The unadorned "developer/engineer" role[1] -- that is to say, not CTO or even Lead Engineer -- itself seems to tap out after 8-10 years, in terms of both salary and respect.
That is, in the average case, anyway. There are of course companies which pay upper-tranche (in terms of salary and respect) for very highly talented programmers who aren't in leadership or crossover roles. But these are a comparatively rarified stratum; by and large -- for the great majority of companies out there -- the "Senior Developer / Engineer" role definitely seems to plateau within about that timeframe.
So if you don't find yourself drawn to that category of engineer (and to those kinds of companies -- many truly gifted programmers I've known still pull down decidedly average salaries) -- and you find yourself wanting more salary (or respect / responsibility) -- you better start thinking of something else.
[1] Leaving aside distinctions between "developer" and "engineer", as discussed elsewhere recently, for the sake of simplicity.
The unadorned "developer/engineer" role[1] -- that is to say, not CTO or even Lead Engineer -- itself seems to tap out after 8-10 years, in terms of both salary and respect.
That is, in the average case, anyway. There are of course companies which pay upper-tranche (in terms of salary and respect) for very highly talented programmers who aren't in leadership or crossover roles. But these are a comparatively rarified stratum; by and large -- for the great majority of companies out there -- the "Senior Developer / Engineer" role definitely seems to plateau within about that timeframe.
So if you don't find yourself drawn to that category of engineer (and to those kinds of companies -- many truly gifted programmers I've known still pull down decidedly average salaries) -- and you find yourself wanting more salary (or respect / responsibility) -- you better start thinking of something else.
[1] Leaving aside distinctions between "developer" and "engineer", as discussed elsewhere recently, for the sake of simplicity.