151–160 of 172 posts
It really confuses to see kids with red bulls typing code all day and night. I mean, how can you think clear and be productive that way ?
You may do more, but do you do it better and deliver quality code ?
What a bunch of B.S. In fact I cannot believe it is even here in Hacker News. "Any time you have worked long hours, it is a sign of a broken process." This is a such a horrible generalization. Successful people always work hard/long hours to make something succeed. Imagine telling your kids that to be successful you should work just 40 hours and no more. They will be easily steamed rolled by other kids that are willi…
Earlier quoted context omitted.
That's a bit of a straw man. You don't have to choose between working harder or smarter. And I never said anything about happiness. Say we fork the universe now and one version of you works 25 hour weeks henceforth, which the other works 50 hours per week henceforth. Who retires with more money and more impact on the world? Both version of you are equally smart. The well-rested you might make SLIGHTLY smarter decisio…
It's my understanding that when people say "working hard" in these discussions, they aren't comparing 25 hrs/week vs. 50 hrs/week. They're usually comparing 50 hrs/week vs. 75 hrs/week. If I forked my life into a version of me that worked 50 hour work weeks and one that worked 75 hour work weeks, the 50-hour me would win, hands down. The 75 hour work week me would outright miss most of the key strategic decisions tha…
Even if you didn't assume that, there is still an underlying assumption that working harder and getting more more money will in the long run make you happier than working shorter hours and having less.
What a bunch of B.S. In fact I cannot believe it is even here in Hacker News. "Any time you have worked long hours, it is a sign of a broken process." This is a such a horrible generalization. Successful people always work hard/long hours to make something succeed. Imagine telling your kids that to be successful you should work just 40 hours and no more. They will be easily steamed rolled by other kids that are willi…
You shouldn't counter one "horrible generalization" with another, such as "Successful people always work hard/long hours to make something succeed."
Earlier quoted context omitted.
What if a competitor just launched a feature that will put you out of business if you don't implement the same thing in 48 hours? Even if we stretched the 48 hours to 48 days, I am pretty sure this has never happened.
Facebook suddenly rushing out stuff as Google+ launches. Reddit having to work crazy to take up the exodus from Digg. That bookmark service that did great out of the del.ici.ous fiasco (sorry I honestly can't remember your name!). Perpetuum having a mass of new players because of the Eve monocle incident. I'm sure others can think of times when one business has had to react rapidly to either manoeuvres or failures of…
Earlier quoted context omitted.
It's my understanding that when people say "working hard" in these discussions, they aren't comparing 25 hrs/week vs. 50 hrs/week. They're usually comparing 50 hrs/week vs. 75 hrs/week. If I forked my life into a version of me that worked 50 hour work weeks and one that worked 75 hour work weeks, the 50-hour me would win, hands down. The 75 hour work week me would outright miss most of the key strategic decisions tha…
And you're STILL assuming that the 75-hour work week you would not get a severe case of burnout and turn into a 0-hour work week you for a year, after which going back to the regular schedule would simply not feel like an option. Even if you didn't assume that, there is still an underlying assumption that working harder and getting more more money will in the long run make you happier than working shorter hours and h…
If you con me into working 75 hours a week for 70k, I'll burn out when I realize I've been wasting my time propping up a loser.
I'd imagine most people are the same. Pay them enough, and they will cope with terrible conditions. Con them, and they will lose interest a lot faster.
That's the only reason I work long hours.
I'm lucky, I can't remember doing overnight or weekends, but for the first time we will have to do, but I'll get paid 50% of my salary for two extra working weekends. It really confuses to see kids with red bulls typing code all day and night. I mean, how can you think clear and be productive that way ? You may do more, but do you do it better and deliver quality code ?
Those kids are learning and will probably make a success of what they are doing. The payoff comes later.