What type of professions earned over $250k a year?

[bunny]

Do I deserve my income? According to my firm I must because otherwise they wouldn't pay me that much. I don't see what anecdotal evidence about your grandmother and preacher have to do with that. Thanks again for a comment in which you start off by telling us all that you're a Christian and then accusing us all of acting unChristian.

I definitely think you deserve your income. I believe in a free market which means jobs that require more education or are in higher demand will get paid higher wages. But I think some people think if you don't make high wages it is because you didn't work as hard which is not true. It is because you choose a job that doesn't pay as well becasue society doesn't place a high value on it.

 

[bunny]

No one on this thread who makes $250K+ is acting as if they are better than other people.

In a previous post you stated that the lawyers in your firm don't go on the Disboards, because they consider people who like Disney plebian. Sounds a bit elitist, don't you think?

 

[Galahad]

In a previous post you stated that the lawyers in your firm don't go on the Disboards, because they consider people who like Disney plebian. Sounds a bit elitist, don't you think?

Well there a lot of folks with much lower incomes who consider Disney fans plebian. Elitism doesn't require money.

 

[brerrabbit]

If my wife was still working in her field we would be at $250k or there about. She took off to be with our kids years ago and only recently went back to work making a lot less but working in a school with summers off. We live in a nice house and do fine. I won't give anyone a hard time for what they make because that's their business not mine.

I will say this, making $250,000 a year as an individual or a couple does put you in the top 5% of wage earners in America. America which is arguably the best country in the world to live in dispite its faults. That means that you are among the 10 million wage earners in the world or in the top .2% of the people in the world. (200 million wage earners in the US est 5 billion people in the world) The numbers may not be exact but the meaning is the same you are among a very fortunate few.

Also while wages are important we must remember as the saying goes the one with all the toys in the end, wins. When it comes to money the more important question is not how much do you make, but how much do you keep. People making a certain amount of money think they have to live in the best homes, and drive the best cars and eat at the right places. In otherwords they make a lot, so they spend a lot. I know families that make a lot less than mine, and are worth 10 times what we are. They understand their lives, find happiness in them and are proficient savers.

My mother in law is 78 years old, lost her husband in 1964 and worked and raised two children on her own all those years. She is living in an assisted living facility now and I do her taxes for her. Last year during tax season I calculated her net wealth and she is worth over $700,000. She never made big bucks, but she lived within her means, saved, and found happiness in her life. She has pensions, SS, and retirement income that more than pays for her monthly living expenses and continues to save money.

So the lesson is what you earn is not nearly important as how you live, if your happy and how much you keep after its all done.

 

[LisaR]

I still think that it is very interesting (even a little amazing ) that while the estimate is that only 2.5 million tax payers out of over a 100 million tax payers (or just 2.5%) have an adjusted gross income of over $250,000, there are so many right here on the disboards.

Don't forget that the Dis Boards are also home to some of the most gifted kids, as well!

 

[Jenvenza]

I work for a large oil company. I will not say which one, but the guys that work on the floor above me, ranked in over million last year. The only reason I know, is because it was in our local paper saying how much the big-wigs here earned last year.

Become the CEO of an Oil company and you will make a lot of money!

 

[Dodie]

So, you folks think it's impossible/unreasonable/unfathomable that a working couple who were both professionals couldn't make $125K per year each, thus $250K total? That's absurd. I know a lot of professionals who make $100K or more per year.

Or did I misread the question? I'll be honest and say I didn't read the pages of responses.

 

[NotUrsula]

Big law firms pay big bucks. That was my point. The OP keeps challenging everyone and I provided that information as evidence that lawyers in my world get paid lots of money.

But you have to admit that your world is not "normal" in any sense of the word. It's tiny and very exclusive, and NOT representative of the profession in general. You *are* richer (in terms of income stream) than most lawyers, by rather a long shot. (And yes, I know your expenses are commensurately high.) There are only a few specialties that are really lucrative, and you are in one of the most lucrative corners of one of them.

I'm adding my two cents because, like a lot of attorneys and family members of attorneys, I'm trying to combat the popular misconception that becoming an attorney is a sure path to wealth. While it is accurate to say that most attorneys are not living hand-to-mouth by any means, the truth is that *most* of them do not have an annual income anywhere near $250K, so including the profession as representative on this thread's list would be a gross overstatement.

I'm going to toss in one more item that will shock a lot of people who don't know many attorneys: only those who work for larger firms have good health insurance plans. I have always been the one to carry our family's health insurance, because DH has always only been offered catastrophic group coverage, and at a very high premium at that. He also usually has not had the option to shelter his income in FSA accounts.

PS: To those who are commenting that lots of 2-income couples make a combined $250K, that wasn't the OP's question. The OP asked what type of professions earned over $250K/year. That implies a single member of that profession earning that amount.

 

[dnoyes]

Wow, read the first couple of pages of this thread then jumped to the end of it and found a fight. Not very DIS like.

I am a small business owner and make over $250K. TRUST ME when I say we will find other ways to pay ourselves.

 

[DisFlan]

I work for a large oil company. I will not say which one, but the guys that work on the floor above me, ranked in over million last year. The only reason I know, is because it was in our local paper saying how much the big-wigs here earned last year.

Become the CEO of an Oil company and you will make a lot of money!

I'd rather own oil wells. It has better job security.

 

[bunny]

I am a small business owner and make over $250K. TRUST ME when I say we will find other ways to pay ourselves.

What the Democrats are not acknowledging is that increasing the taxes on small business owners doesn't ultimately hurt the owners themselves. They increase their prices and decrease the wages they pay to keep their wages the same. So it hurts the consumer and the people who work at these small businesses.

 

[frndshpcptn]

Do we all feel adequately chastised now?

No one on this thread who makes $250K+ is acting as if they are better than other people. Most of us have taken our stand based on the following: we are paid for our time at a rate higher than a lot of other Americans. This happens because our skills are in high demand and companies are willing to pay high salaries. The skillsets we developed to earn that money came about via education and other experience. Because of all of the above, we believe that we earn the money we are paid and thus have first priority right to the money. If you want to earn the same amount of money, go get an education and experience similar to ours, and call our companies. Be willing to move to a highly populated area and pay higher living expenses, and be prepared to be in the office from 9-8. But, if you're cool with all that, I'm sure we could find a spot for you.

I thank God every day for the blessings in my life, including my good job and my great income. Don't presume that we're all moneygrubbing greedy devils destined for Hell. That's just as arrogant of a presumption as us thinking we're better than other people.

Do I deserve my income? According to my firm I must because otherwise they wouldn't pay me that much. I don't see what anecdotal evidence about your grandmother and preacher have to do with that. Thanks again for a comment in which you start off by telling us all that you're a Christian and then accusing us all of acting unChristian.

Exactly my thoughts (and experience). You said it very well.

 

[Quiksilvr]

In a previous post you stated that the lawyers in your firm don't go on the Disboards, because they consider people who like Disney plebian. Sounds a bit elitist, don't you think?

I said no one on the thread was acting as if they were better than anyone else, and I said that people I work with think that way. I also said that I don't feel that way, that I love WDW, which is why I come on the boards. So I don't really see how you can glean from that comment that I think I am better than other people?

Do I think the way my colleagues feel is elitist? Heck yes. I have to deal with it every time I go on vacation. They all think it's so quaint that I go to WDW when I could follow their examples and go to Malta.

 

[bunny]

Quiksilvr, I apologize. I wasn't directing that comment to you. Obviously you don't think people who go to Disney World are plebain or you wouldn't go yourself.

 

[Quiksilvr]

But you have to admit that your world is not "normal" in any sense of the word. It's tiny and very exclusive, and NOT representative of the profession in general. You *are* richer (in terms of income stream) than most lawyers, by rather a long shot. (And yes, I know your expenses are commensurately high.) There are only a few specialties that are really lucrative, and you are in one of the most lucrative corners of one of them.

I'm adding my two cents because, like a lot of attorneys and family members of attorneys, I'm trying to combat the popular misconception that becoming an attorney is a sure path to wealth. While it is accurate to say that most attorneys are not living hand-to-mouth by any means, the truth is that *most* of them do not have an annual income anywhere near $250K, so including the profession as representative on this thread's list would be a gross overstatement.

I understand that, and my repeated comment that only 1% of lawyers in America work in firms like mine should have conveyed that, I think. I know I'm in an exclusive club and that it's hard to get here. I know that a lot of people in the legal profession make less. I've got friends from law school who went to work for the government who make waaaaaaaay less than I do.

I could say that I just "got lucky" but that's not completely true. I got into a great law school via hard work and study for the LSAT and through college. I got excellent grades in law school via hard work and study, and made law review again by the same. All of those things put me in a position to get in the door. Was there luck involved somewhere along the line? I prefer to think of it as divine intervention, because I know there were some tests I took where I prayed that my half-baked answer was good enough, and it was.

So yeah, if any of you out there are thinking about becoming a lawyer, I could write you a book on the subject. First lesson: don't automatically assume you're going to get rich practicing law. Almost no one gets truly "wealthy" practicing law (i.e., doing well enough to where you could quit the law entirely and still have a lot of money). The only people who do that are trial lawyers who get lucky and partners at big law firms.

 

[Quiksilvr]

Quiksilvr, I apologize. I wasn't directing that comment to you. Obviously you don't think people who go to Disney World are plebain or you wouldn't go yourself.

No problem. But you're right, I think there is an attitude of superiority among a lot of people who truly make the huge bucks. Because they can get paid $900 an hour for their work some of them really come to believe that their crap doesn't stink.

 

[chrisw127]

I said no one on the thread was acting as if they were better than anyone else, and I said that people I work with think that way. I also said that I don't feel that way, that I love WDW, which is why I come on the boards. So I don't really see how you can glean from that comment that I think I am better than other people?

Do I think the way my colleagues feel is elitist? Heck yes. I have to deal with it every time I go on vacation. They all think it's so quaint that I go to WDW when I could follow their examples and go to Malta.

Quiksilvr, admit it. You want to leave that law firm.

I'm kidding you!!!!

 

[bunny]

Right now would be a good time for a lawyer joke.

 

[pr surfer]

Right now would be a good time for a lawyer joke.

A young attorney who had taken over his fathers practice rushed home elated one night.

"Dad, listen," he shouted, "I've finally settled that old McKinney suit."

"Settled it!" cried his astonished father. "Why, you idiot! We have been living off of that money for five years!"

 

[PrincessKsMom]

So yeah, if any of you out there are thinking about becoming a lawyer, I could write you a book on the subject. First lesson: don't automatically assume you're going to get rich practicing law. Almost no one gets truly "wealthy" practicing law (i.e., doing well enough to where you could quit the law entirely and still have a lot of money). The only people who do that are trial lawyers who get lucky and partners at big law firms.

It also should be mentioned that working for a big law firm, you're basically selling your soul to the devil. They own you, they own your time. Family vacation to Disney planned, but a client calls the day before you're leaving, guess who's not going on vacation, or who will be tied to their Blackberry and laptop all week? Yes, you can be wealthy working at a big firm, but you pay a family price most people aren't willing to pay and even if you're willing to pay it, it doesn't mean that you kids won't resent being bothered while on vacation.