Stop thinking that making more money is the only thing that would make people happy, or that making enough to live on and be comfortable isn't enough for anyone.

> Money still rules this world

Probably says more about you than it does the people you're talking about.

Do you honestly not know anyone who is "overqualified" for their job but happy? I know quite a few.

Have a friend who went to school for business. Realized once he started working in business he absolutely hated it. Took a huge pay cut to work for a non profit. Much happier.

Another person I know spent many years trying several different careers. Got a bachelor's degree, did work studies, job shadowed, got licences. Didn't like any of them. She is happy in food service where she works now.

Depends what your perspectives are. Money is a means to an end, and accumulating assets and material belongings doesn't lead to true happiness (just more stuff to maintain). I have a friend who has hardly anything and he is free to move around the world and do menial work in different locations, but importantly he is able to move freely and live in different parts of the world for as long as he wants, even if he has little materially.

Don't discount the value of a pension. If they make $50k/yr + 2% inflation adjustments for 20 years, they would retire making $75k/yr. Their pension would pay them roughly half that, plus the value of their TSP (401k).

If you're a 45 year old programmer and feel like you're nearing the end of your valuable career, it might make sense to take the pay cut and make the transition. The pension alone is the equivalent of adding another $1MM to your retirement portfolio (assuming 4% safe withdraw rate).

As a person who is scared by the prospect of programming into my 50s, I could see making this move. A 50% reduction in pay until retirement sounds more appealing to me than a sudden 100% reduction in pay at some indeterminate point in the future.