"I Truly Enjoy What I Do": 34 People With Six-Figure Salaries Shared Their Job Titles, And Some Of Them Are Surprising

For most of my life, a six-figure salary has meant that you've got it made. And even though in recent years, folks earning these higher salaries have begun to report that it's not enough, I'd still feel pretty darn rich on $100k a year.

Recently, u/mrauzzy asked people on Reddit who make six figures to share how they do it, and the replies were incredibly eye-opening. Of course, it's important to note that depending on location and seniority, these jobs can pay more or less, so they're not a guaranteed six figures. Here's what people had to say:

1."Got a PhD in physics and now work as an engineer. My background is in optics and photonics, but I do general hardware engineering on sensors in aerospace and defense. If you're a US Citizen, I think this is a good route to go. The pay at a place like Lockheed or Ball Aerospace is very good. You can expect $120K at the bare minimum if you have a PhD. That can grow to, like, $150K within a few years if you take on greater leadership roles."

2."I started by fixing other people's Excel workbooks. Then I fixed people's PowerPoints. Now I fix people's Jira boards. It turns out there are a lot of really smart people who have a hard time translating what's in their brains into something others can understand and work with."

—u/mpbh

3."Cardiovascular perfusionist."

—u/human_plumber

4."Corporate pilot. I fly mostly day trips out and back same day. Only overnight a couple nights a month. But that’s the exception. In a typical pilot job, you are away from home more."

5."Software engineer."

—u/jcity3

6."I married a nurse who makes six figures. 😂 I’m a scientist and do what I love, but probably won’t be there for a while."

—u/hipsterasshipster

7."Casino dealer."

8."Certified public accountant (CPA)."

—u/proper_pool1186

9."Construction project manager for a company that works for the uber-rich. I studied civil engineering and am technically an assistant project manager. I can expect further pay raises when I reach PM in one to two years."

—u/lonely_donut_9163

10."Data scientist."

11."Finance manager."

—u/scarneo

12."Sales."

—u/cryptographerno8232

13."Physician."

14."Digital product management. Product management is essentially overseeing the strategy and development of the product. In my case, it’s for web applications (apps, online stores, etc.). A lot of the day to day is doing research: talking to customers, understanding the market, talking to other people in the business so I understand what they need, and looking at what’s working and not working in the product. With that info, the job is coming up with ideas for what to build next and working with development teams to actually build the features. Finally, there’s a lot of analysis on whether what we built solved problems for customers and the business."

—u/lividspider

15."Employment lawyer."

—u/maddhatr00

16."Marketing director. Took me a while, but I impressed the right people."

17."Automotive component design engineer."

—u/honestottertravel

18."Veterinarian."

—u/twinsuns

19."High school principal."

20."Medical imaging. Nuclear medicine, PET, and CT."

—u/notevenapro

21."Electrician."

—u/radsalamander

22."Dog groomer. I have four-day work weeks (Tuesday through Friday), five-hour workdays (10–5, 1-hr lunch break), and Saturday through Monday off."

23."Cybersecurity consulting."

—u/shereboots

24."Court reporter."

—u/milkandcrookies

25."Aircraft mechanic for a major airline."

26."Occupational therapist."

—u/jkd-guy

27."Commercial construction, elevators. The sales people and especially the mechanics (if union) should clear six figures pretty regularly."

—u/7-2crew

28."Firefighter."

29."Tech headhunter."

—u/rtell13

30."Machine learning engineer."

—u/mikeyyz

31."I am an esthetician (professional skincare), and I own my own clinic."

32."Mid-level manager at a mortgage company. It sounds terribly boring, and also, I have been in my area for 20 years. However, if I had to narrow down actions to what I feel has turned out a successful career (especially having never finished college), it is that I am easy to work with, always positive/forward thinking, and I am a horse you can bet on (senior leaders want to know you are reliable to get done what they want, and they have little time for you to make a good impression). Also, despite the boring aspects of my job, I make the best of it and truly enjoy what I do by choice."

—u/ubetchrballs

33."Auto mechanic."

—u/right_side_of

34.And finally, "Independent personal trainer."

Do you have a six-figure job or know someone who does? Tell us what it is in the comments!