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Tell HN: Take vacation

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Re: Tell HN: Take vacation

#41

Post by cheez »

joslin01 wrote: post #4

NEVER!! hack hack hack hack hack Actually, I'm just wrapping up a ~4 month vacation after a grueling year of creating a product, launching it, and failing. I was so cynical about programming by the time it failed and felt like I lost the spark. It was just a boring means to an end and everyday I had new ends to meet. I finally feel good about programming again and I think I'm actually better than ever. You really see…

You have such an upbeat view after such dedication followed by failure. It's hard, so thumbs up to you!

What do you think were the contributors what you say is your failure?

Re: Tell HN: Take vacation

#42

Post by wizzard »

joslin01 wrote: post #4

NEVER!! hack hack hack hack hack Actually, I'm just wrapping up a ~4 month vacation after a grueling year of creating a product, launching it, and failing. I was so cynical about programming by the time it failed and felt like I lost the spark. It was just a boring means to an end and everyday I had new ends to meet. I finally feel good about programming again and I think I'm actually better than ever. You really see…

I am currently on an indefinite hiatus/sabbatical/vacation after quitting my job at the beginning of June. I had been working on a project I didn't enjoy for a year and a half, culminating in the most horrible failed iterations I've ever been a part of: a new feature we started last November -- that should have taken maybe two months -- didn't get finalized until May. I've never been so discouraged and burned out on programming in my life.

I knew I'd need time to "heal" after that experience. It took a month and a half but I'm finally starting to feel interested in coding again. I'm really glad I took that time (and that I was lucky enough to have the means and an understanding SO).

Re: Tell HN: Take vacation

#43

Post by lemming »

DanielStraight wrote: post #7

Let's see if I can cover this entire comment thread in one comment. Taking a break is good for most people. It can help prevent burnout. People vary greatly in their ability to take vacation due to income, work and family requirements. People vary even more in what they consider to be a good vacation. Some people like a lot of activity. Some people like lying around. Some people honestly don't like taking time off wo…

In other words, there is no way to make a meaningful universal statement about vacation.

Except this bit:

Taking a break is good for most people.

Re: Tell HN: Take vacation

#44

Post by SergeyDruid »

can't wait for August to take a break from my daily job! The more I'll change my lifestyle in this short time, the more my brain will "refresh". I hope everyone here will find his own "vacation", regardless of the budget.

Re: Tell HN: Take vacation

#45

Post by bicx »

edpichler wrote: post #28
DanielStraight wrote: post #7

Let's see if I can cover this entire comment thread in one comment. Taking a break is good for most people. It can help prevent burnout. People vary greatly in their ability to take vacation due to income, work and family requirements. People vary even more in what they consider to be a good vacation. Some people like a lot of activity. Some people like lying around. Some people honestly don't like taking time off wo…

Agreed, every people is different. There isn't the "formula for all". I'm from Brazil and got curious about the "unlimited vacation", how it works?

I have "unlimited vacation." Basically, there is no allotted number of days for vacation. At first, it sounds great, and for a day off now and then, it is. However, you can't just leave and spend all month at the beach. You have to justify your reason for taking off a week or two, asking yourself questions like "Have I done enough to justify a vacation? Can I take time off and not let down my team?" In contrast, getting a guaranteed number of weeks off doesn't require you to justify any time taken off. Instead, it's viewed as part of your compensation.

With all that said, unlimited vacation is not that bad in a good workplace with an understanding employer and team. I work hard, and I don't feel guilty about taking time off. What's annoying is when employers hire you with the lure of "unlimited vacation" and actually plan on turning you down if you try to go above a normal amount of PTO. In that case, it's all to their advantage.

When it comes down to it, be skeptical anytime an employer says things like "unlimited vacation" or "flexible hours." Unlimited vacation can mean that they just don't have official vacation days (and can deny you time off), and flexible hours can mean hours only flex one way: up. What people often don't see is that while the 40/hr work week and standard 2 - 4 weeks of vacation seem archaic and even oppressive, having time limits can also protect you as an employee. Remove those limits, and you just have to hope your employer continues to promote healthy work habits.

Re: Tell HN: Take vacation

#46

Post by npsimons »

I just took a weeklong backpack trip. Sure, getting out for an overnight on the weekend is fun, but there's something that happens after more than a couple of nights on the trail. You forget what day it is. You lose track of time, and it doesn't matter because your only responsibilities are 1) hike to your next camp 2) setup camp 3) make dinner. No email, no action item lists, nothing but the freedom to think about nothing for a week. I can heartily recommend it.

Re: Tell HN: Take vacation

#47

Post by DanielBMarkham »

I'm 49 years old. Almost 50. Been a hacker, entrepreneur, and coder all of my life.

One of the things I've learned that I found most shocking? That changing things up makes a huge difference in my productivity -- and it becomes more and more difficult to do.

I think the term "vacation" is a bit loaded here. Sure, go to the beach. Travel. But there's a deeper truth here: you need to regularly make yourself work, relax, and play in different atmospheres. It's very good for you. So go work at a coffee shop. Work in a city park. Take a week and live in a cabin without electricity. Take your development team and go out to the parking garage and work using cafeteria tables and metal chairs. Whatever. Purposely vary the conditions and surroundings of your life. This is not an optimization problem; you are not trying to find the perfect place. Instead, it's diversity: people are very prone to getting in intellectual ruts. It's difficult to see this when you're in one. Mixing up environments is a proven way to identify this.

Re: Tell HN: Take vacation

#49

Post by maccard »

CalRobert wrote: post #37
maccard wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

had a quick glance through his history, and it's ireland. (I'll remove this if you want OP). Can I just throw in that Ireland has some definite advantages, however living in Dublin is painfully expensive, and the money here (for lower level positions at least) is less than that of the UK

You are correct, it's Ireland. As far as visa restrictions go it seems to be somewhere between extremely difficult UK and relatively simple Germany. Cost is all relative, I guess. Pay is lower than SF, but I also am paying less than half of what I would for my apartment. Given that I was spending a lot of money to take what vacation I could in Europe anyway I actually save a good deal on vacation budget this way too.…

> but I also am paying less than half of what I would for my apartment. Out of curiosity (I understand if you don't want to say) but roughly how much are you paying for your apartment, and how close to the city is it? I'm paying almost 1500 USD for my 2bed apt not far from the city centre, and the landlord is increasing the rent in September (I'm leaving anyway). The saving of ~500 dollars per month I would imagine doesn't last very long when you factor in everything else. I don't know what income differene you have, but a month ticket for bus only is 140 euro, (190 dollars), a beer is €5 (cheap in the city centre)and I find shopping in general to be more expensive than home (outside Dublin, but still in Ireland).

Re: Tell HN: Take vacation

#50

Post by hipsterrific »

DanielStraight wrote: post #7

Let's see if I can cover this entire comment thread in one comment. Taking a break is good for most people. It can help prevent burnout. People vary greatly in their ability to take vacation due to income, work and family requirements. People vary even more in what they consider to be a good vacation. Some people like a lot of activity. Some people like lying around. Some people honestly don't like taking time off wo…

My previous job had unlimited PTO and that team sucked mega-donkey balls. It worked despite the culture, here's how:

- large vacation time was scheduled around projects. The SPM gave large priority to devs over the business. Thus priorities were reduced to meet resources for that sprint (SCRUM).

- We had a flexible work schedule so if you needed to be home because the guy fixing your water heater is coming at 3, we made that possible. The philosophy was that as long as you were meeting your targets, everything was peachy.

- We had one guy who would occassionally go on two/three day breaks and not tell anyone - including the SPM. As a team, we just left him alone and if he can't finish his task, oh well, we didn't bail him out.

- Ironically, most of us took fewer vacation days with unlimited PTO. You have the outliers who will gladly abuse it, but prior to my departure, I took a total of four weeks (20 days) of total vacation time. Most companies give that anyways.

Simply put, as long as we gave a long enough notice and put things into the engineering calendar, no one gave a crap. A lot of our unlimited PTO success boils down to prioritizing resources and expectations with the business. This company is around 300 people, so not a small company by all means. We just ensured that we all gave appropriate notice. For me, my formula was 1 month advanced notice for every week I wanted to take, so three weeks off meant three months ahead.

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