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Related to this: one thing I saw somebody here say one time is that responsibility without authority is a key to burnout. Having the responsibility to complete

Related to this: one thing I saw somebody here say one time is that responsibility without authority is a key to burnout. Having the responsibility to complete a large amount of work without the authority to make the decisions needed for that work can be incredibly disempowering, which can make you feel helpless. More reason to have small teams, cut out middle management, hire good developers, and trust them to make decisions. Being a code monkey is a recipe for burnout.

clnq 4y ago
Being a code monkey is fine if one embraces that position with its economic and ambition consequences. It could even be a good economic deal with a 9-to-5 minimal effort mindset. Being a code monkey who thinks it's their job to be responsible for the company is hard. In that case, I agree with you. Such a code monkey needs to put themselves in a position of power somehow.
- Trasmatta 4y ago
  It's not about being responsible for the company. It's about having the ability to make the decisions to guide your own work without endless bikeshedding, internal politics, red tape, conflicting messages from different layers of management, and constant meetings that go nowhere. > Being a code monkey is fine if one embraces that position with its economic and ambition consequences. It's perfectly fine. It can also lead to burnout.
  - clnq 4y ago
    > endless bikeshedding, internal politics, ... , conflicting messages from different layers of management, and constant meetings that go nowhere. This sounds more like manager incompetence than being a code monkey. But embracing code monkey-ism could help as I imagine it involves just doing tasks at one's own pace and putting up strong emotional boundaries to mismanagement. Can constant meetings or bikeshedding really hurt someone who's just looking to run out the clock? P.S. I'm talking about choosing to be a code monkey as a philosophy, a choice. Not as a skill level that I'd call "beginner". Some people call beginners code monkeys, I am not a fan of that.
    - ClumsyPilot 4y ago
      > This sounds more like manager incompetence Or it could be two or more competent managers coming into conflict. Or incompetent ones. It is not that rare l - if you recognise the situation, you can pick a side, but if you dont know what to do, you could be viewed badly by all participants
gedy 4y ago
> More reason to have small teams, cut out middle management, hire good developers, and trust them to make decisions. Well, that is until the senior engineers or managers burnout from being "responsible" for keeping product from crashing, performance issues, and/or technical debt but without authority to change things! QED

clnq 4y ago

Being a code monkey is fine if one embraces that position with its economic and ambition consequences. It could even be a good economic deal with a 9-to-5 minimal effort mindset. Being a code monkey who thinks it's their job to be responsible for the company is hard. In that case, I agree with you. Such a code monkey needs to put themselves in a position of power somehow.

Trasmatta 4y ago
It's not about being responsible for the company. It's about having the ability to make the decisions to guide your own work without endless bikeshedding, internal politics, red tape, conflicting messages from different layers of management, and constant meetings that go nowhere. > Being a code monkey is fine if one embraces that position with its economic and ambition consequences. It's perfectly fine. It can also lead to burnout.
- clnq 4y ago
  > endless bikeshedding, internal politics, ... , conflicting messages from different layers of management, and constant meetings that go nowhere. This sounds more like manager incompetence than being a code monkey. But embracing code monkey-ism could help as I imagine it involves just doing tasks at one's own pace and putting up strong emotional boundaries to mismanagement. Can constant meetings or bikeshedding really hurt someone who's just looking to run out the clock? P.S. I'm talking about choosing to be a code monkey as a philosophy, a choice. Not as a skill level that I'd call "beginner". Some people call beginners code monkeys, I am not a fan of that.
  - ClumsyPilot 4y ago
    > This sounds more like manager incompetence Or it could be two or more competent managers coming into conflict. Or incompetent ones. It is not that rare l - if you recognise the situation, you can pick a side, but if you dont know what to do, you could be viewed badly by all participants

gedy 4y ago

> More reason to have small teams, cut out middle management, hire good developers, and trust them to make decisions. Well, that is until the senior engineers or managers burnout from being "responsible" for keeping product from crashing, performance issues, and/or technical debt but without authority to change things! QED