I have been thinking about this for a while, since I left the abysmal land of tech (SF) after getting an equity payout at my last company.
There really is absolutely no way to get wealthy/have financial security unless you're an insanely successful entrepreneur (ie go through an acquisition), work in corporate finance, or work in real estate. That's honestly it. Oh, or if you have really rich parents and generational wealth is in the cards for you. Maybe a highly-specialized lawyer or doctor too?
I “interface” (gross, I hate that word) with lots of very successful people on a day-to-day basis, but most of my friends have “normal jobs.” Teachers, nurses, etc.
The only people with normal jobs who were able to purchase a home have rich parents who gave them money for a down payment. I am not in that group. The rest of my friends are struggling big time, working their asses off for what seems like nothing.
I got very lucky that I had equity in my last company. I was able to take that money and start a new business, which I am hoping turns into more money. That being said, I see very clearly how absolutely insane it is that the only way I was able to start a business is because I went through a once-in-a-lifetime acquisition. This is completely unfair. If I hadn't gotten that payout, I would still be living paycheck to paycheck. I still have yet to own a home.
We need people like teachers, nurses, retail and restaurant workers, manual laborers, etc. to keep our society running. Not everyone can/should be in one of these high-earning fields. Not everyone can be Elon Musk. We need a guy who loves making lattes, a car who fixes cars, kindergarten teachers, dry cleaners, etc. Society will collapse without these people.
Aside from being politically active (I am very active in advocating for affordable housing in various towns I've lived in), I struggle to figure out what I can do to help mitigate this problem. Sometimes it's just giving a great tip to my barista, but that seems so trite. Any ideas?