Post by Ehsan Ali

Senior IT professionals don't lose $500K in one big moment. They lose it quietly, and most don't see it until it's too late. $40K accepted below market. Three years in that role. One promotion cycle missed. Two years on the wrong project. One opportunity that never reached you, because your network had no idea what you were going for. That's not a bad year. That's $500K. Gone quietly. No dramatic moment. No single bad decision you can point to. Just reasonable choices, made by a capable person, under pressure. The salary leak. The project leak. The LinkedIn leak. The negotiation leak. The staying-too-long leak. And the belief leak underneath all of it. Issue 17 of THE SHIFT breaks down all six. ♻️ Repost if someone in your network needs to read this. 🔔 Follow Ehsan Ali for weekly insights on senior IT career growth.