I want to get maximum return for minimal work. I don't work during meetings, for example. My camera is off and I'm painting miniatures. I can pay attention to s

I want to get maximum return for minimal work. I don't work during meetings, for example. My camera is off and I'm painting miniatures. I can pay attention to speech and do that, but coding uses a similar part of the brain than speech, so I cannot pay attention to both. People complain about red tape and useless corporation time wasters, and I get you, it's draining. But you can learn to use those hours for your own stuff. Vacuuming the house while the all staff meeting is going on in your ears, or hell, you are attending but not listening. Just have a friend in the company who can brief you. This all changes when you are an expensive contractor, where you can bill 8 hours when the job only took 4. Still, you have to be attentive and present so that you represent value. Clients pay for the illusion of professionalism, but you do the same work their devs do, just with fewer meetings and for 3 times the wage. Anyway, what do I mean by all this? You should ask yourself what you want. I comfy seat at a corp with a 9-5 that is really just 2-5 hours of effort, or more money for more effort and more agency by being able to say no to meetings and work when you want to work. That works is called consulting. They have their pros and cons.