Drake Pooley, 23, lives in New York, NY, and earns $172,000 a year as a consulting associate. He earns a base of $120,000 with an additional $47,250 in compensation from his bonus, profit share and extra 401(k) match.
This is the latest installment of Millennial Money, which profiles people across the U.S. and details how they earn and spend their money.
As an associate management consultant for a top New York City-based firm, the 23-year-old spends Monday through Thursday in a different U.S. city — Chicago, Cincinnati and Nashville are all recent destinations — helping organizations come up with solutions for the problems plaguing them.
He frequently finds himself working out of hotel rooms at 11 p.m., but doesn't mind the long days. Working hard, Pooley says, is in his blood. His dad is an entrepreneur who is always coming up with a new business idea to test out. But it's his grandmother, a Lithuanian who came to the U.S. from Venezuela at 14, who Pooley most admires.
"My grandmother was actually a refugee. She was the hardest working person I ever met," he says.
On the side, he coaches Chinese college students on U.S. and Chinese employment processes, helping them navigate the beginnings of their careers in a foreign country. He charges $100 per hour and brings in around $400 per month.
"I've lived in China twice, and I'm very familiar with how Chinese students think and also the cultural differences," he says.
