That’s a tough position. I felt the same pressures when I was an SWE. The way I solved it was to go into sales engineering, and overall it was a great career choice. My product is pretty technical so there are enough challenges to keep it interesting. But at the same time I’m always playing on home turf.

I’m (usually) well respected by customers because of the reputation I’ve developed for my expertise. I’ll spend 10-20 hours each quarter per major customer to unblock their team / launch a project. For me it’s more rewarding than closing endless JIRAs.

My base compensation is less than the equivalent SWE level, but with bonuses my take home ranges from being on-par to significantly more. It comes with the intangible benefit of developing a much broader professional network.

Your mileage may vary. I consider myself extremely lucky and have no illusions about sales being a cakewalk. But if you’re looking for a way to find routine, going to into technical sales with a product you respect might be a good route.