The Emotional Obsession with 6-figures or $100K

The mythical threshold of happiness/career success of $100K has been outdated. That number doesn’t buy you the same quality of life years ago (although people still associate that number with happiness / career satisfaction).

The numbers from social media (e.g., Reddit), regulatory body salary surveys, other odd surveys, etc. don’t necessarily reflect the market, and will change by the time you get there. e.g. – Those with higher earnings are more likely to report.

This same measure also, has often NOT been adjusted for inflation throughout the past couple decades, and people still continue to use it.

There is a lot of emotion tied to this “$100K” obsession. Upper management often is ideologically motivated to keep people under it, or sees it as some special privilage. When I was in public practice I lost count of how many companies I’ve seen throw that $100,000 number in there just to satisfy someone – not $101,000, $105,000, $100,500 – but $100,000. Should come down to the job and the value it brings, and not an emotional basis.

The sad part? Employees will absolutely use this to their advantage to “gate-keep” salaries and keep them low, or lower.