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I think this is a very good point, one I had not considered before. The executive team may think everyone below them is slacking if we don't hit 60 hours, with

by techdmn 15y ago

I think this is a very good point, one I had not considered before. The executive team may think everyone below them is slacking if we don't hit 60 hours, without realizing that we also have to cook, clean, and be our own accountants. On the flip side, maybe the top level aren't the workaholics I thought, they simply have the resources to devote nearly 100% of their working time to the office.

michaelochurch 15y ago
On the flip side, maybe the top level aren't the workaholics I thought, they simply have the resources to devote nearly 100% of their working time to the office. That's precisely it, borne out by repeated studies. The average big-company CEO works 58 hours per week. That's not slacking, but with the magical ability to buy one's way out of most out-of-office responsibilities, it's not that impressive either. It's what average people work, all included. CEOs just have the luxury of being more focused. People don't actually vary that much in how much they can work. You're better off learning how to "work smart" than trying to work more hours. Most "hard working" people are just more focused, not more sacrificial. To be cynical: the "power career" people are just another mechanism through which an elite class sustains an illusion of superiority. People whose bitchy daily needs are taken care of can work 1.5 times harder and learn 1.5 times faster and, because of nonlinearity and network effects, they get 10 times the results. It performs the same function as being a 6-foot-tall nobleman in 800 AD, when the average peasant was under 5 feet due to malnutrition. People of height now considered average were "obviously" physically superior and deserved their status of lordship. Ten or fifteen years from now, I'll probably be running my own company. And I'll be leaving at 5:00 pm every day and "stealth" working from home. I don't want people with less income trying to compete against me on hours. That's stupid. I'd rather they do a good job and keep their personal lives in order at the same time.

by techdmn 15y ago

michaelochurch 15y ago

On the flip side, maybe the top level aren't the workaholics I thought, they simply have the resources to devote nearly 100% of their working time to the office. That's precisely it, borne out by repeated studies. The average big-company CEO works 58 hours per week. That's not slacking, but with the magical ability to buy one's way out of most out-of-office responsibilities, it's not that impressive either. It's what average people work, all included. CEOs just have the luxury of being more focused. People don't actually vary that much in how much they can work. You're better off learning how to "work smart" than trying to work more hours. Most "hard working" people are just more focused, not more sacrificial. To be cynical: the "power career" people are just another mechanism through which an elite class sustains an illusion of superiority. People whose bitchy daily needs are taken care of can work 1.5 times harder and learn 1.5 times faster and, because of nonlinearity and network effects, they get 10 times the results. It performs the same function as being a 6-foot-tall nobleman in 800 AD, when the average peasant was under 5 feet due to malnutrition. People of height now considered average were "obviously" physically superior and deserved their status of lordship. Ten or fifteen years from now, I'll probably be running my own company. And I'll be leaving at 5:00 pm every day and "stealth" working from home. I don't want people with less income trying to compete against me on hours. That's stupid. I'd rather they do a good job and keep their personal lives in order at the same time.