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Tell HN: I have the perfect job, why is it not enough?

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Re: Tell HN: I have the perfect job, why is it not enough?

#271

Post by rramadass »

eyelidlessness wrote: post #262
eyelidlessness wrote: post #255

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> -> combat outpost: holy shit this sucks! How am I gonna do 7 months of this?! > I did. Got used to it. Was actually kind of fun after awhile. Huge yikes. I can understand adapting to the circumstances, but the concept of combat deployment becoming fun is highly alarming to me. My most charitable interpretation—that your sense of fun was derived from camaraderie during downtime under difficult circumstances, not fro…

I’m not surprised this is being downvoted, but I’d appreciate someone actually leaving a comment in case there’s something I’m not understanding about how seven months of combat deployment can be fun that isn’t some combination of monstrous/traumatic.

Your mistake was to take the word "fun" literally.

What he meant was some "possibly enjoyable" state which was different from the "bored comfortable tedium" into which he had settled in.

We all have had similar experiences. When you have too much of the same routine however comfortable, your mind craves some "new" stimulus which will break the tedium.

Re: Tell HN: I have the perfect job, why is it not enough?

#274

Post by dusted »

The cited memo seems entirely reasonable for any for-profit company..

> “If a direct report is coasting or is a low performer, they are not who we need; they are failing this company,” Saba wrote. “As a manager, you cannot allow someone to be net neutral or negative for Meta.”

Companies exist, after all, to generate a profit for their owners.. One may or may not agree with the ethics of that being the case, but that is why they exist at this moment in time.

Re: Tell HN: I have the perfect job, why is it not enough?

#275

Post by tapatio »

hinkley wrote: post #224
willhslade wrote: post #28

You are describing the hedonic treadmill. Essentially, you become used to your surroundings, and while they are objectively great, from the perspective of inside your own head, this is now normal and you / your monkey mind wants more. There have been a lot of post floating around the internet with various solutions, the most popular being Stoicism > Positive Psychology / Happiness research > Buddhism / Meditation. I'…

Anecdotal evidence is that you can hack the hedonic treadmill by having interests outside of work. If nothing in your life is more challenging than work, then all of your yardsticks will be based upon it. If however you're comparing the relative pain of writing documentation to lifting a 40lbs bag of building materials, holding a position in yoga/martial arts class, running a half marathon, riding a century, hiking f…

So true. He should go do the 4X4X48 challenge.

Re: Tell HN: I have the perfect job, why is it not enough?

#276

Post by badpun »

rubicon33 wrote: post #265
HelloMcFly wrote: post #206

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> What is the legacy that you want to build for your kids? I think for some it's worth challenging the need for a "legacy" in the first place. This certainly is what helped my well-being, not feeling like I had to accomplish X or achieve Y for life to have been "worth it." I want to be kind, stay fed, and help others feel like things are OK which can be done through service both big and small. I guess it's about find…

Not OP but, I don't have any issue with legacy, but I do with purpose. What's the point of it all? That's my core struggle.

I would say that, if one asks this question to often, then it's a sign of depression. Non-depressed people don't worry about such issues.

Re: Tell HN: I have the perfect job, why is it not enough?

#277

Post by helpfulmandrill »

Being a human sucks. External things don't impact our happiness for long, and yet we seems to be hard-wired to ignore that experience and always believe the next thing will make us happy. I have no wisdom for you, only sympathy. But not that much sympathy. In fact, I'm sitting here thinking "That guy has a nice life, I wish I earned over 100k working 4 days a week", even though you're literally telling me that it doesn't satisfy you. Somehow a bit of my brain thinks it would be different for me.

Re: Tell HN: I have the perfect job, why is it not enough?

#278

Post by p0d »

This is my very christian understanding of life and work. It took years for me to research/conclude so you may find some value in it, regardless of your religious views.

My calling in life is to be a disciple of Jesus. In this I look after my family, serve my church, take part in society/community, and do my vocation/work.

I would suggest you may be missing an element of community in your story. I have learned to look to all these areas and not only focus on some.

Re: Tell HN: I have the perfect job, why is it not enough?

#279

Post by thorw73m »

skadamat wrote: post #73

I would check out Cal Newport's recent "Deep Life" philosophy / manifesto that he's been blogging & podcasting about. - https://www.calnewport.com/blog/2020/04/20/cultivating-a-dee... - https://www.calnewport.com/blog/2020/03/17/the-deep-life-som... He talks about building a life of your own choosing around the things that matter in some key buckets: - Craft: usually your day job - Community: volunteering, religion,…

He makes some great point on deepwork and cites verifiable research. But you should be careful as he is totally against watching porn and worse favors religion.

Re: Tell HN: I have the perfect job, why is it not enough?

#280

Post by ZeroGravitas »

I saw a book recently called "The Man who mistook his job for his life", I didn't particularly like the content (kind of pop-psychoanalysis) but it's a great title pun/reference and the examples in the book suggest it's a common experience to be successful and unhappy.
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