Jack Dorsey does 8 hours at Twitter, 8 hours at Square daily • Hacker News Board

Re: Jack Dorsey does 8 hours at Twitter, 8 hours at Square daily

#21

Post by chunkbot » Mon, Nov 14, 2011, 3:59 PM UTC

diego wrote: post #13

lowglow wrote: post #3

I do 16 hours daily at my start-up, only get paid a fraction of the price. I'm doing something wrong.

You are. The worst possible thing you can do at a startup is plow ahead and put in hours like crazy. Just like Steve Jobs killed product lines, or an engineer removes thousands of lines of code, you can remove 100 hours from the next month if you think about it carefully for one hour.

I'm pretty sure Steve Jobs put in 16 hours a day when Apple was still a startup. I'm not saying you should do that, but it might not be wrong to.

Re: Jack Dorsey does 8 hours at Twitter, 8 hours at Square daily

#22

Post by mbesto » Mon, Nov 14, 2011, 4:00 PM UTC

goatcurious wrote: post #14

Chrono wrote: post #12

Extremely impressive but is it really sustainable in the long run? I personally do not think that working 16hr days is good for you in the long run. It is not healthy. What use is he if he gets burned out in a year or two? Not much I would wager. Sure one might argue that this pattern of long working hours is crucial in the first few years of a company. The question if he does so much more in 16 hours than he could h…

Wonder what the bankers would say to that...

Many would simply say "I'll do it for 4-5 years and then make some other junior analyst do it for me when I'm a manager".

It's a pump-dump mentality internally you know...

Re: Jack Dorsey does 8 hours at Twitter, 8 hours at Square daily

#23

Post by chunkbot » Mon, Nov 14, 2011, 4:03 PM UTC

pxlpshr wrote: post #4

Four-hour work week? Work smarter, not harder? I just don't buy those kind of ideologies if you really believe your idea will change the world. If you want a lifestyle business that provides for you and your next of kin, more power to you. And if that's the route you take, please stop trying to convenience everyone your path to enlightenment is the right way. For awhile, I found that whole movement to be quasi-religi…

If I recall correctly, Four Hour Workweek doesn't say you can change the world in four hours a week. It specifically describes how a "lifestyle business" can provide for you and let you travel many days out of the year.

Re: Jack Dorsey does 8 hours at Twitter, 8 hours at Square daily

#24

Post by goatcurious » Mon, Nov 14, 2011, 4:15 PM UTC

niklas_a wrote: post #16

Clever guy. First he builds Twitter to make sure all other entrepreneurs are busy checking their tweets. Then he starts another company without any competition.

sounds so sinister. maybe there is an agenda behind square too - making everyone open a mom & pop store or sell from a cart - leaving the field open for him to bulldoze the high tech stuff

Re: Jack Dorsey does 8 hours at Twitter, 8 hours at Square daily

#25

Post by mwbiz » Mon, Nov 14, 2011, 4:17 PM UTC

wavephorm wrote: post #7

That's impressive, but I can't understand how either of these companies are happy with that situation. It's like trying to argue a polygamist can be fully dedicated to both families.

Agreed, as a shareholder I'd also prefer to have a well rested CEO dedicated to just one company

Re: Jack Dorsey does 8 hours at Twitter, 8 hours at Square daily

#26

Post by rpicard » Mon, Nov 14, 2011, 4:18 PM UTC

wavephorm wrote: post #7

That's impressive, but I can't understand how either of these companies are happy with that situation. It's like trying to argue a polygamist can be fully dedicated to both families.

How many hours would they expect him to put in normally?

Re: Jack Dorsey does 8 hours at Twitter, 8 hours at Square daily

#27

Post by [deleted] » Mon, Nov 14, 2011, 4:19 PM UTC

gravitronic wrote: post #10

twog wrote: post #5

That is simply unbelievable, but Im not sure you can sustain a healthy life with with 16 hour work days

The key word of your post is "sustain". You may be doing it now, but the cost of the 16 hour days is going to take it's toll.

[deleted]

Re: Jack Dorsey does 8 hours at Twitter, 8 hours at Square daily

#28

Post by phren0logy » Mon, Nov 14, 2011, 4:21 PM UTC

twog wrote: post #5

That is simply unbelievable, but Im not sure you can sustain a healthy life with with 16 hour work days

I did 80+ hours per week for years in medical school, residency, and fellowship. Many people in medicine make a career of it. It's not as unusual as you think. There is certainly a fair argument to be made that it's not particularly healthy or a good idea, but I can assure you that for some people it's quite sustainable.

Re: Jack Dorsey does 8 hours at Twitter, 8 hours at Square daily

#29

Post by [deleted] » Mon, Nov 14, 2011, 4:33 PM UTC

rpicard wrote: post #26

wavephorm wrote: post #7

That's impressive, but I can't understand how either of these companies are happy with that situation. It's like trying to argue a polygamist can be fully dedicated to both families.

How many hours would they expect him to put in normally?

[deleted]

Re: Jack Dorsey does 8 hours at Twitter, 8 hours at Square daily

#30

Post by dpcan » Mon, Nov 14, 2011, 4:34 PM UTC

rpicard wrote: post #26

wavephorm wrote: post #7

That's impressive, but I can't understand how either of these companies are happy with that situation. It's like trying to argue a polygamist can be fully dedicated to both families.

How many hours would they expect him to put in normally?

I don't think it would be the hours as much as the mental focus. When I get done working for 8 hours, I'm usually with my family about an hour and a half before I can mentally break away from what I've been doing all day, and some nights my mind will always be on my tasks no matter how hard I try to refocus.

Imagine going from 1 high pressure 8 hours job to another with only a 2 block walk between them, maybe lunch. I don't know, it sounds like overload to me.