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Comment by emdowling | Hacker News Reader

Couldn’t agree with this post more. I left Australia 6 years ago and work for a FAANG earning 5x-7x in London than I would in Australia as a PM.

Most Australian tech companies are mundane and boring. They lack ambition because the base quality of life is just so damn good.

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> They lack ambition because the base quality of life is just so damn good.

Do you really see this as a negative?

I guess if you plan to retire early and come back then earning a lot of money makes sense. Personally, the comments make me rather want to relocate to Australia.

This is exactly my plan. Another 6-7 years in London, then back to Australia. I love London and my life here - I’ll be able to move back to Australia when I’m 40, have a high quality of life and be in a strong financial position relative to my peers.

This, and Google in Sydney vs London for the same role certainly does not pay 5-7x. Sydney L5 SWE is around 300-350K AUD total comp. If an L5 SWE in London gets 1.5M I'll eat my hat :)

Do you know how much of that comp is actual cash and super?

TC (total comp) does not include super - it's made up of base, stock and bonus. It allows you to somewhat compare against sites.

Well, I see some of my friends who just chill and make 400k for some FAANG and living pretty sad and pathetic lives. They are content with mediocrity. They have good jobs and make good money but will never earn great money and will never have great jobs. However, they are happy and content, which is more than I can say.

But then, sometimes I think I am the sad one, because I always want more and will never be happy with anything I have.

I've meet people who totally agree with my mindset and those that agree with my friends mindset, it really does seem to be a fundamental difference among people.

What makes their lives sad and pathetic to you? What do you do that is so interesting?

> But then, sometimes I think I am the sad one, because I always want more and will never be happy with anything I have.

I can relate to the concept and have to work hard on taking time to appreciate what I have - I call that mindset 'inherent dissatisfaction' and personally found it poisonous, but realise that's probably not the case for everyone.

Saying 400K isn't great money is indicative of the massive wealth that the tech bubble has. Y'all are priveledged. I can't wait for remote work to spread those salaries across the globe. I will out work your friend for less that half that price. And I know countless more like me.

Yeah you probably will. There's no doubt about that.

'happy and content' <> 'sad and pathetic'

I'd say you're chasing mirages and building sandcastles and look down upon the lazy neighbors who just watch the sunset.

Every time I have a friend chasing money rather than happiness, I send them this...

https://bemorewithless.com/the-story-of-the-mexican-fisherma...

Not at all. I see it as a great thing! But I love London, and actually enjoy being career-focused right now. It satisfies me in a way that Australia did not. I definitely plan to move back in 6-7 years, and will be in a strong financial position when I do. Win-win.

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