Is It a Step Up or a Step Down?

A director recently asked me, “Is this move a step up or a step down?”

He was looking at a principal role in a different industry. The title sounded smaller. The money wasn’t better. But the company was in a fast-growing space, with deeper technical depth.

That one question—step up or step down?—opened up a much deeper conversation. One I think more people need to have, at least with themselves.

The Real Question Behind “Step Up”

When we ask whether a job is a step up, we’re rarely talking about the work—or even the compensation. We’re talking about status.

We’re asking:

• Will this title look better on LinkedIn?

• Will recruiters reach out more?

• Will people in my network respect the move?

We don’t always say it out loud, but we feel it. In tech, perception shapes opportunity. That “perception layer”—what others think you do—often carries as much weight as what you actually do.

And while that perception can open doors, it can also trap you.

Titles Often Lie

A “Director” at one company might lead 50 people and own a P&L. At another? It could be a solo IC who reports to a VP.

A “Product Manager” at Google (L6) can earn over $445,000 in total compensation and drive key platform decisions. Meanwhile, a “VP of Product” at a startup may earn $150,000 to $200,000 with fewer resources, less stability, and less leverage. [1][2]

So, what looks like a step down on paper could be a step up in:

• Compensation

• Scope of problems

• Learning velocity

• Long-term trajectory

That was my case. I left a Senior Director title to join Google as a Product Manager. I gave up the optics of management, but gained something I valued more: deeper platform ownership, exposure to world-class systems, and higher compensation.

Was it an overall step up or down? I aimed to advance in platform projects, and at Google, I had the opportunity to work on and lead some of the most cutting-edge ones. So, I considered it a step up in terms of what was important to me.

The Three Layers of a Role

When I evaluate any new role, I map it across three dimensions:

1. Status — What the world sees (title, brand, external perception)

2. Compensation & Lifestyle — What you actually earn an how your life would be like (salary, equity, flexibility)

3. Scope of Responsibility — What you own (strategy, execution, decisions)

Too often, people over-index on one and ignore the others.

Focusing too much on compensation and lifestyle can lead to stagnation, while prioritizing scope and responsibility might lead you to continue betting on start-ups, which statistically often offer poor work-life balance, lower compensation and have a high failure rate.

And Status? the problem with status is that it’s not for you, it’s how others define your worth. But if you chase it blindly, you can end up in roles you don’t want, or ones that don’t grow you.

This happens more often than people admit.

When Status Creates Stress

Over the years, I’ve spoken to friends with big titles—“Head of AI,” “VP of Innovation,” “Senior Director of Strategy”—who were quietly unhappy.

They weren’t failing. They were just out of sync.

In some cases, they were executing someone else’s roadmap. In others, the “AI” in their title was more marketing than machine learning. The outside world saw prestige. They felt disconnected.

That gap between perception and reality can cause real stress.

Blind’s 2024 tech worker survey found that 39% of respondents self-identified as depressed or burned out [3]. While causation is hard to prove, experts suggests that title inflation and the pressure to maintain high-status optics contribute to emotional fatigue. [4][5]

When your public image outpaces your daily reality, it creates tension—and over time, that tension can turn into self-doubt, impostor syndrome, or quiet burnout.

So, Is It a Step Up?

It's hard to predict the future.

Instead, ask:

If I take this role, where could it lead in five years? Would my life be better in the five years I have it?

If it gives you:

• Stronger skills

• Better leverage

• Clearer path to your next move

• Doing what you want

• A life you enjoy

...then it’s a step up. Even if it sounds smaller.

If it narrows your options or forces you to pretend every day you care or do something you don't, then it’s not a step up. Even if the title impresses your LinkedIn followers.

Growth in what you care about is the only real definition of a step up.

How to Think Through Trade-Offs

There’s no perfect formula. Some people trade title for equity. Some trade scope for lifestyle. Some take a pay cut to work on hard problems in a rising industry.

What matters is that you know what you’re optimizing for—and that you make the trade-offs intentionally.

If you're deciding between roles, try mapping them across these dimensions:

• Status – Title, brand, and how the role is perceived externally

• Compensation – Salary, bonus, equity, and overall total rewards

• Scope – What you actually own and how much impact you can drive

• Growth Potential – Where this role could take you in 2–5 years

• Lifestyle Fit – Flexibility, work hours, location, and energy balance

• Interest Level – Whether the day-to-day work genuinely excites you

• People – What are the skills, personality, and commitment of the people you will work with?

• Authenticity – Can you be yourself in the role, or do you need to act?

Laying it all out helps remove noise—and helps you make decisions rooted in clarity, not fear.

Sources

[1] Levels.fyi, 2025 Google L6 PM compensation median: ~$445,000 total comp

[2] ZipRecruiter, 2025 VP Product (startups) average: ~$158,000/year, excluding equity

[3] Blind Tech Worker Sentiment Report, 2024: 39% reported feeling depressed or burned out

[4] Debbie Levitt, Delta CX: “Title inflation often causes impostor syndrome and morale issues”

[5] Business Insider, 2023: “Why inflated job titles are bad for companies—and employees too”