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If you are useful, it doesn't mean you are valued

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Re: If you are useful, it doesn't mean you are valued

#361

Post by JadeNB »

directevolve wrote: post #258
light_hue_1 wrote: post #111

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yet the admin staff is the first to get fired and treated badly any time something changes. While faculty basically no matter how useless can never be fired. "can't be replaced" has two opposing meanings in your post.

They can’t be fired, but if they stop bringing in grants, they can face steep pay cuts and lab closure.

> They can’t be fired, but if they stop bringing in grants, they can face steep pay cuts and lab closure.

This describes the situation of tenured faculty (who are definitely who I had in mind when I referred to splashy big names), but universities have long been moving to a model with as few tenured or tenurable faculty as possible, where some instructors are full time but non-tenure-track, and others are part time (and so, for example, don't have to be paid benefits). At my university these are called lecturers and adjuncts, but other names exist. Both jobs involve renewable contracts (of different lengths), so they need not even be fired, just not have their contracts renewed.

Re: If you are useful, it doesn't mean you are valued

#363

Post by apercu »

fc417fc802 wrote: post #72
apercu wrote: post #70

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That kind of work avoidance sounds like a lot of work. Advice would be to try to find a job or role doing something you’re interested it. A lot of the subject matter of my work is not that interesting to me, and the politics and lack of any sort of vision or leadership at most organizations these days makes project work sometimes stressful. But (maybe as a survival mechanism?) I’ve found that focusing on improving ho…

> work avoidance sounds mentally draining. Procrastination isn't an active thing, it just happens. If that doesn't make sense to you that probably means you don't have that particular issue.

I do, only I've spent a lot of time the last 15 years thinking objectively about my strengths and weaknesses. I am so "lazy" that I work hard nearly every day. Let me explain.

1. Big tasks are stressful because, well, they're big. So I break them down in to components and chip away every day at them so that I am not overwhelmed. I call this taking care of my future self.

2. I love to have days where I get to wake up and do whatever I want to do that day. But I can't enjoy that freedom with bad conscious tasks hanging over my head, so I work my ass off to have those days. For example, my goal for the ENTIRE summer was to spread a yard of mulch, re-build two firewood racks, re-stack and move the logs that are in different areas to keep them seasoning, split and stack a cord of wood for next winter, lay posts for a fruit tree espalier, rebuild shed doors, cut back the wood line 10 feet. These are all already done because we had a nice weather spring. On top of that I changed the fluids on the tractor, the lawnmower, the riding lawnmower and cleaned the gutters.

3. Future proof my job. I got ISO 27001 certification in the spring during dry project spell, and I'm now doing my CCP certification. I have also made it a goal to do 2 hours of business development and networking every week.

4. I do billing on weekdays now, no longer on the weekends.

5. Exercise and sleep. Eat healthy. Don't drink alcohol. This means I wake up early and fresh and motivated to do a couple hours of early work every day. This usually means I'm done with my workday by 2:00pm.

6. Remove toxic relationships from your life. This could be friends, an employer, a client, whatever. They suck your happiness which impacts your productivity.

7. Don't keep up with the Jones's. Figure out what makes you happy. I've never cared about how people view me, I wear jeans and t-shirts mostly. Fancy cars & houses do nothing for me (I live in a great house on an amazing property in a very special area next to a city I have always loved even though it wasn't my "home", but it's not a McMansion). My car is low mileage and 10 years old.

8. Don't do ALL the hobbies. Find the one or two that you really get a lot out of and focus on those. For me it's music.

Did I know or do much of this when I was 20? no. 30? not really. Maybe some of this just comes from experience.

But mostly, don't believe the hype.

Re: If you are useful, it doesn't mean you are valued

#364

Post by apercu »

zwnow wrote: post #75
apercu wrote: post #70

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That kind of work avoidance sounds like a lot of work. Advice would be to try to find a job or role doing something you’re interested it. A lot of the subject matter of my work is not that interesting to me, and the politics and lack of any sort of vision or leadership at most organizations these days makes project work sometimes stressful. But (maybe as a survival mechanism?) I’ve found that focusing on improving ho…

Nah actual work is mentally draining. While I avoid work I do private projects that are actually interesting to me. I work, just not on company stuff that I don't care about.

Avoiding work is mentally draining for me because it's an unfulfilled obligation.

Re: If you are useful, it doesn't mean you are valued

#365

Post by apercu »

Carp wrote: post #301
zwnow wrote: post #166

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I am a quitter, I start projects for 2 weeks until I find the next shiny thing. I have a tendency to quit once projects go from learning to tedious repetitive work.

I'm the exact same. Sometimes work scratches that itch and I can work a productive 8 hours. Other times it's boring repetitive work and I'll start slacking off.

Learn to finish projects, that's where the satisfaction is. Perhaps go into it without an overambitious design, hit a milestone. Step away. Come back later and augment.

Re: If you are useful, it doesn't mean you are valued

#366

Post by strangattractor »

Tokumei-no-hito wrote: post #341
strangattractor wrote: post #310

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Did my own stint as a contractor and it was one of the best jobs I ever had. My clients would often ask for something - I would give them my opinion on how it should be done and alternatives that may be cheaper and/or better. They would then choose not to do that and pay me all those extra hours that their poor choice resulted in. Contrast this to working for an organization. Again I offer my opinion on how it might…

did you stop contracting? what brought you back to the FTE side?

2008 was devastating contracting wise. Starting working for non-profits and have found it rewarding but suffers from similar problems as FTE.

On the plus side I spent a lot of time raising my son in his formative years - time for which I'm thankful. If I had stayed working at start-ups I would have missed that which I would have truly regretted.

Also the start-ups in SV became obsessed with Social Media which IMO is a total waste of electrons so I lost interest.

Re: If you are useful, it doesn't mean you are valued

#367

Post by thewileyone »

greatgib wrote: post #91
47282847 wrote: post #46

“ I distinguish four types. There are clever, hardworking, stupid, and lazy officers. Usually two characteristics are combined. Some are clever and hardworking; their place is the General Staff. The next ones are stupid and lazy; they make up 90 percent of every army and are suited to routine duties. Anyone who is both clever and lazy is qualified for the highest leadership duties, because he possesses the mental cla…

And guess which ones got hold of most leadership positions in current days...

It's always been that way ...

Re: If you are useful, it doesn't mean you are valued

#368

Post by 77pt77 »

FeteCommuniste wrote: post #287
kevinventullo wrote: post #268

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You do need a certain degree of leverage. I think especially in the tech sector, people often do not realize how much leverage they have, and how a little pushback can go a long way. It is sometimes worth asking and testing: “Are they really going to fire me for this?”

A lot of us have jobs where the answer to that question is often "I don't know."

Or, yes they would and probably for far less.

Re: If you are useful, it doesn't mean you are valued

#369

Post by 77pt77 »

JadeNB wrote: post #99
0xEF wrote: post #41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've heard what you're describing phrase as follows: "If you want to know who truly values you, look for the people who would not be able to replace you with someone else." That usually has us pointing to friends and family, with the odd exception.

I'm not sure this is a reliable guide. I'm in academia, and the people who really can't be replaced are the administrative staff with hard-won institutional knowledge and connections--but they're valued far less than splashy big-name faculty with no institutional loyalty.

Administrative staff should be the least valuable in academia.
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