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Why is everyone so busy? (2014)

economist.com

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Re: Why is everyone so busy? (2014)

#31

Post by torben-friis »

LandR wrote: post #28

My last job, I had so much more free time. I finished at 4 each day and sometimes took 3 hour lunches. Someone would text me in another city and ask if I could come through and meet them. I would often just walk out of work (it wasn't a problem) and go meet them. If it meant that I didn't get back to the office that day, so be it. There was lots of time spent with friends and family, it was great. My current job, I e…

Been there, done that. I'm currently starting to work again.

Honestly, the time off has been amazing (more than I expected), but it's hard to overstate how hard it is to readjust now. Employers haven't been a problem, it's about myself: I'm experiencing anxiety attacks for the first time in my life and I'm worried I'm going to slip into depression - something I've never gone through before.

If you want my advice: If you've got some savings you can afford to spend, try to actively search for a job that is more bearable, and yet sustainable long term.

It shouldn't require you leaving your current job until you find a new one, but rather you want your money to act as a mattress to fall back on if things go south so you can try new things. NEVER let your savings drop below a certain threshold, because going to work is way more manageable if you can tell yourself that you can walk away if you really need it. Once that possibility is gone you feel like a slave.

Re: Why is everyone so busy? (2014)

#32

Post by hellofunk »

sdenton4 wrote: post #11
hellofunk wrote: post #2

I'm always amazed how I end up seeing long threads from HN users who read an article, but when I click on it, there is a pay wall. Are all those readers subscribers to these news sites?

Incognito mode is also a good bypass for N articles per month type paywalls.

Very good to know, thanks. I tried it and indeed you are correct.

Re: Why is everyone so busy? (2014)

#33

Post by brisance »

factsaresacred wrote: post #20

I recommend people watch Japan A story of love and hate ( http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x56bwzc ) which, aside from being a great look at Japan, epitomizes the absurdity of exchanging our time for a salary that increasingly fails to cover the cost to live and leaves us without free time. 30,000 Japanese kill themselves each year due to work related stress. Great quote from the doc: Naoki:"You (the West) game me th…

Capitalism is hardly a “Western” concept. Japan, like many Asian countries, were within China’s sphere of influence long before there was any contact with Westerners.

Re: Why is everyone so busy? (2014)

#34

Post by mrhappyunhappy »

KozmoNau7 wrote: post #26

This "must be busy" mindset and 50+ hour work weeks is so utterly alien and wrong to me, and I'm glad I feel this way. I would never let a job get in the way of family and social experiences, in the way of my life . Relaxation and leisure time is absolutely non-negotiable for me, I would never give up on a concert or culinary experience or anything else for something as mundane as work. I think this mindset has also…

Privelaged white older male identified. Not all of us find work mundane and not all of us can afford the luxury of leisure yet alone choice in friends. Congratulations and enjoying your laid back life!

Re: Why is everyone so busy? (2014)

#35

Post by coldtea »

brisance wrote: post #33
factsaresacred wrote: post #20

I recommend people watch Japan A story of love and hate ( http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x56bwzc ) which, aside from being a great look at Japan, epitomizes the absurdity of exchanging our time for a salary that increasingly fails to cover the cost to live and leaves us without free time. 30,000 Japanese kill themselves each year due to work related stress. Great quote from the doc: Naoki:"You (the West) game me th…

Capitalism is hardly a “Western” concept. Japan, like many Asian countries, were within China’s sphere of influence long before there was any contact with Westerners.

>Capitalism is hardly a “Western” concept.

It is, based on all conventional historical sources, originating around the 15th century or so with the city states of Italy.

>Japan, like many Asian countries, were within China’s sphere of influence long before there was any contact with Westerners.

Which is irrelevant. It was a feudal economy back then, and it tried to be so even after contact with Westerners for a while.

But it realized that with those pesky westerners it couldn't defend itself if it didn't get in with the program and build an industry.

Re: Why is everyone so busy? (2014)

#36

Post by mrhappyunhappy »

sixhobbits wrote: post #12

I found this article really interesting and extremely well written. The excerpt below is a literary masterpiece.(other comments complain about paywall but on mobile I got "3 articles free" message. Not sure if they're A/B testing or if they're giving me free stuff because I'm in South Africa and they assume that online payments are hard here) "Leisure time is now the stuff of myth. Some are cursed with too much. Othe…

I wonder if this author has children. I couldn’t read because of paywall. My life came to a slow and boredom was setting in slowly until I had a child. Living through his life makes me feel excited again, not for myself but knowing everything he’ll go experience. If anyone reading this has a choice in having kids but hadn’t yet, I’d highly recommend it. Yes it’s hard and strange at first but worth every moment. Just now I smiled at my 6 Mo old kiddo and he laughed at me. It's moment like this that make me realize what's important in life and one of the reasons I enjoy working for myself from home - even at the cost of much less pay.

Re: Why is everyone so busy? (2014)

#37

Post by cko »

mrhappyunhappy wrote: post #36
sixhobbits wrote: post #12

I found this article really interesting and extremely well written. The excerpt below is a literary masterpiece.(other comments complain about paywall but on mobile I got "3 articles free" message. Not sure if they're A/B testing or if they're giving me free stuff because I'm in South Africa and they assume that online payments are hard here) "Leisure time is now the stuff of myth. Some are cursed with too much. Othe…

I wonder if this author has children. I couldn’t read because of paywall. My life came to a slow and boredom was setting in slowly until I had a child. Living through his life makes me feel excited again, not for myself but knowing everything he’ll go experience. If anyone reading this has a choice in having kids but hadn’t yet, I’d highly recommend it. Yes it’s hard and strange at first but worth every moment. Just…

Alternatively, if you can’t or don’t want children of your own. You can leverage the power of other people’s children. Sounds creepy but hear me out: it’s either your niece or nephew or a family friends’ kids. I am good friends with an older couple and I go to the daughter’s softball games once in a while. I’m a guy so it doesn’t look right so I try not to overdo it, but when she does well I feel like a proud parent and when she does poorly I feel bad. Not as intense as what her parents must feel but I prefer less intensity in my emotions. Which is why I had a vasectomy at age 29 but I digress.

Re: Why is everyone so busy? (2014)

#38

Post by brisance »

coldtea wrote: post #35
brisance wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Capitalism is hardly a “Western” concept. Japan, like many Asian countries, were within China’s sphere of influence long before there was any contact with Westerners.

> Capitalism is hardly a “Western” concept. It is, based on all conventional historical sources, originating around the 15th century or so with the city states of Italy. > Japan, like many Asian countries, were within China’s sphere of influence long before there was any contact with Westerners. Which is irrelevant. It was a feudal economy back then, and it tried to be so even after contact with Westerners for a whil…

>It is, based on all conventional historical sources, originating around the 15th century or so with the city states of Italy.The parent comment was speaking of “capitalism” as an euphemism for “wage slavery”, not in the classical sense of capitalism as defined by economics i.e. private ownership of the means of production. In that comment, payment for services i.e. wages is hardly “Western”, nor invented in the 15th century CE.

>Which is irrelevant.It is relevant because Japan imported many things from China, including the Kanji writing system, culture, mercantilism, systems of government etc.

Re: Why is everyone so busy? (2014)

#39

Post by s3cur3 »

mrhappyunhappy wrote: post #36
sixhobbits wrote: post #12

I found this article really interesting and extremely well written. The excerpt below is a literary masterpiece.(other comments complain about paywall but on mobile I got "3 articles free" message. Not sure if they're A/B testing or if they're giving me free stuff because I'm in South Africa and they assume that online payments are hard here) "Leisure time is now the stuff of myth. Some are cursed with too much. Othe…

I wonder if this author has children. I couldn’t read because of paywall. My life came to a slow and boredom was setting in slowly until I had a child. Living through his life makes me feel excited again, not for myself but knowing everything he’ll go experience. If anyone reading this has a choice in having kids but hadn’t yet, I’d highly recommend it. Yes it’s hard and strange at first but worth every moment. Just…

I feel like the idea of “living through” one’s kids has a lot of negative connotations——pushing them to spend hours a day on something they hate, etc. But there is absolutely something to be said for being able to see the world through your kid’s eyes. They get so excited about things that are totally mundane to adults. (My one year old yesterday had to stop and examine each little hole in the sidewalk as we walked.) That wonder at the world is certainly infectious.

Re: Why is everyone so busy? (2014)

#40

Post by mpfundstein »

LandR wrote: post #28

My last job, I had so much more free time. I finished at 4 each day and sometimes took 3 hour lunches. Someone would text me in another city and ask if I could come through and meet them. I would often just walk out of work (it wasn't a problem) and go meet them. If it meant that I didn't get back to the office that day, so be it. There was lots of time spent with friends and family, it was great. My current job, I e…

Was money the only reason for u to leave your old - and awesome - work?
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