I left a career spanning Goldman Sachs and tech to become a hiking guide. The 75% pay cut was worth it.

"Cliff Goldstein worked in wealth management and then in tech startups. He decided to trade a salary of more than $250,000 for his dream job. Now he works as a hiking guide, on pace to earn a quarter of his old salary. This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Cliff Goldstein, 40, who is based in Upstate New York and runs Hike with Cliff. His income, his former employment, and salary have been verified by Business Insider. The following has been edited for length and clarity. In many ways, it was just a matter of time before I became a hiking guide."

"Throughout my career, I'd dreamed of working in the outdoors. But I went down the road of working on Wall Street and then in tech, both of which came with a gradual sense of dissatisfaction. I'd always thought that if I were ever in the financial position and had achieved enough in my corporate career, I could finally give myself permission to pivot."

"My love of the outdoors started early. I grew up in the Bay Area, where weekends often meant hiking, biking, and exploring California. In high school, I was an outdoor education teaching assistant, planning and leading trips for younger students. That was my introduction to guiding. At Georgetown University, I developed interests in travel and other cultures. I spent a lot of time in Latin America, spending two summers and a semester abroad there during college."

Cliff Goldstein pursued careers in wealth management and tech before choosing to become a hiking guide. He grew up in the Bay Area with a strong outdoor background, served as a high-school outdoor education teaching assistant, and studied at Georgetown with extensive time spent in Latin America. Years in finance and tech produced financial success but also growing dissatisfaction. At 38 in 2023 he used savings to pivot to guiding, founding Hike with Cliff and leading hikes in the Hudson Valley and the Catskills. He now earns roughly a quarter of his former salary and reports greater happiness.

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