The youngest career switchers
The quiz gives this result when you say you are in a career that pays well but you want change, and you pick “earn more even if it means grinding” for the next 6 months. 449 takers have it, 1 in 30. No archetype has a larger share of 25 to 34 year olds: 41.7%, against 33.4% of the other 2,277 career switchers. 14.8% are 18 to 24 and only 11% are 45 to 54, against 19.6%.
| Answer | Share |
|---|---|
| 25 to 34 | 41.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 29.6% |
| 18 to 24 | 14.8% |
| 45 to 54 | 11% |
| 55+ | 2.9% |
They are a few years into a good career: 26% have 4 to 7 years of experience, against 18.6%, and 52.2% have 8+, against 66.5%. Fewer hold a master's degree (23.8% against 35.9%).
Growth and security behind the income goal
Growth and mastery is the core value for 19.5%, against 13.8% of other switchers, and stability for 15.4%, against 10.2%. Connection drops to 9.6% from 13.9%. In their recent jobs, solving a complex problem nobody else had cracked made 32.1% forget the clock, and people come to them to have something explained (19% against 14.6%). With money out of the picture, 17% would build or run something of their own. Every gap on this page passes a two-proportion z-test against the other 3 career-switcher archetypes (p < 0.05).
Does switching jobs pay?
Usually, yes. The Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta tracks the median wage growth of the same people over 12 months: in September 2026 it was 4.7% for those who had changed jobs and 3.4% for those who stayed (Atlanta Fed Wage Growth Tracker). The gap has narrowed from earlier years, so a switch for money pays off when the new field pays more, and the move itself adds less than it used to.
Before you pivot, find out where your current pay sits in your occupation with the am I underpaid tool. If the move you want means a short-term drop, taking a pay cut for a career change covers how to plan it.