I have advice for those folks, young and old, who work in a professional corporate environment. NEVER expect a company is there to take care of your needs intentionally. Companies primarily exist to serve the owners (shareholders). What this means is you need to take charge of your own career. Sounds selfish and it unabashedly is. Don’t like what you see where you are working and see no hope for improvement (if you are being honest)? Go look elsewhere. Early in my career, I jacked up my salary and position level super fast. How? I am no genius but I quickly figured out that by changing jobs frequently, I could bump up my salary in 15-20% increments easily and get a higher level position much more quickly by leaving than staying in one place. As a side benefit, changing jobs frequently taught me a lot… how companies really work, how to know what I like to do (and don’t like to do), how to spot a good boss and culture (vs. the alternative), how to position myself on the inside for faster/bigger raises and promotions and more interesting work. Bottom line… as employees, we really need to think as independent contractors. Take care of yourself first in the corporate world just as you can trust companies, as an economic entity, to take care of itself first. I never bitched about it. I simply figured out how things work and put it to use to my own advantage when I was as young as the Gen Z in this article. That is how I provided a better life for my family, prepared myself to eventually retire, be charitable on my own terms, etc. (all the things that money can buy). BTW…. This has been relevant in the corporate world for decades. It is nothing new.

Also… realize not all employees are equal. Face the fact that there are some who may be smarter or faster or or more productive than you or be in more important roles in the company than you. I was never the smartest or fastest but I figured out how to work hard and be valuable. Others actually may be worth more than you to the company. This is not to denigrate you. We are all deserving of equal civil rights but we, contrary to the parable, are not all equal. In a good corporate environment, those that are better or more useful will get more — and this may not be you. This is not to say that sometimes those undeserving don’t get more. Remember my advice about owning your career… if it can’t be fixed, leave.

Here’s another possibly useful tidbit… in looking for a job, seek a position in a group whose role is critical to the company… being in some secondary, backwater team means you are in a place that is not important. In such a spot, nobody really cares if you come or go. Being in the wrong place even in the best company makes it harder to get salary increases and promotions and makes you more susceptible to being laid off early.