It seems like the others are catching up with the engineers . So I do not think you need an analytic mind to amass a decent fortune just LBYM or have an inheritance. I lived below my means and amassed a decent portfolio on a R.N's salary while putting two children through private colleges.
As a geek, I cannot agree with you more. There are different types of geeks, but the engineering geeks tend to get higher starting salaries. However, their pays tend to top out too early, compared to doctors or lawyers. To make more, they have to go up the management ladder, but then they would cease to be geeks. They become businessmen, who have a different kind of analytic mind.
In my circle of "true" geeks, dare I say, a high percentage does not know much about investing. What helps them is that they tend to be LBYM'ers and good savers. Why are they not savvy investors? May I propose this theory based on my observation of cohorts.
Engineers, like scientists or mathematicians, like
things to be precise. Duh! How else can you get
things to work reliably? You have a certain idealistic model of the
things you like to build, and you want the real
things to be as close to your ideal model as possible. Luckily, they usually have
things "under control". They can conduct experiments and controlled tests, and they can refine the manufacturing process to make
things better and better. The price for the degree of perfection goes up exponentially of course, but usually
things can be improved to a satisfactory level. You can't sell your
things otherwise!
But the technical geeks are dealing with inanimate objects. Economists do not have the same luxury. We are dealing with humans who make willy-nilly decisions here. We are also dealing with politicians, for crying out loud. Engineers run Monte Carlo simulations all the time. However, their simulation end results, right or wrong, look nothing like that of FireCalc. The engineer's job is to make sure that the
thing he works on will converge to a happy ending, and not end up as a scattered plot. Not acceptable! You are fired!
As an example I am now making up, suppose you show an astronaut a state variable plot that looks like a FireCalc plot. The astronaut would immediately get interested, and try to understand what the heck that is that looks so helter-skelter before he climbs into that capsule again.
Some geeky minds just cannot deal with the chaotic and unmodelable aspects of society. They called it illogical, irrational, and tend to flock to something they falsely perceive as safe and tangible. They mistrust the stock market, and do not believe that the game favor is on the investor's side. So, the geeks tend to have a comfortable life due to their reasonable income, but do not do as well as they could have.