unless you are willing to spend a lot of money OR actually very high wealth it really doesn't make a difference what you make, so long as you aren't incredibly broke. I blame this mostly on social media, but unless you are able to take a girl on a nice trip, like to Hawaii or the Caribbean, or buy her expensive clothes, bags, etc. it's not really going to impress her. It doesn't matter if you are an electrician or an electrical engineer, both make relatively similar incomes btw.
In conventional dating, having an above average annual salary isn't going to mean much. While money tends to matter more in the seduction effort for men 35+ (either pursuing younger women or similarly aged women), it's only around the 95th percentile where the effect becomes more evident. This is because of the long term effects of Second Wave Feminism (1960s-1980s feminism). Millennial and Gen Z women (18-43 year old women as of 2024) had their formative years after the biggest year of Second Wave Feminism. Millennial women were raised by their Boomer parents to be self-sufficient. What did that mean? More and more Millennial women went to college, completed a bachelor's degree +, and then got jobs. DEI/affirmative action initiatives helped both white females and non-white females in the white collar workplace. As a result, Millennial women (who I have primarily interacted with since I am an older Millennial myself) have essentially become the beta male providers of past times. They are making enough money to not be that concerned about what a man can do economically for her.
As an example, let's consider a single man living in Dallas who makes $125,000 as an annual salary. That's an above average salary but it's not exceptional for Dallas or anywhere in the USA. He's in his 30s/early 40s. Let's say he's 39 to be precise. He's childless too. At that salary and as a childless man, he has either an above average apartment or a decent condominium in a central city neighborhood. These are nice bachelor pads but not exceptional.
Unless his looks are absolutely elite, this 39 year old man is likely dating women 32-39. He's more likely meeting them on swipe apps but it's possible he's doing some real life approaching. He's either doing real life approaching at bars or through some events he attends. He's unlikely to be doing typical daygame. At most, he might do an occasional approach in his gym. I think more of his interactions are swipe app ones because it's difficult to meet 32-39 year old women (especially childless women) in real life in that age range.
The typical 32-39 year old woman he's meeting from his swipe app interactions are women with bachelor's degrees + who are making something like $75,000 - $125,000 from their jobs. These women aren't going to be that impressed with his $125,000 annual salary because he's not going to offer enough money to substantially change her life. He will be looked at as a very much average prospect for them.
As for your point about taking women on trips, one 7-10 day Hawaii or Caribbean trip isn't going to make that much of a different long time. The effect of those trips has a limited shelf life. Additionally, it's not advisable to take a woman on a trip until the relationship has matured a bit (6 months +), so the ability to take her on a trip doesn't mean much. A trip sooner than that seems like something from a sugar type relationship and not conventional dating.
Most childless men 10+ years out of college aren't going to be broke either.
It's possible to be broke and succeed with women if you are on the younger side and very good looking. It's difficult to pull that off after 35.
who the hell would wanna date a career woman?
I will add though that these "career women" are incredibly fussy and have very high standards that most men would struggle to live up to. We currently are living in a culture where women are more narcissistic and materialistic than probably ever, and in combination of this they often look down upon men.
Career women are not lacking for options. Many of them generate a lot of interest if they use swipe apps. These women are also getting DMs across social media platforms, including on LinkedIn. I regularly see updates in my LinkedIn Newsfeed about woman complaining about getting unwanted romantic DMs on LinkedIn.
The types of men pursuing career women are men with blue pilled ideologies. These are the Average Frustrated Chump/beta male types. The types of men that typically don't participate on forums like SoSuave.
Career women do tend to be incredibly fussy in the dating market. They are difficult to date in general. It's easier to date a woman who has a less demanding job whose mind isn't consumed by her job. There are sometimes women with lower paying jobs with less impressive titles who are career focused too, so a lower paying job doesn't mean not careerist. There are women under 30 with lower paying white collar jobs now who are seeking to move up and will be rather ambitious/career centered. Not only does salary/title have to be considered, but also her level of ambition for the future. Less ambitious women with less demanding jobs are generally more dateable, both in shorter and longer term arrangements.
If you're making 100K or more. Why would you want to date a boss babe when you can have other/better options? I rather date a femine, fun, submissive barista who is broke than a boss babe making 200K grand a year
Men making $100,000+ have the opportunity to find other/better options than a similarly earning careerist female. There are a lot of $100,000+ earning men with both blue pilled and lazy approaches to dating who end up with some Boss Babe from a swipe app interaction for some mediocre relationship.
Men making $100,000+ are better off having the idea to date someone less ambitious with a less demanding job if they want to be happy in a longer term relationship.