I was at a company for 10 years. I kept thinking they were going to reward me, that this year I was going to be given all the credit I was owed… but NO. Nothing. I started at $35,000 and ended at $53,000 over 10 years. They were shit and I finally had the balls to leave.
I left for a similar company and had a decent raise. Went from mid $50,000 to $65,000. I spent 2 years at this company and it was going ok but I could see the writing on the wall. Many of the US positions were being eliminated and sent overseas.
I asked for a substantial raise and actually GOT it. I was at $80,000 before I left. A former co-worker of mine had left this company and went elsewhere. He reached out to me out of the blue and said there was an open position.
I was still pretty comfortable at my current company. I had been there for 2.5 years so I didn't really want to leave. I told my friend I'd come but salary would have to be $100,000.
Without hesitation he said fine. So, I interviewed and got the job. After 2 years at that job my salary climbed to $110,000. I was doing ok and the job was going well.
Then out of the blue another company contacted me on LinkedIn. They were looking for a director position. I had the experience for it and they were interested.
Again, I wasn't interested in leaving so I threw out a stupid salary to them. I said $170,000 and I'd come to them. Without hesitation they countered $150,000 plus $40,000 bonus…. and it's remote.
Needless to say, I jumped on it. I've been at this position for the past year and the workload is the same as it was five years ago at the old company… except now I'm remote and my salary has tripled.
The lesson here is ALWAYS be switching jobs. Fuck Loyalty. Fuck all that shit. Change jobs and update resumes after a year or two and your salary will go up so much higher.