8 ms·
Ask HN: What addition or change would improve your quality of life?
- Mz 10y agoAffordable housing.
- bsvalley 10y ago1. Lower taxes 2. No neighbors 3. Fewer people around
- nkkollaw 10y agoSounds like you could benefit from moving to some state like Oregon or Colorado (if you're from the States)...
- skylark 10y agoWhile we're considering things that won't happen - how about working less? I love my job in software, but I think I'd have a better QoL with a 32 hour work week. I feel like my productivity wouldn't go down by 20% (but it's hard to tell without trying it for an extended period.)
- stefs 10y agoafter nearly burning out on the last ~42 hour job, at the current company i tried 30 hours and i love it. they do want to convince me to go full time, but for now i refused (stating that i don't think i'd be as productive and just cost the company more money without delivering another 33% of work). a lot of my colleagues and even friends at other companies downgraded to 30 hours (or never upgraded after finishing university). i earn enough to get by but don't save as much as others at my age (for reference, i'm 35). i work 6 hours a day, 5 days a week (others work 7.5 hours a day and just take friday off). i don't get paid overtime but be do have comp time. the upsides, in my opinion: * i'm better rested, more concentrated and productive so the company gets more bang for the buck * i spend a lot of my free time in the gym (this hopefully means i'm reasonably healthy which would be a plus for the company due to less sick time off) * the rest of my free time i spend programming interesting private non-commercial projects; i.e. free education and experience that benefits my employer (sometimes it also leads to open source libraries we can use at work) * the other rest of my free time i spend reading about IT (things like HN), which, again, +experience * when schedules get tight i tend to accumulate overtime, as soon as that passes i tend to take time off. this means the company doesn't have to pay me for twiddling my thumbs and waiting for the clock in my opinion it's mostly a win-win situation for both me and my employer.
- skylark 10y agoInteresting, I was considering negotiating with my employer for part time where I'd take every Friday off - have you found 6 hour days to be better? I feel like if I took a 20% pay cut I'd want to avoid commuting for that extra day off, but I can see how shortening the workday might be more pleasant.
- stefs 10y agoi'm a bit of a special case here - i'm a night owl, late riser and usually show up quite late (around lunch). also, my commute isn't that long and this way i can circumvent the notorious drop in concentration after 6 hours (which, in my experience, isn't universal). there are several more downsides to the 5d6h model, but i personally don't care much for those right now and i could switch any time. most of my friends and colleagues choose the 4d7.5h work week and i think it's the better option for most people.
- kohanz 10y agoI recently stopped working from home and moved into a co-working space out of necessity (rambunctious children at home). However, I don't want to talk about the change in setting, but part of this is that I added a walking commute to my day. About 20 minutes of brisk walking each way. It feels great. It's built-in exercise and it also serves as a great transition between home and work-life. As I'm heading to work (as a freelancer), I'm usually listening to podcasts and getting into the work mindset. As I'm walking home, it's either podcast or music and getting into the helpful father/husband mindset. Big positive change for me thus far, especially as someone who typically enjoys exercise, but has difficulty making time for it between work and kids.
- rmb177 10y agoI changed jobs a little over 4 years ago and went from working from home to working for a local company. I have about a 25 minute walk each way, and like you, I find the same benefits. I "read" so many more books now having signed up for an Audible subscription. Plus the company I work for pays out a $1 benefit each way to encourage walkers/bikers/public transportation. I live in the upper Midwest so I don't always enjoy the winter walks, but I still try and do it every day.
- usgroup 10y agoThanks for asking this. It made me think and realise that I don't know, which gives me cause for concern.
- urahara 10y agoClear social lifts to the at least upper-middle level in all countries. can't see so many great people ending up miserably or tragically just because they were never given a chance, and I myself could spend years doing valuable things instead of just random no brain staff just to have something to eat by the end of the day.
- urahara 10y agoUniversal basic income maybe.
- scrapcode 10y agoDoing something that I love to do, like programming. The hard part is that it'd greatly reduce my quality of life in the short term (gaining paper credentials, finding a job). Along with the fact that I've never programmed as a profession for someone else, so would I even like it? etc. I've got a cushy job with great pay and retirement, but it's a lousy "legend" to live. Hard to leave, but hate to stay. With that said it's hard to say, really, what might be concrete in improving the quality of my life. Most likely sticking with meditation for more than 3-5 sessions a year, or marrying my 4-year girlfriend.
- artmageddon 10y agoWhat are you doing now, and if I can ask, how old are you? > marrying my 4-year girlfriend. I highly recommend eloping! My wife and I did that, and hoo-boy it took so much pressure off of us(not to mention saved us a lot of money).
- tomcam 10y agoYES We did it too. Total cost of marriage: $300. How many people do you know had expensive weddings but ended up divorced and/or in debt? I have encountered plenty of people who said they wished they had much less elaborate marriages, but zero people who regretted eloping
- scrapcode 10y agoI work for the gov, and accidently moved up faster than I thought I would. Not very satisfying work, but the benefits and pay (vs an entry level dev job in my area) are unbeatable. I'm 28.
- tjalfi 10y agoMy upstairs neighbor is quite noisy after midnight. I would like an alternative to sleeping pills or ear plugs.
- long 10y agoHave you spoken to your neighbor about this?
- tjalfi 10y agoI haven't. I am a fairly light sleeper and I doubt the noise is intentional.
- throwpurp 10y agoTry playing brown noise through a subwoofer (a good Bluetooth speaker, not your phone's speaker), the low frequencies can block bassy noises (footsteps, TV, etc) so your sleep isn't interrupted by a sudden sound from above.
- sumguysr 10y agoI'm sure tjalfi's downstairs neighbors will love that.
- bjourne 10y agoAn infinite supply of money!
- jlgaddis 10y agoAn annual income of, say, $50k USD. I could live off of that -- comfortably, not extravagantly -- and devote all my time to continue learning, writing tech docs, teaching, contributing to F/OSS projects, etc., without having to work a normal job.
- methusalasleeps 10y agoNo cars above ground.
- tradersam 10y agoThis would improve so many people's lives. Especially here, in South California, imagine if all car transportation theoretically moved underground. All the space for parking lots and roads could be converted to homes/businesses, and although increasing population density it would decrease rent prices and decrease travel time. Interesting thought.
- Karupan 10y agoWorking 4 days a week. I wouldn't mind working 9 hours a day if that lets me have Fridays to myself.
- steego 10y agoI worked for a company that did that during the 2001 recession. It meant a cut in my salary for the period, but it was nice despite having to cut back on some things. I eventually started doing some side work on my Fridays. I have to say I really enjoyed being a part-time freelancer and helping clients solve their problems. The work was fun because I never relied on it. Would do it again.
- parthdesai 10y agoI would say moving to Toronto where my work is. Right now my commute is ~4 hours everyday so I don't get time to do anything apart from gym once I get back home. Good news is I'm moving in 2 months, bad news is I barely know anyone in Toronto and have great friends where I live currently.
- mattbettinson 10y agoWhere do you live? That commute is insane.
- parthdesai 10y agoOshawa. Go train itself is not bad, but DRT from Ajax go to my place is another 50 minutes to 1 hour. :(
- superasn 10y agoExercise and Proper eating. Common sense, right? Yet, so many of us find it hard. I've lost more than 8kgs in the last 3 months and I feel great. I was never overweight to begin with but still I feel so much happier overall. I don't think drugs can do what 1 hour of exercise daily does to your mood and energy. Plus losing weight has it's own benefits. Once you shed those extra pounds you feel like you've been carrying a laptop bag or something on your back all the time before.
- xupybd 10y ago> 1 hour of exercise daily How did you get going with that? Any pointers?
- superasn 10y agoSure but what you need to understand is that you need to change your mindset from I must exercise to I want to exercise and for that you need to program your brain first. step 1: make your WHY big enough and the how will follow First go to amazon and get one of these books: Spark or Go wild by john ratey. I prefer the audible version but either works. Listen to them, it's much easier than exercising. This will condition your mind and make your Why big enough. Soon you'll want to do it rather than have to do it. Step 2: baby steps You can't decide that you will exercise 1 hour daily starting from 0. Thankfully again there is a book called Minihabits. Get the audio or print version and read f it. Basically it teaches you that forming a habit is more important than doing it right. So 1 push daily for 3 months is better than 2 hours of 1 day gym in 3 months. Step 3: track your habits Get loopt habit tracker from app store (android) and put the widget on your home screen. Mark it daily. Even if you do 1 pushup you maintain your habit streak remember that. Once you have a 45 day streak you'll do your pushup even if you are falling asleep. Typing this on a mobile but let me know if i can be of any more help.
- xupybd 10y agoThanks for your reply. You've definitely given me some direction thanks :)
- muminoff 10y ago1. Flexible working time or working from home. 2. Benefit PS: I am based in Korea.
- stephancoral 10y agoIf I was 300 feet taller
- nickthemagicman 10y agoIf I had a girl real cute so I could call her.
- throwaway26960 10y agoI wish the library was open 24/7. What's up with it only being open during working hours?
- throwpurp 10y agoA sense of purpose and meaning. I grew up in poverty, managed to emigrate to the US and have struggled to get where I am and now am in a comfortable senior position in the industry. I am good at what I do but it's the same thing over and over. I go to work each day, save most of my paycheck, then use the rest to buy expensive trinkets, go to nice restaurants and take trips. I have a circle of acquaintances, hobbies, a great girlfriend and look outwardly successful and happy. But is this cycle all there is for the next few decades until retirement/death? I feel like I am plateauing. There must be more to it than this. I feel guilty even thinking such things as my life is fortunate in so many ways. (Throwaway account)
- throwaway3301 10y agoI don't have an answer for you. I just wanted to say that I struggle with the same ideas. I feel like I'm wasting my youth obsessing over these ideas. I feel like I'll disappoint everyone if I stop keeping up this cycle you describe. Sometimes I feel handcuffed to my life.
- oddlyaromatic 10y agoDo you have a specific alternative in mind? Can you dip a toe in the water without changing everything completely? The people in your life want you to be happy and safe and secure. They probably won't be disappointed if you go do something crazy but I bet their love to see that your backup plan is solid.
- oddlyaromatic 10y agoDo you help others? If not, write a check to a non profit you care about in your local area. Even if it doesn't work, you did something good. Keep trying it! Sincerely, guy who works at a non-profit. Also, your company may pay for you to volunteer at a local food bank. Or throw some time into helping new immigrants. Do you speak another language? Do you have knowledge that, if you shared it, would help people like the young you? We're all different, but boy it is not a good feeling to "have it all" and still lack purpose- but two are not always connected. There might be other ways to scratch the itch. But it sounds like you are restless for more impact in the world. You might not fix that feeling by writing checks and volunteering, but you might. The idea of plateauing suggest maybe you need more challenges, that you need to be cooking up something new. Maybe you have always been in motion and it feels weird to not be in motion. Find something of your community that's broken and see if you can help fix it. Maybe you just need a really good problem to get stuck in. These are just suggestions, I hope I didn't come off too bossy, that's not what I'm going for.
- djstein 10y agoA job. Just graduated and watching my bank account slowly drain. Have had a steady job for the past four years and not having one truly diminishes quality of life in all aspects. Those of you with them, even if you don't like them, realize you have income.
- ElectronCharge 10y agoThe main change I'd like at this point would be to transition from an "employee" job to a "founder" job. That is in the works, we'll see how the next 6-12 months go... :-)
- jelliclesfarm 10y agoA farm robot assistant! Or seven. Past three years broke my body. Getting too old for 24/7 physical labour!
- pasbesoin 10y agoFair, accessible health care insurance. (I'm in the U.S.) The amount of stress I've experienced dealing with this industry far outweighs the benefit it has provided to me. Yet, despite being relatively low-cost and high-paying, because I self-insure, I'm marginalized to the maximum extent permitted under law and regulation. Meaning, it is only law and regulation that has provided some reprieve from quasi-oligopical exploitation. I don't mind paying. I do mind paying 2 - 3x more than a corporation employee whose only demographic difference is being a corporation employee. And I mind the deliberate, thorough, and jealously guarded opacity that serves to perpetuate the system. And now, with the ACA on the ropes, I fear and expect the return of unbridled discrimination. All the fear-mongering carping about "death lists" that we've heard? The real death-list is being on the list of self-insured. (Or, uninsured -- not infrequently the same thing, absent law and regulation to the contrary.) Or now, once again, with an employer or other group-plan provider that doesn't have enough moxie to negotiate fair terms and treatment for its participants.