a senior role in a big professional services firm. A significant % of staff are on 6 figure salaries, many of the partners are on £1m plus. If required, I could write a list of 100+ people in the 6 figures plus category, no problem.

My Dh is lucky enough to be earning six figures and he openly admits that he was in the right place at the right time.

He left school with terrible results so no university or further education. He had a few unskilled jobs before getting the opportunity to be a labourer and trained from there. He’s worked for the same company since and his job is paid extremely well because there’s not many people qualified across the country but yet the trade they do is vital.

I know it’s unusual for tradesmen that are not self employed to earn a high amount and his friend who was offered the same training but declined kicks himself now, they couldn’t have known at the time how in demand they’d be and the full earning potential.

So if you asked my Dh he’d agree with you OP, it was definitely luck for him but I don’t think it’s a one size fits all situation, others in different industries study and work hard to make a good career for themselves.

It's another world! I have just retired from the NHS (mental health) and a ward manager can expect to be on £43k to £55k p.a and as you can imagine it is a very reponsible role. Psychiatrists and psychologists can earn 6 figures but I never knew any who did

MN and the obsession with earning 6 figures. I don't earn 6 figures. I don't care if others earn 6 figures. I'm just trying to raise my DC as best as I can without doing them damage. If I succeed, THEN I will consider myself lucky.

6 figures is also not that rare or impressive. I can't wait for the 7 figures threads 🙄.

Some companies promote people
just to get them out of their department and make them
someone else’s problem.

It does get annoying. Fact is you don't need 6 figures to live comfortably in many areas of the UK. I'm in the SW and have never paid more than £750 a month for our mortgage payments, with a net household income of £4k. There's no way I'd bust a gut to commute to London even though it's only 90 minutes away.

I’m also working class, and on six figures from my early 30s. Quite a few people I know are also, both among my friends and among my peers. I’d say more are of normal backgrounds actually at my workplace, if I think about it. I think it does a disservice to think or make out that it’s some unobtainable unicorn.

To answer the main question, I’m not especially clever, probably pretty normal. But I’ve worked very hard to keep upskilling, moving, networking etc, very long hours for the first decade of my career. My partner also earns six figures and has moved countries, worked most of the week in a different country for months to help with a client, and had to go on a long distance business trip a couple of weeks after our second baby was born. I think it’s drive and tenacity in part, rather than pure intelligence, and being seen as a safe pair of hands to just go away and get things done

You don’t need to bust a gut or commute to London to earn 6 figures though. I do neither.