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Ask HN: Is it me or ...?

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Re: Ask HN: Is it me or ...?

#161

Post by sizzle »

HillRat wrote: post #86
jfasi wrote: post #53

I think it would be helpful to try to understand the perspective of management. Consider an extreme stereotype: the "business school guy." He went to XYZ school of management, where he learned that a business is an organization that takes in raw materials and creates something more valuable than the sum of the unfinished parts. He learned how to raise money by selling his business idea to other people who think like…

Here, take all my upvotes. :) The only thing I would amend is that most poor managers aren't the "slaver" types (if you end up reporting to one, it'll be obvious and you'll know to run as far and as fast as possible). Instead, they're weak -- incapable of protecting their people and productivity. Weak managers come in a lot of flavors, and it takes time to discern when one isn't working out. For example, you could ha…

also, be able to pick up cues on psychopath personalities in management positions and steer clear of them

Re: Ask HN: Is it me or ...?

#162

Post by calinet6 »

jaegerpicker wrote: post #96
isrsal wrote: post #68

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Wake up! Don't be loyal because a company will never be loyal to you when the time comes. Do your best, be proud of your work, but do it only for yourself, not for any company. At the end of the day, you're a number on a balance sheet.

As someone who has been an employee and employer, this is false. Sure most companies are not loyal to employees but there are those companies that are. I've worked for 2 in the last 16 years and 8 companies. One I was at for 6 and half years and only let because the economic situation demanded it. The other I currently work at and have been there for a year. There are great companies out there run by good people, it…

Agree. I've been in both types of companies.

It's certainly true of some companies; they'll drop you without thought, you're only a number, etc. etc.

But some companies are better than that. You're very lucky if you find one. This type of thing drives loyalty, it's not blind.

Re: Ask HN: Is it me or ...?

#163

Post by calinet6 »

droopyEyelids wrote: post #118
jfasi wrote: post #53

I think it would be helpful to try to understand the perspective of management. Consider an extreme stereotype: the "business school guy." He went to XYZ school of management, where he learned that a business is an organization that takes in raw materials and creates something more valuable than the sum of the unfinished parts. He learned how to raise money by selling his business idea to other people who think like…

To me you seem to be describing some sort of ideal world. Your vision fails to describe why information is withheld from engineers that would help them do their job. We wont even talk about why doublespeak and so often what seem to be outright lies are told to trusted members of the team. The world you describe is some rational honest place where people are trying to build a system they understand. In an engineering…

"Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity."

Re: Ask HN: Is it me or ...?

#164

Post by niuzeta »

vinceguidry wrote: post #117

John Boyd had this problem. Boyd was the best fighter pilot in the Air Force. At the Fighter Weapons School, the Air Force's advanced tactics course that the Navy's Top Gun school was later based on, he laid down a challenge to anyone who would take it, in forty seconds, Boyd would maneuver from from having you on his six, to being on your six and winning the battle. It only ever took him twenty seconds and he was ne…

it was very illuminating story.

Re: Ask HN: Is it me or ...?

#165

Post by etler »

jfasi wrote: post #53

I think it would be helpful to try to understand the perspective of management. Consider an extreme stereotype: the "business school guy." He went to XYZ school of management, where he learned that a business is an organization that takes in raw materials and creates something more valuable than the sum of the unfinished parts. He learned how to raise money by selling his business idea to other people who think like…

It's a very hard job, and not everyone is up to the task. Good management is very hard to find, and that's true of any position. It's hard to find good engineers too. Maybe the best advice for OP is to try and get to know the company leaders more on a personal basis before joining a startup. If they're still small enough, grabbing coffee and having a meetup with the founders is very practical.

Re: Ask HN: Is it me or ...?

#166

Post by sizzle »

S_A_P wrote: post #153
cleaver wrote: post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

On the first day of my first consulting gig, as I was getting set up, an argument ensued over which server I should be doing my work on. In my old job I would have got caught up in the nonsense. This time I could just say: "OK, you guys figure it out, I'll just wait over here". Sitting and reading while you count the dollars someone else is burning through can be rather therapeutic.

As a fellow consultant, I would like to add that the temporary nature of consulting work makes this sort of infighting and politics a lot more palatable to me. I know that in 3-6 months I can laugh at it...(or at least forget about it) So I sort of suffer from the same symptoms as the OP. Consulting has proven to be a good choice for me, as I do get some variety and dont get as bored as I did when I was a FTE somewhe…

any advice on getting into consulting?

Re: Ask HN: Is it me or ...?

#168

Post by king_jester »

jfasi wrote: post #53

I think it would be helpful to try to understand the perspective of management. Consider an extreme stereotype: the "business school guy." He went to XYZ school of management, where he learned that a business is an organization that takes in raw materials and creates something more valuable than the sum of the unfinished parts. He learned how to raise money by selling his business idea to other people who think like…

> You want to find a manager who thinks of himself as your equal rather than your slaver.

In my experience, this doesn't exist. Having a manager has already established a hierarchy of relationships that you deal with in your day to day work. Even if your manager tries to be an equal to you, they are in fact not your equal, they are your superior.

> Instead of asking yourself "does this management know what it's doing?" ask yourself "does this management make me better as a professional?" If you can say "yes" to the second question, the answer to the first question doesn't matter. The company can fail, but if you come out of it better than you came in, you still succeeded.

I don't buy into this definition of success. Indeed, if you don't have any confidence in what management is doing, it is really unlikely that said management is making you a better professional. In those scenarios you are already looking at management through a lens of mistrust (mistrust that may be totally justified). For someone like the submitter, if being a part of a specific kind of project is more important that money or resume building, they will have a hard time finding a place where they won't be unhappy over time because they do not have a true ability to affect the outcome of the software they build and work on as they are not an equal to those making decisions.

Re: Ask HN: Is it me or ...?

#169

Post by seestheday »

vinceguidry wrote: post #117

John Boyd had this problem. Boyd was the best fighter pilot in the Air Force. At the Fighter Weapons School, the Air Force's advanced tactics course that the Navy's Top Gun school was later based on, he laid down a challenge to anyone who would take it, in forty seconds, Boyd would maneuver from from having you on his six, to being on your six and winning the battle. It only ever took him twenty seconds and he was ne…

Holy hell - I have got to look this guy up.

Edit: I did some reading. A lot of sources referenced a very abrasive manner. That could have been a major factor into why his ideas weren't used more.

Re: Ask HN: Is it me or ...?

#170

Post by notastartup »

jaynos wrote: post #57
notastartup wrote: post #42

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Where do you find such consulting work? Surely not craigslist . Then where? Should I buy leads from Adwords? Do you need to become a partner for an ERP software company? How successful will you be calling yourself a 'consultant'.

I'd start by reaching out to people that you already know through previous jobs and any other contacts you have (maybe avoiding people connected to your current employer). Starting up a business is pretty simple from a paper work standpoint and doesn't have excessive overhead costs or paperwork requirements if you aren't doing any work through said company. Now you have a company ready to accept checks or payment whe…

do you think incorporating as a company is worth it when you are not making a large amount of money to begin with?
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