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Is there anyone who believes this on HN? If so, I'd love to have a discussion about why you feel this is the case. I'm young (24) and am performing very well in

Is there anyone who believes this on HN? If so, I'd love to have a discussion about why you feel this is the case. I'm young (24) and am performing very well in the workplace. I'm actually much more productive when remote than when I go to an office and waste a bunch of time on commuting. A lot of this "people need to socialize" stuff feels very patronizing to me. I think socializing with coworkers used to be seen as a risky thing to do, now it's encouraged. I don't like the idea of building my entire friend group, or a majority of it, around who I work with.

missedthecue 5y ago
I'm young. Remote work is a lot more convenient for me, but it is essentially impossible to build meaningful relationships when all your coworkers are nothing more than a Slack pfp. And being unable to build meaningful relationships makes it harder to grow a career.
- sjg007 5y ago
  Start having 1:1 zoom calls.
- gravypod 5y ago
  > is essentially impossible to build meaningful relationships when all your coworkers are nothing more than a Slack pfp I grew up on irc, ventrilo, teamspeak, and now discord. Some of my best friends are just usernames (not even profile pics)! It is possible to build long standing relationships with people just through text and voice chat, let alone video. > And being unable to build meaningful relationships makes it harder to grow a career. Harder or unfamiliar? No generation has had remote as an available option as ours has. In the same way we say "X is harder than Y" in technology when really we mean "I have used X but not Y" it might just be something we need to attempt.
  - postalrat 5y ago
    Someone who is 24 grew up on irc, ventrilo, and teamspeak? I know people still use irc but figured most kids wouldn't bother with it. You must appreciate the difference between chatting online vs. in person.
    - gravypod 5y ago
      I did a lot of gaming in highschool and IRC, vent, and TS were what was best then.
rdtwo 5y ago
I mean it’s not a problem when you recruit the top 0.1% of candidates but when you pull even from the top 10-20% pool you get a lot of folks that aren’t very self motivated to learn without some guidance from coworkers.
totony 5y ago
>I don't like the idea of building my entire friend group, or a majority of it, around who I work with. I think you're seeing this in the wrong light; you interact with your teammates (even remotely) way more than most people. Isn't it healthy to have good relationships with them?
- Wiseacre 5y ago
  Is that really the wrong light? If anything, spending 30 hours a week with coworkers instead of 40+ would allow you to build actual relationships with real life friends instead of relying on your work to be your social life too.
  - dukeyukey 5y ago
    Then you'd still be spending 30 hours a week with coworkers, and it'd still be beneficial to be friends with them (even if just work friends).
- fivea 5y ago
  > I think you're seeing this in the wrong light; you interact with your teammates (even remotely) way more than most people. Isn't it healthy to have good relationships with them? There's a huge difference between having good relationships with your colleagues and being forced to build your social life around your job. One is a basic requirement and the other is a huge problem.
throwaway55421 5y ago
I'm 30 and quit the field indefinitely because working from home feels like an enormous backward step. I spent most of my childhood in my bedroom grinding to make a better life and "get out" of the small town I grew up in. I got there, and after a few short years the world decided to retreat to their bedrooms. I enjoy riding the Tube, or cycling, or walking. I enjoy driving too. I enjoy seeing people on busy high streets, I enjoy chatting / playing card games over lunch at work, etc. I never made work my entire social circle, my colleagues were always colleagues, I have other avenues for that. There's also the whole "corona theater" element, with people pretending that they don't want to come in because they'll die or whatever, which might have made sense for a month or two in March last year but now is just a sign that you're dealing with someone who is either deliberately lying or just has no understanding of the situation. I genuinely think that WFH for the vast majority is just a step towards the dystopia of having people live in endless tower blocks somewhere, plugged into a wall with a VR headset and a nutrition drip. It'd be more efficient and convenient. But I don't want to be efficient. I could maximize my efficiency by jumping off a bridge. That ain't life.
- penjelly 5y ago
  Comment is dripping with hyperbole > here's also the whole "corona theater" element, with people pretending that they don't want to come in because they'll die or whatever if people are forced to vaccinate and wear masks by their own government why is it theater when they just want to expose themselves to 25-100 less people everyday? Cant have it both ways
  - throwaway55421 5y ago
    I consider that to be theatre too. Frankly I just don't interact with corona-obsessed people in real life any more, which they probably prefer. Everyone wins.
    - penjelly 5y ago
      Sure, but we dont actually have a choice in the former. Unless of course you work remotely 5 days a week then maybe youll be exempt from vaccination reqs, contact tracing, masking and social distancing office rules.
penjelly 5y ago
29 here (still young). i am also way more productive from home, particularly because my job involves external devices which cant easily be ferried back and forth. The company i work for would see a drop in income i generate if i was forced back, 1 hour commute both ways, no lunchtime fitness habit, no time for morning wellness habits, and i wouldnt be able to put in an extra hour comfortably while i make food or wait for CI builds. All these would negatively affect my performance. agreed to socialization, i dont need daily face to face socialization with those i work with, we already slack and chat while we work. im against full/part time return to office, the only thing i would consider is optional social event days once a month or so (previously we had work events for all sorts of seasonal events) id go in for those sometimes, just to socialize with my fellows.

missedthecue 5y ago

I'm young. Remote work is a lot more convenient for me, but it is essentially impossible to build meaningful relationships when all your coworkers are nothing more than a Slack pfp. And being unable to build meaningful relationships makes it harder to grow a career.

sjg007 5y ago
Start having 1:1 zoom calls.
gravypod 5y ago
> is essentially impossible to build meaningful relationships when all your coworkers are nothing more than a Slack pfp I grew up on irc, ventrilo, teamspeak, and now discord. Some of my best friends are just usernames (not even profile pics)! It is possible to build long standing relationships with people just through text and voice chat, let alone video. > And being unable to build meaningful relationships makes it harder to grow a career. Harder or unfamiliar? No generation has had remote as an available option as ours has. In the same way we say "X is harder than Y" in technology when really we mean "I have used X but not Y" it might just be something we need to attempt.
- postalrat 5y ago
  Someone who is 24 grew up on irc, ventrilo, and teamspeak? I know people still use irc but figured most kids wouldn't bother with it. You must appreciate the difference between chatting online vs. in person.
  - gravypod 5y ago
    I did a lot of gaming in highschool and IRC, vent, and TS were what was best then.

rdtwo 5y ago

I mean it’s not a problem when you recruit the top 0.1% of candidates but when you pull even from the top 10-20% pool you get a lot of folks that aren’t very self motivated to learn without some guidance from coworkers.

totony 5y ago

>I don't like the idea of building my entire friend group, or a majority of it, around who I work with. I think you're seeing this in the wrong light; you interact with your teammates (even remotely) way more than most people. Isn't it healthy to have good relationships with them?

Wiseacre 5y ago
Is that really the wrong light? If anything, spending 30 hours a week with coworkers instead of 40+ would allow you to build actual relationships with real life friends instead of relying on your work to be your social life too.
- dukeyukey 5y ago
  Then you'd still be spending 30 hours a week with coworkers, and it'd still be beneficial to be friends with them (even if just work friends).
fivea 5y ago
> I think you're seeing this in the wrong light; you interact with your teammates (even remotely) way more than most people. Isn't it healthy to have good relationships with them? There's a huge difference between having good relationships with your colleagues and being forced to build your social life around your job. One is a basic requirement and the other is a huge problem.

throwaway55421 5y ago

I'm 30 and quit the field indefinitely because working from home feels like an enormous backward step. I spent most of my childhood in my bedroom grinding to make a better life and "get out" of the small town I grew up in. I got there, and after a few short years the world decided to retreat to their bedrooms. I enjoy riding the Tube, or cycling, or walking. I enjoy driving too. I enjoy seeing people on busy high streets, I enjoy chatting / playing card games over lunch at work, etc. I never made work my entire social circle, my colleagues were always colleagues, I have other avenues for that. There's also the whole "corona theater" element, with people pretending that they don't want to come in because they'll die or whatever, which might have made sense for a month or two in March last year but now is just a sign that you're dealing with someone who is either deliberately lying or just has no understanding of the situation. I genuinely think that WFH for the vast majority is just a step towards the dystopia of having people live in endless tower blocks somewhere, plugged into a wall with a VR headset and a nutrition drip. It'd be more efficient and convenient. But I don't want to be efficient. I could maximize my efficiency by jumping off a bridge. That ain't life.

penjelly 5y ago
Comment is dripping with hyperbole > here's also the whole "corona theater" element, with people pretending that they don't want to come in because they'll die or whatever if people are forced to vaccinate and wear masks by their own government why is it theater when they just want to expose themselves to 25-100 less people everyday? Cant have it both ways
- throwaway55421 5y ago
  I consider that to be theatre too. Frankly I just don't interact with corona-obsessed people in real life any more, which they probably prefer. Everyone wins.
  - penjelly 5y ago
    Sure, but we dont actually have a choice in the former. Unless of course you work remotely 5 days a week then maybe youll be exempt from vaccination reqs, contact tracing, masking and social distancing office rules.

penjelly 5y ago

29 here (still young). i am also way more productive from home, particularly because my job involves external devices which cant easily be ferried back and forth. The company i work for would see a drop in income i generate if i was forced back, 1 hour commute both ways, no lunchtime fitness habit, no time for morning wellness habits, and i wouldnt be able to put in an extra hour comfortably while i make food or wait for CI builds. All these would negatively affect my performance. agreed to socialization, i dont need daily face to face socialization with those i work with, we already slack and chat while we work. im against full/part time return to office, the only thing i would consider is optional social event days once a month or so (previously we had work events for all sorts of seasonal events) id go in for those sometimes, just to socialize with my fellows.