Most $ for your talent

If your goal is exceptional compensation, then you need to cultivate talent that's rare, in high demand, and visible and legible to hiring managers and execs. This typically involves deeply specialized or cross-discipline training, continual practice, and public demonstration of your skills through recognizable achievements, projects, or networking within your industry.

But that isn't sufficient. You also need to strategically position yourself at a company and a role with the machinery, team, capital, and market to effectively translate your specific talent and energy into revenue, or at least investment. Imagine you are a brilliant mathematician or computer scientist -- your earning potential will be far greater at a well-functioning quant trading firm like Jane Street than, say, at a local bank, Walmart, or the US government. Or to use an F1 analogy - it isn't enough to be a top-notch driver, you also need a great car, manager, pit crew, and sponsorship. You don't want to be a fast driver in a slow car. 

Ultimately, you'll be paid more if you can differentially make more $ for a business, with high confidence. And that's a function of both your relative talent (basketball's "Value Over Replacement" or VORP) and the right role to provide you leverage. 


Notes: 

1. Of course, compensation is only one aspect of a fulfilling job and life, and maximizing compensation isn't the same as maximizing fulfillment or joy in your life.

2. Businesses with high people-leverage are also incredible careful about how they fill each seat, and are ready to pay more for incremental talent because of the, say, 10x incremental revenue it affords them.  

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