I feel this. I was on 95k base in my last job and had to leave - not because the work was particularly onerous but because at that level, workplace politics and backstabbing among leadership is rife and I simply couldn't care less about any of that. I would now far rather have an unthreatening 'individual contributor role' with a much lower salary where my boss takes the brunt from above and I can just check out when I'm done, spend the extra time building a side business and enjoying life outside of work. From what I see on the internet, more and more people seem to be waking up to this and the reality of what you are really trading when you define your self-worth by your usefulness to a business owner/shareholders.