I talked to some people at USDS during my time in govt. They took a 50% pay cut to serve their country. Wish more people understood a lot of civil servants often do it for the mission.
There is a sad side to my desire, I’ve told people this before in social circles and most people respond with confusion as to why I would want to do that.
The general expectation with USDS and others was that you only stay for 2-3 years. So it’s more like a temporary tour.
At least that’s what was pitched to me a few years ago when I spoke to their counterparts in the US gov. Incredibly smart, no-BS people that wanted to do good work and have high impact.
Still the only job I regret not taking in all my career.