This article assumes a lot more self-determinism than is available in practice to most people.

Beyond that many of us have been running on fumes for years, I can't lose ten extra hours every week away from seeing my family, so I can up-skill for a new variation on the same career with ultimately the same bull.

If your goal is to get a cushy high paying job you will need to make sacrifices, otherwise that job would no longer be cushy and high paying. Some sacrifice their 20s and grind an education, career, and have no kids or spouse. Others put a large burden on their spouse to retrain, you have to weigh the short term toil versus the amortized improvements over your career. And it is important to remember that luck plays a part as well. Some get lucky on their first go around and others never get luck in life. The only thing you can do is maximize the number chances you have for good luck.

It is important to live well within your means. Having an extra margin makes job and life changes much easier and lower risk. Many people’s expenses grow to their income and they paint themself into a financial corner. Unfortunately once you are in that spot it becomes much more difficult to get out, and larger sacrifices need to be made.

There are always options, and we have more opportunities and “stuff” than any other generation which has lived. Our stuff and jobs should serve us and not the other way around.

This is the point I was going to make as well. I think the article is written for high-agency people, which are rare in my experience, even in tech.

Also related: The Peter Principle: people get promoted to their level of incompetence. We think we want something but then realize the job is actually harder than we thought, so we do a bad job (or burn out).

So to the excellent points in the article I would add an introspection about the level we want to achieve and how to continue working at that level, assuming we don't hate the job.

What if it’s an article for self-determined people ?

Or meant to plant a seed of thought in someone’s mind ?

> I can’t lose ten extra hours every week away from seeing my family

I hope you find the time to make it work for you.

And , I don’t want to assume but so have found “I can’t” attitudes don’t work for effecting change in life.

Maybe work on that aspect of your personality.

What kind of advice would have been better?