I wrestle with this frequently as I am on the cusp of Senior to Principal promotion. Principal means more money but diverting from my preferred sweet-spot of tactical and strategic technical leadership.

The optimal answer for me is to stay at Senior level and enjoy my work to an extent. But I am forgoing the related compensation increase and career progression.

Then my thoughts turn to working for myself or with other friends/associates I trust and potentially seeing more of a reward for the effort I put in every day.