15 ms·

This guy goes into a bar in Mexico and there’s a dog lying in the corner, every so often the dog whimpers and whines a little. The guy asks the barman “what’s u

This guy goes into a bar in Mexico and there’s a dog lying in the corner, every so often the dog whimpers and whines a little. The guy asks the barman “what’s up with that dog?” And the barman said “oh, he’s probably lying on a nail.” After a few more minutes and another set of whines, the guy asks the barman “so why doesn’t he move?” And the barman says “it probably doesn’t hurt enough for him to get up.”

fcatalan 5y ago
"Nailed" it. Perfect description of my situation. I wish I weren't like this
- endymi0n 5y ago
  To say it with the words of my first boss that stuck with me: "Love it, change it or leave it. No amount of complaining will ever do anything else than paint you as a naysayer." Was a hard pill to swallow, but my own experience proved me again and again he was spot on.
  - mjevans 5y ago
    In this case, would the 'change it' option be to just work from home and see what happens?
    - bob2222 5y ago
      find a fully remote job if you can
      - pfarrell 5y ago
        At least give it a try. I suspect based on join dates that I’m similar or older than the OP. The more senior you get, the more time it can take on a search, but with remote work, you should definitely be trying.
      - dzhiurgis 5y ago
        Whats the market like right now? I have a feeling extremely tight as everyone wants a remote job now?
        tomrod 5y ago
        Reporting in, both as employer and targeted as employee through recruiting channels. Recruiters are in full swing and it is hard to find people with data/analytics skillsets. Developers seem similar. Knowing coding seems like foot in the door, modern applications have all kinds of disparate dependencies like k8s, docker, virtualization, Kafka, etc.
    - mattcwilson 5y ago
      I read “change it” as encompassing any modification to the status quo short of quitting it altogether. So, yes. But so also would be writing a petition to reinstitute work from home as a “performance bonus” and getting it signed by as many other company bright-lights as possible. Lots of options.
    - xtiansimon 5y ago
      Exactly, but only if you’re ready to get fired.
      - orwin 5y ago
        I'm doing this, new company policies are half a week in office. I get there 2 days a month since December (4 days this month but I needed to met coworkers). I do get email from the management occasionally but I either ignore them or use a poor excuse 'i didn't feel well enough to take the train this week '. They know I'm able to find a new job so they don't have any leverage.
  - m_fayer 5y ago
    I'm starting to doubt this advice. I'm a "change it" sort of personality by nature - a reformer. When faced with these 3 options, I've chosen "change it" many times. And more often than not, I've found myself in a political crossfire, with new unwelcome knowledge of the various forces (typically some combination of self interest, ego, and turf-guarding) that are responsible for the thing I'm trying to change. My current lesson is - most things that look like an easy win would have been claimed a long time ago if not for some unholy hidden mess. If I'm to vote for "change", I should be prepared to deal with the unholy mess. It doesn't matter that I don't see it, it's out there somewhere. Since I rarely want to take on an unholy mess, and I'm not good at the kind of doublethink that would allow me to love a thing I'm not inclined to love, usually that just leaves one option.
    - snowwrestler 5y ago
      Creating change isn’t easy. But it is an option.
    - citizenkeen 5y ago
      I think you're missing the point. If you don't love it, then either change it or leave. It doesn't require doublethink to love something. If you get somewhere, and you don't love it, _then_ you're left with two choices. If you're unwilling/unable to go through a change process, or if you've selected a company that's bad at change, then yes, now you only have one option.
    - revolvingocelot 5y ago
      Worse yet, IME, being a keen participant in HN's technical side almost precludes one's ability to overcome the other players, those who fight in the name of some combination of self interest, ego, and turf-guarding. To vanquish these, in the name of The Right Way, one ultimately must engage them in social combat, whether by proxy or directly. And they're better at it than you are. Nerds may be clever, and they may actually be right, but the other players are usually more convincing. And I don't mean merely argumentatively.
      - greedo 5y ago
  - benhurmarcel 5y ago
    You can also just bear it, live with it. Actually that's often the best choice, you need to pick your battles.
    - sevrinsky 5y ago
      This. "Accept it" or "ignore it" are perfectly valid options, and perhaps the healthiest for one's mental and emotional state.
- agumonkey 5y ago
  That said the dog has only one nail to deal with. Adult life means balancing rent / stability / safety / job. It's sad that manager never understand what people want to be happy for their company and so easily find ways to make us go into cynical mode (slow down and cope with side project).
maest 5y ago
Interesting story, but why in Mexico?
- deleted 5y ago
  [deleted]
- TuringTest 5y ago
  In countries where it is very hot during the day, there is a cliché that people make the minimum effort necessary or even less. The cliché is true during the hottest hours, but it fails to admit that it is simply because most activity moves to the twilight hours when the heat subsides.
  - toyg 5y ago
    When I was in Cairo for work, the amount of people flowing out of their homes at dusk was unreal. Areas that were literally dead an hour earlier, became bustling with humanity. When I left, I thought it was so stupid to build these big offices near the desert and to pack them full of people working 9 to 5 with massive amounts of aircon, effectively imposing on them the Northern European way of life - folks have been inhabiting those areas for millennia, they know how to properly deal with the environment they live in, let them work at night instead and save all that energy.
- adingus 5y ago
  Because that's where it happened
  - maest 5y ago
    That feels like quite a disingenuous answer.
rockyj 5y ago
It is not so easy. Changing jobs cannot be always the answer. In Europe there are not many "remote friendly" companies and also it's not that you will get a 20% pay rise every time you switch. On top, it is extremely hard to find software development jobs that pay around or above 100K. Most jobs are around 60-80K. A job change can also mean - inheriting someone else's problematic code base, new office politics and colleagues who may not get along with you. Hardly 0-5% of pay rise really does not justify all this. All in all, one cannot switch jobs easily when the options and benefits of switching are not so good.
- ChuckNorris89 5y ago
  >It is not so easy. Changing jobs cannot be always the answer. This. Everything you said is true about most of Europe, and even more so outside of major tech hubs. Companies call the shots and employees have to follow if they want to stay employed, because there are no good alternatives to go to, when all companies just act the same and pay the same. And most companies here don't give a damn about what their employees actually want and presume they can bait you with a +10% salary increase but exact same inflexibility, toxic environment and management practices. Good luck with that. Plus, interviewing and changing jobs in the tech world is a monumental effort, taking both time and a mental toll after several rounds of interviews with several companies, on top of your regular job, time that could have went into hobbies, dating, socializing, travelling, cooking, etc., so there's a lost opportunities cost associated with the job hunt. I've been interviewing around for about 4 months so far, to hopefully change to a better , less stressful tech job, and I'm already completely exhausted from all the "complete our 20-questions, 6 page HR online form about yourself, before you can submit your application, because our time is more valuable than yours", "solve this week long take home test, and when you're done, we'll let you know that unfortunately this position has already been filled", "there will be several rounds of interviews after wich we'll just ghost you, because f*ck you", "you didn't sound passionate enough about our company's products in your cover letter", etc. And, apparently there's a labor shortage. Yeah ... right. God, I'm so exhausted from all this, some days I just can't get out of bed anymore and sit there wishing I get hit by lightning, or die in my sleep and end my misery.
  - 5y ago
SilasX 5y ago
Or, it’s that the dog does tell all his doggie friends about his predicament, but any time they’re about to give him actionable advice for solving the core problem, he cuts them off, more interested in emotional catharsis. “It’s not about the nail.” https://youtube.com/watch?v=-4EDhdAHrOg https://youtube.com/watch?v=-4EDhdAHrOg
InCityDreams 5y ago
Is this specific to Mexico? And, what breed was the dog?
- panzagl 5y ago
  It was a mutt.
seanmcdirmid 5y ago
Ageism is real. After some point in time, it isn't so easy to hop jobs anymore while your current company still values you (even if they make mistakes). So you don't rock the boat until you don't need to job anymore.

fcatalan 5y ago

"Nailed" it. Perfect description of my situation. I wish I weren't like this

endymi0n 5y ago
To say it with the words of my first boss that stuck with me: "Love it, change it or leave it. No amount of complaining will ever do anything else than paint you as a naysayer." Was a hard pill to swallow, but my own experience proved me again and again he was spot on.
- mjevans 5y ago
  In this case, would the 'change it' option be to just work from home and see what happens?
  - bob2222 5y ago
    find a fully remote job if you can
    - pfarrell 5y ago
      At least give it a try. I suspect based on join dates that I’m similar or older than the OP. The more senior you get, the more time it can take on a search, but with remote work, you should definitely be trying.
    - dzhiurgis 5y ago
      Whats the market like right now? I have a feeling extremely tight as everyone wants a remote job now?
      - tomrod 5y ago
        Reporting in, both as employer and targeted as employee through recruiting channels. Recruiters are in full swing and it is hard to find people with data/analytics skillsets. Developers seem similar. Knowing coding seems like foot in the door, modern applications have all kinds of disparate dependencies like k8s, docker, virtualization, Kafka, etc.
  - mattcwilson 5y ago
    I read “change it” as encompassing any modification to the status quo short of quitting it altogether. So, yes. But so also would be writing a petition to reinstitute work from home as a “performance bonus” and getting it signed by as many other company bright-lights as possible. Lots of options.
  - xtiansimon 5y ago
    Exactly, but only if you’re ready to get fired.
    - orwin 5y ago
      I'm doing this, new company policies are half a week in office. I get there 2 days a month since December (4 days this month but I needed to met coworkers). I do get email from the management occasionally but I either ignore them or use a poor excuse 'i didn't feel well enough to take the train this week '. They know I'm able to find a new job so they don't have any leverage.
- m_fayer 5y ago
  I'm starting to doubt this advice. I'm a "change it" sort of personality by nature - a reformer. When faced with these 3 options, I've chosen "change it" many times. And more often than not, I've found myself in a political crossfire, with new unwelcome knowledge of the various forces (typically some combination of self interest, ego, and turf-guarding) that are responsible for the thing I'm trying to change. My current lesson is - most things that look like an easy win would have been claimed a long time ago if not for some unholy hidden mess. If I'm to vote for "change", I should be prepared to deal with the unholy mess. It doesn't matter that I don't see it, it's out there somewhere. Since I rarely want to take on an unholy mess, and I'm not good at the kind of doublethink that would allow me to love a thing I'm not inclined to love, usually that just leaves one option.
  - snowwrestler 5y ago
    Creating change isn’t easy. But it is an option.
  - citizenkeen 5y ago
    I think you're missing the point. If you don't love it, then either change it or leave. It doesn't require doublethink to love something. If you get somewhere, and you don't love it, _then_ you're left with two choices. If you're unwilling/unable to go through a change process, or if you've selected a company that's bad at change, then yes, now you only have one option.
  - revolvingocelot 5y ago
    Worse yet, IME, being a keen participant in HN's technical side almost precludes one's ability to overcome the other players, those who fight in the name of some combination of self interest, ego, and turf-guarding. To vanquish these, in the name of The Right Way, one ultimately must engage them in social combat, whether by proxy or directly. And they're better at it than you are. Nerds may be clever, and they may actually be right, but the other players are usually more convincing. And I don't mean merely argumentatively.
    - greedo 5y ago
- benhurmarcel 5y ago
  You can also just bear it, live with it. Actually that's often the best choice, you need to pick your battles.
  - sevrinsky 5y ago
    This. "Accept it" or "ignore it" are perfectly valid options, and perhaps the healthiest for one's mental and emotional state.
agumonkey 5y ago
That said the dog has only one nail to deal with. Adult life means balancing rent / stability / safety / job. It's sad that manager never understand what people want to be happy for their company and so easily find ways to make us go into cynical mode (slow down and cope with side project).

maest 5y ago

Interesting story, but why in Mexico?

deleted 5y ago
[deleted]
TuringTest 5y ago
In countries where it is very hot during the day, there is a cliché that people make the minimum effort necessary or even less. The cliché is true during the hottest hours, but it fails to admit that it is simply because most activity moves to the twilight hours when the heat subsides.
- toyg 5y ago
  When I was in Cairo for work, the amount of people flowing out of their homes at dusk was unreal. Areas that were literally dead an hour earlier, became bustling with humanity. When I left, I thought it was so stupid to build these big offices near the desert and to pack them full of people working 9 to 5 with massive amounts of aircon, effectively imposing on them the Northern European way of life - folks have been inhabiting those areas for millennia, they know how to properly deal with the environment they live in, let them work at night instead and save all that energy.
adingus 5y ago
Because that's where it happened
- maest 5y ago
  That feels like quite a disingenuous answer.

rockyj 5y ago

It is not so easy. Changing jobs cannot be always the answer. In Europe there are not many "remote friendly" companies and also it's not that you will get a 20% pay rise every time you switch. On top, it is extremely hard to find software development jobs that pay around or above 100K. Most jobs are around 60-80K. A job change can also mean - inheriting someone else's problematic code base, new office politics and colleagues who may not get along with you. Hardly 0-5% of pay rise really does not justify all this. All in all, one cannot switch jobs easily when the options and benefits of switching are not so good.

ChuckNorris89 5y ago
>It is not so easy. Changing jobs cannot be always the answer. This. Everything you said is true about most of Europe, and even more so outside of major tech hubs. Companies call the shots and employees have to follow if they want to stay employed, because there are no good alternatives to go to, when all companies just act the same and pay the same. And most companies here don't give a damn about what their employees actually want and presume they can bait you with a +10% salary increase but exact same inflexibility, toxic environment and management practices. Good luck with that. Plus, interviewing and changing jobs in the tech world is a monumental effort, taking both time and a mental toll after several rounds of interviews with several companies, on top of your regular job, time that could have went into hobbies, dating, socializing, travelling, cooking, etc., so there's a lost opportunities cost associated with the job hunt. I've been interviewing around for about 4 months so far, to hopefully change to a better , less stressful tech job, and I'm already completely exhausted from all the "complete our 20-questions, 6 page HR online form about yourself, before you can submit your application, because our time is more valuable than yours", "solve this week long take home test, and when you're done, we'll let you know that unfortunately this position has already been filled", "there will be several rounds of interviews after wich we'll just ghost you, because f*ck you", "you didn't sound passionate enough about our company's products in your cover letter", etc. And, apparently there's a labor shortage. Yeah ... right. God, I'm so exhausted from all this, some days I just can't get out of bed anymore and sit there wishing I get hit by lightning, or die in my sleep and end my misery.
- 5y ago

SilasX 5y ago

Or, it’s that the dog does tell all his doggie friends about his predicament, but any time they’re about to give him actionable advice for solving the core problem, he cuts them off, more interested in emotional catharsis. “It’s not about the nail.” https://youtube.com/watch?v=-4EDhdAHrOg https://youtube.com/watch?v=-4EDhdAHrOg

InCityDreams 5y ago

Is this specific to Mexico? And, what breed was the dog?

panzagl 5y ago
It was a mutt.

seanmcdirmid 5y ago

Ageism is real. After some point in time, it isn't so easy to hop jobs anymore while your current company still values you (even if they make mistakes). So you don't rock the boat until you don't need to job anymore.