Tech employees’ RSUs slid in 2022–and so the wealth plummeted.

Most of us in tech are “first generation” — first to go to college, first to be an engineer, first to be paid in RSUs. Most of the salary is paid out in stock, making our career’s biggest wealth management decision.

Tech companies use RSUs to attract top talent, with the potential for major stock appreciation in the future. If the company did well, then stock would increase, and thus boost the total compensation.

An entry-level PM at Google in 2002 got about 10,000 shares, which today, 20 years later, is about $27 million.

The current bear market of 2022 should be an awakening. With the current downturn in stocks, we are seeing this narrative unravel. To give you an idea of how much your stock compensation could have fallen if you joined one of these companies at the start of 2022, here are some year-to-date performances of major tech stocks through 23 June 2022:

• Netflix NFLX: -71%
• Wayfair W: -74.26%
• Meta META: -51.62%
• Cisco CSCO: -32.48%
• Amazon AMZN: -35.08%

We can no longer assume stocks will go up like they have in the past. A major shift in mindset toward stocks and investing is necessary for building wealth. Waiting for the market to turn around is no solution. We need a better strategy than waiting and hoping.