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The 10x developer narrative is intriguing because 10x developers aren't being paid 10x (maybe more like 2.5x), yet it's held up as a personal goal. Unless you own your own company, you're basically aspiring to deliver actual millions of dollars in uncompensated value to your employer.

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I'm not disagreeing with you. If its not a personal goal you are sort-of providing uncompensated value to your employer.

But I don't see it as bing HELD up as a personal goal. I read it more as IF it is your personal goal.

"Dev skills" are like a sport for some of us. You probably don't get paid to make three pointers on your friends playing basketball on weekends but would you find it so bizarre to work on improving your jump shot?

I was programming well before anyone was paying me to. I was just bored.

I don't disagree with you either. I'm just saddened by the way we're trained to accept it as normal that Microsoft's shareholders are allowed to make a 75%+ margin on the efforts of an exceptional developer.

At least in a employee owned company (or similar structure) the extra value is being split up equitably among people who are also working towards the enterprise's success. Especially if it's really true that the way to "10x" is to boost your teammates abilities, this nicely aligns everyone's incentives to cooperate and improve.

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