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You are not your job

jry.io

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Re: You are not your job

#61

Post by manmal »

garciasn wrote: post #20
beastman82 wrote: post #12

I want to thank everyone who hates work, is mentally checked out of their jobs and quiet quitting etc. It makes it much easier for me to distinguish myself as a hard worker who cares about the business being successful. It also helps me keep my job during layoffs because I can assure you the managers have noticed. When you are old and have lots of formative experiences that are not work-based, we can shake hands and…

I am arguably a successful employee in a tech-focused role. I enjoy my job and others seem to feel I'm good at what I do. That said: I am NOT at all interested in identifying myself in social situations by my job. When someone asks what I do, I respond that I work in tech. I am not interested in giving more details nor talking in-depth about what I do to others I have just met. Why? Because that's not at all what mak…

It sounds like you have a privileged life, and a hard time getting into the shoes of people who don’t.

Re: You are not your job

#62

Post by asveikau »

yurishimo wrote: post #39
asveikau wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> worker who cares about the business being successful In most cases, this is a sucker mentality that makes you vulnerable to abusive employers. You will stress yourself out making your boss richer. They won't care or make reciprocal gestures. They'd be happy to replace you should you become inconvenient.

It’s not about stressing yourself out; that’s something you can ultimately control (though admittedly, many people are bad at separating the two) but more about _how good you are at putting on a show_ of giving a shit. There is a non zero chance that the company I work for pivots into some weird crypto niche (low, but we’re already fintech-y). If that happens, I’m out, but no way in hell am I gonna pivot my work pers…

> Am I a sucker? Maybe by your definition, but I don’t feel like one currently.

Part of being a sucker is not thinking you're a sucker.

> more about _how good you are at putting on a show_ of giving a shit.

> If I need to put on a happy face for my boss to keep my job,

OK, this is an entirely different thing. This is being dishonest.

Re: You are not your job

#63

Post by [deleted] »

KellyCriterion wrote: post #54
garciasn wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I am arguably a successful employee in a tech-focused role. I enjoy my job and others seem to feel I'm good at what I do. That said: I am NOT at all interested in identifying myself in social situations by my job. When someone asks what I do, I respond that I work in tech. I am not interested in giving more details nor talking in-depth about what I do to others I have just met. Why? Because that's not at all what mak…

So you are saying that your job does not have any impact on your personality, despite you are there for 8+h a day? The environment you are in for hours (even if its great, you are forced) does not shapre who you are? And regarding social interactions: Its no difference for you interacting with people from your mind-liked crowd in opposion to someone who runs a gun-shop-chain? For sure, a constructed example, but Id s…

[deleted]

Re: You are not your job

#64

Post by block_dagger »

cedws wrote: post #26

>My technical skills are being disrupted by machines - that's fine I'll go do other things. [links to long bike trip] Ok that's cool and all but many of us have bills to pay. Bike trips don't pay the bills. Software people have been economically advantaged up until now that they can go and do stuff like that.

Within a few years I think UBI or UBS will be required for people to continue living, in which case basic needs (bills) won't be a concern. There's just no way for us to transition fast enough to avoid high unemployment as AI replaces large swaths of jobs. I do worry about the ~10 year transition it will take for societal governments to react.

Re: You are not your job

#65

Post by rc-1140 »

cedws wrote: post #26

>My technical skills are being disrupted by machines - that's fine I'll go do other things. [links to long bike trip] Ok that's cool and all but many of us have bills to pay. Bike trips don't pay the bills. Software people have been economically advantaged up until now that they can go and do stuff like that.

Even software people have bills to pay and mouths to feed. I think people like the article author are either single or have no dependents, and it's a big reason I cannot take many of these posts seriously. Much like the story of Peter Pan, the authors of these posts are college students who never grew up and had to be responsible.

Re: You are not your job

#66

Post by ThrowawayR2 »

testing22321 wrote: post #31
beastman82 wrote: post #12

I want to thank everyone who hates work, is mentally checked out of their jobs and quiet quitting etc. It makes it much easier for me to distinguish myself as a hard worker who cares about the business being successful. It also helps me keep my job during layoffs because I can assure you the managers have noticed. When you are old and have lots of formative experiences that are not work-based, we can shake hands and…

> It also helps me keep my job during layoffs because I can assure you the managers have noticed. Sounds like you’re young and early in your career. Wait till you’re part of a layoff where an entire division or arm of the company is axed in a 750 person headcount reduction. Doesn’t matter how good you are, how many years of service you have or even if the CEO loves you. You’ll be out.

It does matter because it's your network that gets you your next job and colleagues remember who was doing a good job and helping meet goals and those who didn't.

Re: You are not your job

#67

Post by [deleted] »

manmal wrote: post #61
garciasn wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I am arguably a successful employee in a tech-focused role. I enjoy my job and others seem to feel I'm good at what I do. That said: I am NOT at all interested in identifying myself in social situations by my job. When someone asks what I do, I respond that I work in tech. I am not interested in giving more details nor talking in-depth about what I do to others I have just met. Why? Because that's not at all what mak…

It sounds like you have a privileged life, and a hard time getting into the shoes of people who don’t.

[deleted]

Re: You are not your job

#68

Post by weatherlite »

ChrisMarshallNY wrote: post #13

There’s an old aphorism: “Do what you love, and you’ll never work a day in your life.” I worked in tech, because I love tech . No other reason, really. I accepted a job, making maybe half of what I could make, elsewhere, because of the personal satisfaction I got from it, and the relationships I made, there. When I retired, I have continued to develop software, and am currently “leaning into” AI-assisted development.…

"Do what you love, and you’ll never work a day in your life."

It's possible sex workers took this advice too literally...

Re: You are not your job

#69

Post by drzaiusx11 »

vrganj wrote: post #17
ChrisMarshallNY wrote: post #13

There’s an old aphorism: “Do what you love, and you’ll never work a day in your life.” I worked in tech, because I love tech . No other reason, really. I accepted a job, making maybe half of what I could make, elsewhere, because of the personal satisfaction I got from it, and the relationships I made, there. When I retired, I have continued to develop software, and am currently “leaning into” AI-assisted development.…

I have found that aphorism does not ring true for me. “Do what you love for work, and you'll stop loving it" seems more true to me. It always eventually turns into a chore once it is a thing you need to do.

I enjoy writing and designing software systems, and have since my first apple ii use in 2nd grade writing logo programs (the turtle drawing programming language)

I write software in my spare time, for fun, as it scratches a particular itch in my brain, but I also enjoy a lot of other hobbies as well: woodworking, car repair, boating, beekeeping...

Having a 9 to 5 desk job in any field is it's own type of soul crushing, even moreso as of late for myself personally. However, if I need to perform the song and dance to support my family, I'll at least do it to the tune of something I enjoy. With software engineering I can at least "get lost in" the work, so the drudgery can be temporarily forgotten until I can get home to my family and side projects.

Re: You are not your job

#70

Post by cedws »

block_dagger wrote: post #64
cedws wrote: post #26

>My technical skills are being disrupted by machines - that's fine I'll go do other things. [links to long bike trip] Ok that's cool and all but many of us have bills to pay. Bike trips don't pay the bills. Software people have been economically advantaged up until now that they can go and do stuff like that.

Within a few years I think UBI or UBS will be required for people to continue living, in which case basic needs (bills) won't be a concern. There's just no way for us to transition fast enough to avoid high unemployment as AI replaces large swaths of jobs. I do worry about the ~10 year transition it will take for societal governments to react.

I think UBI is a pipe dream. I live in the UK and even with our social safety net which is much stronger than the US's, I can't imagine the government ever handing out money adequate to live a middle class life to large chunk of the population.

UBI has problems that far as I know haven't been addressed. Vast numbers of people no longer being occupied doesn't seem like it would lead to a healthy society. And how do you uphold democracy when the government is effectively handing out the paychecks?

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