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Quitting the rat race

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Re: Quitting the rat race

#101

Post by throwaway98797 »

BaseballPhysics wrote: post #67
BizarreByte wrote: post #8

It’s a short piece, but it resonates with me, specifically this part: > I’m earning the most money I’ve ever made and yet I’m the least fulfilled I’ve ever been. I’m making the most I’ve ever made and I’ve never been less happy and more depressed. I despise being a cog in a huge corporate machine, it’s like the job was designed to be as unappealing as possible. At the same time I can’t get over the fact that I have i…

Bluntly, every person I know who's expressed these kinds of sentiments is guilty of the same mistake: externalizing their happiness. They inevitably move, only to find the new place they're in sucks, just in different ways. Or they find another job, but just discover more things they hate there. Or they find a new partner, only to discover a new set of annoyances. The same psychology leads people to think they'll be…

ahhh, i’ve had jobs that made me hate life.

i’ve had jobs that didn’t feel like work.

not sure if you intended by you come off defeatist.

if i was again at a job that was making me sad or angry i’d:

1. list things i hate

2. list things i don’t mind

3. work to do more of 2 and less of 1

if after a year it’s still unbearable look for a different job. talented people have more options than they realize.

Re: Quitting the rat race

#102

Post by BaseballPhysics »

lapcat wrote: post #82
BaseballPhysics wrote: post #67

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Bluntly, every person I know who's expressed these kinds of sentiments is guilty of the same mistake: externalizing their happiness. They inevitably move, only to find the new place they're in sucks, just in different ways. Or they find another job, but just discover more things they hate there. Or they find a new partner, only to discover a new set of annoyances. The same psychology leads people to think they'll be…

> I think I'm old enough now to confidently say that, yes: Happiness really does start from within. What does age have to do with it? You're one person. It's anecdotal data. I'm old enough now (5 years later) to confidently say that, yes: Quitting my last job really did make me happier.

> What does age have to do with it? You're one person. It's anecdotal data.

Actually an entire field of psychology is based on the idea: cognitive behavioral therapy.

But you seem like you need to pick a fight, and I'm honestly not in the mood, so carry on.

Re: Quitting the rat race

#103

Post by jonstewart »

I grew up in a rural area in the US. I love nature and the outdoors. I also love programming.

But, rural living is vastly less sustainable on a per capita basis than city living. The elegiac tone of a rural paradise lost is a familiar one throughout the past few centuries. It’s an aspect of “blood-and-soil” nationalism (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blood_and_soil) and Boomer-era environmentalism and of Tolkien (so, I guess that’s in order of most to least problematic). It is easy to feel the longing, but it’s also worth some critical thinking.

I’ve got a place in the country that I go when I need to get away from the city (and, yes, putting a lot of time and effort into making it sustainable…). I find myself doing a lot of programming there. And then I go back to the city to talk to people about the code, and find out what they’ve been coding.

Re: Quitting the rat race

#104

Post by 88913527 »

BizarreByte wrote: post #8

It’s a short piece, but it resonates with me, specifically this part: > I’m earning the most money I’ve ever made and yet I’m the least fulfilled I’ve ever been. I’m making the most I’ve ever made and I’ve never been less happy and more depressed. I despise being a cog in a huge corporate machine, it’s like the job was designed to be as unappealing as possible. At the same time I can’t get over the fact that I have i…

Generally speaking, most people are at the point where "this is the most they've ever made". Inflation and the passing of time in a given career will do that.

Re: Quitting the rat race

#105

Post by borski »

throwaway_au_1 wrote: post #21
greggman3 wrote: post #5

Hey, if being in nature makes you happy good for you but your outlook on the rest is kind of crap. Me, best time in my life, commuting in Tokyo to my jobs working on a project I loved with people I loved. All the ads on the trains were eye candy to me. I didn't buy anything that I remember but I did find out about museums, concerts, and other events around town as well as various obscure services which I never used b…

Different strokes for different folks. At least the author of the OP had the humility not to call anyone else's perspective 'crap'.

I mean, he did call them rats, which isn’t that far off.

Re: Quitting the rat race

#106

Post by Barrin92 »

fsckboy wrote: post #35

You being unhappy in your life does not mean that there is anything wrong with the world. Looking to pin the blame on society at large and other people's choices is a convenient escape from looking at yourself and your own fears, disappointments, choices made, etc. I grew up in a rural place, no mountains but we substituted beaches, marshes, and ocean. When I go back to visit I can't believe how beautiful it is. But,…

>Looking to pin the blame on society at large and other people's choices is a convenient escape

In reality it's the opposite. Coming to terms with the fact that the world is screwed up rather than you is a much scarier prospect given the implications.

If you blame yourself you can hit the gym, lawyer up, buy some meditation apps, everyone will applaud you on your great self-help journey etc. Of course a student of economics would love this story, it's very profitable!

Re: Quitting the rat race

#107

Post by juve1996 »

This post really ruffled some feathers on here, talking about how he can't find happiness out there, you can't find happiness externally, it's all internal, he can only do this because he makes money, etc.

It's amazing how many people simply want to tear others down, I think, deep down, many wish they could do the same as this man.

Re: Quitting the rat race

#108

Post by wombatpm »

sunsunsunsun wrote: post #100
larrymyers wrote: post #85

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's kinda the whole point of being salaried though isn't it? (At least for those of us in the US.) You are an exempt employee as defined by US labor law. You aren't required to receive overtime pay, and you are evaluated on your expertise and the results you deliver. So if you can get in daily rides and still meet the expectations of your employer, awesome, you're doing it right. You're likely also doing right by…

Tell this to my employer. They require me to log >= 40 hours per week, they have no problem with overtime but get a stick up their ass about undertime. I lie pretty much every week on my timesheet unless I happen to do overtime that week. Most people I talk to in the company do the same.

Do your hours get billed to a contract or client? Then it makes sense. It’s just a shitty contract that does not account for overhead properly

If it doesn’t, then you are just working for assholes

Re: Quitting the rat race

#109

Post by cpsns »

88913527 wrote: post #104
BizarreByte wrote: post #8

It’s a short piece, but it resonates with me, specifically this part: > I’m earning the most money I’ve ever made and yet I’m the least fulfilled I’ve ever been. I’m making the most I’ve ever made and I’ve never been less happy and more depressed. I despise being a cog in a huge corporate machine, it’s like the job was designed to be as unappealing as possible. At the same time I can’t get over the fact that I have i…

Generally speaking, most people are at the point where "this is the most they've ever made". Inflation and the passing of time in a given career will do that.

Fair enough, though I have taken steps back in salary before.

Re: Quitting the rat race

#110

Post by syndacks »

Me me me me. Virtue signal, virtue signal, virtue signal. I don't understand these pieces ... like, quit your job. I don't give a shit that you make a lot of money at a bank and you aren't fulfilled, what did you think was going to happen?
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