This really is an insightful article and I must admit it's bad for my ego! *nerd cackle*

But seriously though, you might be wrong where you said certain titles are not given to newcomers because I assure you - they are. Maybe not in your country where competition is tight, and only the best of the best actually are allowed to do anything, but in countries like mine, where 90% of organizations are still buried in mountains of paper-based bureaucracy.

Sometimes companies are just so hungry for new blood they nab it straight out of the cradle. Fresh out of uni, I've been assigned at least 2 of the roles you mentioned there above. At this point I've acted as four or five of the above. I definitely am not the best there is, surely, and I have a lot to learn, but being in these roles live and direct, and given a chance to put what I've learned into practice, I have learned SO much. Experience is best served fresh. Maybe the hard way too, but I need to say this - sometimes throwing a newbie into a big responsibility job can teach them more than any classroom or any 'Miscellaneous techie' job can. It forces you to research hard, and work even harder because the people you work for know exactly what they want and know exactly what you're supposed to do for them. Being young means that they don't leave you up to yourself - eyes are on you always. Being a newbie as they say means that they expect you to fail. Nothing is more rewarding than showing them you won't.

On that subject of rewards, I'm willing to bet half my pay that my actual pay is at most half the pay of people with positions where you are - so I imagine what you're talking about is a different requirement from a different world altogether. It's not because I'm new or young, it's that IT jobs aren't taken 100% seriously around here. People believe the traditional way that 'worked for x number of years' is the best way, even if it's the wrong way. Therefore people who come in as IT professionals are seen as invasive folks who are trying to change the wonderfully repetitive atmosphere a company might have going. Respected over here? Far from.. it must be nice to be so loved in this industry. lol! So there it is. I won't dispute what you say but please believe that what's written here doesn't apply everywhere.

10 Most respected jobs? Dunno, up to the beholder. Most challenging jobs ever? Maybe. Most enriching jobs? - 100% sure.