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You are what you love

gspanos.tech

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Re: You are what you love

#11

Post by mettamage »

> Firstly, let’s make clear that it’s unlikely that you’re good at something you don’t love. If you managed to do that, you’ve probably dedicated the hours to something that does not fulfill you. The goal is not happiness. It’s about fulfillment. After all, you have to do what you love. You are that, how can you be doing anything else?

The author is not considering loving meta-skills. I don't love programming, I do love intellectual challenge. I also love learning things as fast as possible.

If I'd be a cleaner as a job, I'd teach myself how to be mindful while doing it. I'd teach myself how to be okay with the boring/mundane and utilize the job as a tech detox. If I'd be a bus driver, I'd utilize the job as a way to make my social skills better (I've seen bus drivers do that in NL) or I'd utilize the job as a way to reflect on life as I wouldn't need all the brain space for driving the bus. If I'd be a blue collar worker, I'd flip homes since my network would allow for it. I'd also do a lot of crafting on my own.

When one loves a meta-skill, many things become their passion.

Re: You are what you love

#12

Post by j4yav »

inertiatic wrote: post #2

>I find it really challenging to talk with people who have completely separated their work from their emotional being. For me, work is part of life and it should be a meaningful one. I like my work too but when I hear things like this it's so hard not to cringe because of how much of a place of privilege this comes from. Most jobs are things no one would want to do if they didn't need to survive, and that's fundament…

On the other hand, sometimes it’s also refreshing to just hear about what makes someone happy and appreciate it on its own merits without assessing its validity against others who have it worse in various ways. There’s a time and a place for both, I think.

Re: You are what you love

#13

Post by theusus »

It's a powerplay imo. You can show your emotions if you are in the power. I've found repeatedly getting penalized for being emotional at work. That's one of the reasons I want to move out of a job.

Re: You are what you love

#14

Post by c0balt »

__s wrote: post #4
inertiatic wrote: post #2

>I find it really challenging to talk with people who have completely separated their work from their emotional being. For me, work is part of life and it should be a meaningful one. I like my work too but when I hear things like this it's so hard not to cringe because of how much of a place of privilege this comes from. Most jobs are things no one would want to do if they didn't need to survive, and that's fundament…

Which jobs are you considering no one would want to do? I've worked labor in flooring, it's definitely not a job one wouldn't want to do without pay, but there was still an element of craftsmanship which one could find joy in

> Which jobs are you considering no one would want to do?

Not OP but most low-skill, sanitation-related jobs are most likely the best example. There certainly is craftsmanship behind cleaning but it mostly boils down to hard physical labor.

Re: You are what you love

#15

Post by mettamage »

c0balt wrote: post #14
__s wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Which jobs are you considering no one would want to do? I've worked labor in flooring, it's definitely not a job one wouldn't want to do without pay, but there was still an element of craftsmanship which one could find joy in

> Which jobs are you considering no one would want to do? Not OP but most low-skill, sanitation-related jobs are most likely the best example. There certainly is craftsmanship behind cleaning but it mostly boils down to hard physical labor.

I once had a conversation with a cleaner, she liked it because she could listen to Spotify podcasts all day (she was working as a cleaner in Sweden).

Re: You are what you love

#16

Post by mettamage »

Dachande663 wrote: post #8

I used to be the same. Until I started a family. You suddenly realise how… unimportant coding is when you have people who depend on you and you them. I’m a different developer now than I was back then, but I think better for it.

How are you better for it?

Re: You are what you love

#18

Post by j4yav »

__s wrote: post #4
inertiatic wrote: post #2

>I find it really challenging to talk with people who have completely separated their work from their emotional being. For me, work is part of life and it should be a meaningful one. I like my work too but when I hear things like this it's so hard not to cringe because of how much of a place of privilege this comes from. Most jobs are things no one would want to do if they didn't need to survive, and that's fundament…

Which jobs are you considering no one would want to do? I've worked labor in flooring, it's definitely not a job one wouldn't want to do without pay, but there was still an element of craftsmanship which one could find joy in

I grew up in pretty severe poverty, the adults around me didn’t work glamorous jobs but they all took pride in doing a good job. Even sanitation jobs, which were pretty common in the family. They would actually say something pretty similar to what the guy wrote - that if you’re going to spend so many hours of your life doing it, it’s taking pride in a job well done, the relationships you have with your colleagues and customers you get to know, and things like that that you connect with emotionally. Spending 50 years doing a job where you try to dissociate emotionally as best you can sounds something like a nightmare, and what would a person who behaves like that be like to work with?

Re: You are what you love

#19

Post by politelemon »

mettamage wrote: post #15
c0balt wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Which jobs are you considering no one would want to do? Not OP but most low-skill, sanitation-related jobs are most likely the best example. There certainly is craftsmanship behind cleaning but it mostly boils down to hard physical labor.

I once had a conversation with a cleaner, she liked it because she could listen to Spotify podcasts all day (she was working as a cleaner in Sweden).

The Spotify part though, isn't part of cleaning, if that makes sense? It happened that she has found an enjoyable aspect to the tasks due to its nature, but not that she specifically searched for that job because it lets her listen to Spotify.

Re: You are what you love

#20

Post by wouldbecouldbe »

akolbe wrote: post #3
inertiatic wrote: post #2

>I find it really challenging to talk with people who have completely separated their work from their emotional being. For me, work is part of life and it should be a meaningful one. I like my work too but when I hear things like this it's so hard not to cringe because of how much of a place of privilege this comes from. Most jobs are things no one would want to do if they didn't need to survive, and that's fundament…

Aye, you put your finger on something there. Reminds me of how common it is for menial jobs to be outsourced to immigrants or seasonal labour. Fruit picking in the UK to Eastern Europeans, agricultural work in Israel to Thais, etc. Someone has to empty the bins. I guess like anything emptying bins is a job you can enjoy more or less, depending on your inner attitude to doing it, and your ability to "make the best of…

Ironically emptying the bins and picking fruits might be more directly meaningful for people then building the new generation ad platform/social media/saas tool.
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