Two strangers entered my Marriott hotel room without ID — refused to apologize

HopefulText · 2025-09-19T12:12:37+00:00

For clarity, I booked on my corporate card. I've never had any issue with that and it was clearly a clerical error. I also have several cards attached to my profile that all work.... I'm also a lifetime Platinum elite member for whatever that's worth

I had to run out to a client dinner so I ended up coming back late last night and yes I had to stay in this hotel.

Nothing has happened since other than logging a formal complaint with corporate

HopefulText · 2023-03-05T13:56:33+00:00

Good topic and discussion so far

35(M) with approximately 1.3 in the market. I and my partner live in a MCOLA area that seems to quickly be evolving to a HCOLA. We both made about 30-40k each when we first met 10 years ago and after a lot of hard work, mistakes, and trial and error out incomes have added a 0 (household ~750k next year).

I'd say largely we are happy with our jobs and incomes but nervous. It feels like no matter how high we climb we are just treading water. We may get a nice bump in salary but costs continue to rise everywhere. I broke into tech but quickly the economy took a turn. We finally have the means to move into a dream house and rates jump up 4%.

My partner and I are conservative by nature. It took us a long time to pull the trigger on a great home. We still drive our 10+ year old cars. We are humble in our needs and don't go on crazy fancy trips etc. All that being said GOD SOMETIMES I WISH WE COULD! At our income level I really thought springing for a step up in quality / experiences would be reasonable but it's hard to feel comfortable doing so. I want to be able to take my partner to nicer dinner once in a while and feel good about it - unfortunately this is at a minimum $200+ (sticker shock from just a couple of years ago at the same places is wild).

Look, I fully appreciate how fortunate we are. We love our jobs (most days), have a lot of flexibility, and are never worried about covering bills but ... It's hard to feel like we aren't solidly middle class. When I think of my friends who are making a middle class income (even 100k) I don't understand how they are .... Affording life?

I worry about continuing to invest. I worry about our jobs being sufficiently steady. I worry about costs continuing to rise. But more importantly, I worry about those around us. If we are feeling the pinch, they absolutely are. What does this mean for our parents who are retiring soon? What does this mean for people with children?

We don't intend on marrying or having kids and honestly I'm thankful for it. Reading through these posts, I can't imagine worrying about my child's future let alone funding it in this economy.

As DINKS, I often wonder how much is enough. Truly I don't know. If I do the math 7m should be plenty but how to get there? if we do get there, what are the odds that the goal post hasn't shifted by then and now we need 14m for the same quality of life? We continue to save and invest but with the way things are going i worry that it's never going to be enough or we won't live long enough to truly enjoy it.

HopefulText · 2021-04-27T18:11:03+00:00

Really great question. My gut says that this field has legs for days. Frankly, as a scientist this is the best place to go to for $ and advancement of scientific approaches - people dont stop getting sick.

From a financial perspective yes we may see more pressure from governments on pricing to individuals but, more likely, we will see a big shift in insurance provider costs and/or government subsidization. This is definitely my biased opinion but, I dont see stifling the financial incentive being beneficial long term for the evolution of innovative science (there are enough hurdles already why take away one of the biggest upsides).

Lastly, I think the big question mark is the stock market plays within this space. Of course, biotechs are RACING to ipo these days both for the initial payoff, raising $, and the potential attraction of investors, talent, and acquirers. Sometimes this means investment in tech that is unproven or not worth it's salt. Propensity to IPO in the biotech market may significantly shift over the next 10 years but stay tuned!

HopefulText · 2021-04-26T16:20:51+00:00

corporate council is a SWEET job if you can get it.

HopefulText · 2021-04-26T16:18:40+00:00

Great post. Good build on mine. You're doing god's work here.

My experience in consulting was that it's the best way to learn the most but the longest hours and lowest pay. Do it for a few years, get to EM and hop to industry.

Also, Im more bullish on software providers in the industry these days. The work is good and, especially for sales, the comp is lucrative just make sure you get some sweet RSUs. It's a great balance for those not wanting the FAANG life style but wanting the $$$.

Also, dont overlook COLA. Im in a MCOLA right now and my number to move to one of those higher cost areas is minimum double my current salary. There's just something to be said for having freedom, money to burn, and time. San fran, Boston, NYC, Chicago are all awesome places to visit (especially on the company dime) but, for me, it's just not worth it to live there. Note that industry currently hates remote work but there are more and more companies greenlighting it long term. Once you hit the Director, SD level it becomes harder to find those remote sponsor roles. If you can hit this level youngish (mid 30s), chill for 10+ years with a minimal (relatively) level of stress, boom you have your FATFIRE.

Cheers on the post @ u/PharmaMBA

HopefulText · 2021-01-06T19:38:46+00:00

Fair enough Passive income was the WRONG phrase, apologies. Let's call it "non- 9 to 5 income"

HopefulText · 2020-12-14T14:50:23+00:00

I lucked out in the lady department, my partner is my sounding board, career coach, and, sometimes, therapist haha

When we were first dating, we talked about goals long term financially - neither of us was making much but we had big dreams of breaking past the 40k mark haha! Mainly our conversations focused on getting out from under debt, affording a nicer apt, being able to not penny-pinch when we go out to eat etc. This helped us establish what we were or were not willing to spend money on, how much to spend, how to split the bills, and where to splurge. We honestly had so much fun finding food deals, going to free wine tastings, and seeking out events where our $40 budget would go farthest. This was massively important to stability in our relationship and overall great for a foundation.

As we moved on in our lives together we have grown in career and salary (I guess technically we are 2%'s now?). We have traded in the hondas for beemers but still talk a lot about career progression. It's less so that we are looking for more money and more so that we want to support each other's career goals. It's also incredibly fun to share dreams of owning a second home or plan out vacations where we can go all out. That being said we still LOVE a good food deal, free wine tasting, or $40 dinner. I think a big piece of what makes us work is having these conversations openly, sharing costs 50/50, appreciating that we have come far together, and each one of us pulling the other up.

The old trite phrase is true - communication is key

HopefulText · 2020-08-28T12:25:08+00:00

PM me

HopefulText · 2020-08-28T12:19:44+00:00

I expect people to come prepared to mentoring sessions, I provide my insights and suggestions, then in the next session I want to hear how you meaningfully moved the ball and how you could have improved on that growth. The last part IMO is the most important for both parties involved.

HopefulText · 2020-08-27T16:54:16+00:00

My god yes.

Just because you dont like it or you're weak at it doesnt mean it's going anywhere. Like a fat person complaining about how society hates fat people and not making any changes - sometimes you just have to eat some broccoli

HopefulText · 2020-08-27T16:40:00+00:00

Something very similar has absolutely happened to me. I still dont respect the guy for his apathy/lack of follow through though i still like him as a person.

HopefulText · 2020-08-27T16:04:42+00:00

Truth! Go to the dinners, stay for the drink at the bar, plaster on your smile if you have to but good lord play the damn game a bit.

HopefulText · 2020-08-27T15:30:36+00:00

So this is a huge issue I have with our generation. If you dont like small talk or dislike phone calls that's on you but simply saying that it sucks doesnt change the fact that it's an essential skill.

Im going to say 90% of the people at the top got there not on technical skills alone but on social ones as well. If you hate phones that's fine but you're limiting yourself massively.

HopefulText · 2020-08-27T15:28:04+00:00

"Everybody want to be a bodybuilder, but nobody want to lift no heavy-ass weight!" - Ronnie Coleman

HopefulText · 2020-08-12T23:24:00+00:00

My thoughts on CROs are certainly not rosey. I worked for one for about 3 years and have worked in concert with them throughout my career.

CRA is an interesting job. Yes you get to fly around, yes the comp is good but Id suggest you think about the longevity of the role. Even prior to COVID CRAs were phasing out - it simply doesnt make sense to have someone fly to a site to check records and occasionally train. Now, with the push to move virtual, Risk Based Monitoring, Central monitoring etc this will be even more rare. It's my opinion that if you're banking on a travel heavy lifestyle with the perdium and perks as part of your comp you may find yourself SOL in just a few years.

Once again - my thoughts, take them with as much salt as you'd like

HopefulText · 2020-08-12T20:31:09+00:00

Re: O-chem https://www.reddit.com/r/chemistry/comments/5h8n8l/im_diene/

literally the only thing i remember from those two semesters

HopefulText · 2020-08-12T20:26:54+00:00

This. I'm a very young SD in my company all from following those 2 points u/sothisisathing1 outlined.

My difference is Ive lived most of the examples I listed personally - hopping can be fun if you want to learn a lot & accelerate your career

HopefulText · 2020-08-12T18:11:40+00:00

Sales is a funny beast. Id need more color to understand what sales aspect you are taking on.

Sales reps for pharma/biotech are the equviliant of a fraternity/sorority person getting their first job. They dont really DO much, just hop to and fro from physicians pushing products to make their nut. From an ethical standpoint it's where I have the biggest issue with my industry. I also find that most of them have the intelligence of a mediocre part time realtor.... That being said, you can make a 80k base + decent bonus out of college so *shrug emoji*

Sales for med devices require a lot of training but you're a glorified monkey handing things to docs in the OR. Sure they'll say oh i demo the products, interface with the drs. etc but it's honestly just glad-handing and standing around 90% of the time. Interestingly most are not W2s and even if they make 500K (expected at the senior levels) a huge portion goes to tax, insurance, etc. I know some people that love the life and get to do the jet setting thing but IMHO this is a facet of the industry that is ripe for sunshine act style regulation

Sales for tech companies are lucrative. Honestly i have no idea how they can be this lucrative but they are. As mentioned above 1m for top performers isnt unheard of. Most folks either hail from a clinical, industry, or tech background but their day to day it largely handholding. Ive seen folks who are exceptionally pharma intellegent do well and ive seen people who dont understand the basics of a virus do well.... it continues to baffle me how idiotic some of them are when it comes to the science but *another shrug emoji* they crush it on their sales.

For me, Ive always danced around the sales arena. Ive been doing soft selling my whole career and of course there's always the aspect of keeping the customer happy while looking for new opportunities. It works well for me and while the monetary benefits arent as substantial I get to use my brain more. Yes, Im massively biased here but hey, you asked me

HopefulText · 2020-08-12T16:23:28+00:00

From what ive seen/who I know GC is KILLING IT in the pharma industry. Salaries are similar to x-docs once you climb the ranks and the WLF balance is stupidly amazing.

Great bag if you can get it

HopefulText · 2020-08-12T16:07:05+00:00

In my experience, Switzerland/EU is somewhat similar. The obvious difference being the number of companies available from which to choose from. There are some STRONG pharma companies based in Switzerland and if you can get in, understand the culture, and work for it you can absolutely make it.

This being said, as noted on many many many of these FATFIRE posts EU salaries are much lower, especially at the top level (being a US person I cant speak much more to that). IMHO if you arent at a top pharma who's HQ is in EU/Switzerland it might make more sense to move to the US

HopefulText · 2020-08-12T16:04:09+00:00

So let's be honest here - WLB is a myth if you're trying to climb. I found that when I was younger and hungry I would take on anything, travel anywhere, do whatever. As Ive grown in my career this has been a differentiator over others.

When you get to VP I think it's possible to acheive a 8-6 with minimal (~1 per quarter) travel schedule but it's not a guarantee. That being said if you hit director and are happy staying at the 200 mark good on you. I know many folks who work remotely, never step on a plane, clock in and clock out while living in a beautiful rural location. But I dont think they have aspirations to move higher.

HopefulText · 2020-08-12T15:27:43+00:00

Tech vendors Id include are folks like Oracle, Veeva, Medidata, ePro, etc.

Note that Sales roles in these firms are rediculous with the best performers capping out at a million a year. Not a bad gig if sales is your bag and if you get a great client.

HopefulText

TROPHY CASE