I used to suffer from “tech envy.”
For the past couple of years, I kept hearing stories that went “My friend works in the Bay Area and makes $20,000 a month.”
Stories like that always made my heart die a little. If only I had studied programming! Instead, I had chosen to study a “useless” subject in university — sociology. As much as I enjoyed the field, I knew it wasn’t going to pay the bills.
So, I sold out. I sold my soul to capitalism, and pursued a typical business career.
The reality of a non-tech degree
When I first started my career in achievement-hungry Singapore, I wasn’t on my way to making 20 grand a month. I wasn’t a techie. I was doing a “fluffy” job — marketing in the cosmetics industry. (Note: I’m still not earning anywhere close to that figure).
Yes, people will always want to buy lipstick and even men are getting into the beauty game — but the beauty industry is a mature one. And, not to mention, wages are not particularly high.
Worse still, I had decided to join a Japanese company in an effort to master the Japanese language.