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Author here. I 100% agree with this. That's one of the many reasons why I enfoce the 19:30 stop. After that is for socializing and other offline activities (suc

by mvip 7y ago

Author here. I 100% agree with this. That's one of the many reasons why I enfoce the 19:30 stop. After that is for socializing and other offline activities (such as reading).

atemerev 7y ago
Working 10 hours per day? Looks extreme to me, as a European.
- nfriedly 7y ago
  I'm an American, and 10 hours a day seems extreme. I've worked remote for about 10 years now, and I aim for about 8 hours a day. Sure, I might hit 10 or 11 hours in a day occasionally, but that doesn't happen very often.
- xenocyon 7y ago
  It's worth remembering that the 10 hours include "commute" and lunch, so it's about the same as as a nominally 8 hour workday.
- novok 7y ago
  He is the founder of a company, and is probably doing a lot of meeting & email work which doesn't necessarily have to be mentally draining compared to fixing bugs. There might be some long lunch breaks in between there too. (For me, meetings are draining in other ways most of the time)
  - vmurthy 7y ago
    Having fixed bugs /coding for nearly a decade and now having more meetings & emails,I would argue that if anything meetings & emails drain _more_ energy because of the context switches. You are more likely to do deep work fixing bugs than in meetings in my experience :-(
    - theshrike79 7y ago
      You might just be an introvert of some sort, sounds eerily familiar from the description Extroverts gain more energy from being around other people and in social situations. Introverts (like me) can handle social situations perfectly well, but need some time to recharge afterwards. Preferably completely alone without human contact. If I spend a day coding and just talk to my coworkers occasionally, during lunch and coffee breaks etc. - I'm just fine when I get back home. If it's a day full of meetings with customers, I'm completely drained and pretty much useless to my family for the rest of the night (at least socially)
      - vmurthy 7y ago
        Heh! I am INTJ if that helps :-) . Agree on the rest of your comments.
- ryanSrich 7y ago
  For a founder or any other exec, 10 hours is pretty tame. It also depends on your definition of work. I’m always “on” so to speak. Meaning I might be cooking dinner, but I can easily answer an email on my phone while cooking. I don’t necessarily consider that work, but I know a lot of people do.
  - seanmcdirmid 7y ago
    Not going to happen with a kid, unless you have a full time+ nanny and are willing for them to maybe hate you later.
    - ryanSrich 7y ago
      Seems like a valid point. I wouldn’t know as I don’t have kids, but being a high output exec + having a kid seems like a recipe for a mental breakdown, but I’m sure a lot of people do it.
      - seanmcdirmid 7y ago
        I just miss when I could think about work at home while cooking and doing anything else. Now it’s make sure toddler doesn’t climb up and hurt themselves.
djrobstep 7y ago
The 7:30 stop?! Is this parody?
- b212 7y ago
  No, just the "American way of life". As a remote employee I never worked more than 8 hours a day (including lunch break), knowing my friends in the office sit there for 8 hours INCLUDING lunch breaks, table tennis sessions, kitchen chats, multiple smoke breaks, meetings, scrum sessions and so on. Also I know very great programmers and literally NONE of them can stay really focused for more than 5-6 hours a day, regular devs will struggle to be productive for 4-5 hours, I'm happy if someone actually works for 3-4 hours a day. Sitting or standing in front on computer for 10 hours a day is a highway to carpal tunnel syndrome, haemorrhoids etc.
  - theshrike79 7y ago
    This is actually an interview question I use: "How many hours of productive work can you do in a day?" If they say 8 hours (full work day), they're either lying or using some kind of performance enhancing drug. I've been paid for software development for close to 20 years and I've never done anything productive before lunch. Mornings are for documentation, code reviews, emails, stuff that doesn't really need constant focus. Afternoon and early evening are when I get shit done, that's when I can get into the Zone.
    - Zenbit_UX 7y ago
      Lol so what if they're using a PED? Many people have ADHD diagnosis and use amphetamines to focus. Filtering them out at the interview stage is a huge mistake. Abnormally productive people should be seen as a benefit not a cheater.
      - theshrike79 7y ago
        I didn't say it was a bad thing. The point was that being "productive" - that is to say fully focused - for a complete workday just doesn't happen all the time without medication of some sort.
aliswe 7y ago
My first thought when seeing the domain and title was, ok, a guy in sweden who chooses remote work ... We're isolated enough in this country already. Glad for you not both points seem to be true.

by mvip 7y ago

Author here. I 100% agree with this. That's one of the many reasons why I enfoce the 19:30 stop. After that is for socializing and other offline activities (such as reading).

atemerev 7y ago

Working 10 hours per day? Looks extreme to me, as a European.

nfriedly 7y ago
I'm an American, and 10 hours a day seems extreme. I've worked remote for about 10 years now, and I aim for about 8 hours a day. Sure, I might hit 10 or 11 hours in a day occasionally, but that doesn't happen very often.
xenocyon 7y ago
It's worth remembering that the 10 hours include "commute" and lunch, so it's about the same as as a nominally 8 hour workday.
novok 7y ago
He is the founder of a company, and is probably doing a lot of meeting & email work which doesn't necessarily have to be mentally draining compared to fixing bugs. There might be some long lunch breaks in between there too. (For me, meetings are draining in other ways most of the time)
- vmurthy 7y ago
  Having fixed bugs /coding for nearly a decade and now having more meetings & emails,I would argue that if anything meetings & emails drain _more_ energy because of the context switches. You are more likely to do deep work fixing bugs than in meetings in my experience :-(
  - theshrike79 7y ago
    You might just be an introvert of some sort, sounds eerily familiar from the description Extroverts gain more energy from being around other people and in social situations. Introverts (like me) can handle social situations perfectly well, but need some time to recharge afterwards. Preferably completely alone without human contact. If I spend a day coding and just talk to my coworkers occasionally, during lunch and coffee breaks etc. - I'm just fine when I get back home. If it's a day full of meetings with customers, I'm completely drained and pretty much useless to my family for the rest of the night (at least socially)
    - vmurthy 7y ago
      Heh! I am INTJ if that helps :-) . Agree on the rest of your comments.
ryanSrich 7y ago
For a founder or any other exec, 10 hours is pretty tame. It also depends on your definition of work. I’m always “on” so to speak. Meaning I might be cooking dinner, but I can easily answer an email on my phone while cooking. I don’t necessarily consider that work, but I know a lot of people do.
- seanmcdirmid 7y ago
  Not going to happen with a kid, unless you have a full time+ nanny and are willing for them to maybe hate you later.
  - ryanSrich 7y ago
    Seems like a valid point. I wouldn’t know as I don’t have kids, but being a high output exec + having a kid seems like a recipe for a mental breakdown, but I’m sure a lot of people do it.
    - seanmcdirmid 7y ago
      I just miss when I could think about work at home while cooking and doing anything else. Now it’s make sure toddler doesn’t climb up and hurt themselves.

djrobstep 7y ago

The 7:30 stop?! Is this parody?

b212 7y ago
No, just the "American way of life". As a remote employee I never worked more than 8 hours a day (including lunch break), knowing my friends in the office sit there for 8 hours INCLUDING lunch breaks, table tennis sessions, kitchen chats, multiple smoke breaks, meetings, scrum sessions and so on. Also I know very great programmers and literally NONE of them can stay really focused for more than 5-6 hours a day, regular devs will struggle to be productive for 4-5 hours, I'm happy if someone actually works for 3-4 hours a day. Sitting or standing in front on computer for 10 hours a day is a highway to carpal tunnel syndrome, haemorrhoids etc.
- theshrike79 7y ago
  This is actually an interview question I use: "How many hours of productive work can you do in a day?" If they say 8 hours (full work day), they're either lying or using some kind of performance enhancing drug. I've been paid for software development for close to 20 years and I've never done anything productive before lunch. Mornings are for documentation, code reviews, emails, stuff that doesn't really need constant focus. Afternoon and early evening are when I get shit done, that's when I can get into the Zone.
  - Zenbit_UX 7y ago
    Lol so what if they're using a PED? Many people have ADHD diagnosis and use amphetamines to focus. Filtering them out at the interview stage is a huge mistake. Abnormally productive people should be seen as a benefit not a cheater.
    - theshrike79 7y ago
      I didn't say it was a bad thing. The point was that being "productive" - that is to say fully focused - for a complete workday just doesn't happen all the time without medication of some sort.

aliswe 7y ago

My first thought when seeing the domain and title was, ok, a guy in sweden who chooses remote work ... We're isolated enough in this country already. Glad for you not both points seem to be true.