3 ms·

I think the first paragraph and venn diagram described the problem pretty well. This is why I'm a huge advocate for not giving a shit beyond the scope of what y

I think the first paragraph and venn diagram described the problem pretty well. This is why I'm a huge advocate for not giving a shit beyond the scope of what you control or are getting paid to do. Devote your day to the thing you're working on, but it's not in your favor to do more than that if you don't control any other aspects of how that hypothetical extra time is rewarded. If you get unlimited overtime pay, great, spend as much time as you want getting it, your reward is more money. If you're not, and don't have a stake in the company, and never hope to, or don't have anything but a guarantee you'll land that promotion, devoting more of your mental energy beyond the time you're paid for is just a recipe to be Jason Bateman. No amount of loyalty will be rewarded with not being laid off, so assume you will eventually, negotiate aggressively, and leave earlier than later if your work isn't rewarded in the way you feel like you can get elsewhere.

greedylizard 3y ago
Can you clue me in on the Jason Bateman reference?
- sogen 3y ago
  In Arrested Development his character solves everyone’s problems to the detriment of his personal life.
- brailsafe 3y ago
  @sogen put it pretty well below, but I'm not so familiar with arrested development. His typecast character in most roles though is one who's always draining his personal life in hopes that one day he'll become partner of the lawfirm or be chosen by the woman who only thinks of him as a friend, but usually ends up being passed over for someone else, and divorced in the process. Though it's not perfectly analogous, and at-best a fanciful exaggeration, to me it exemplifies this hopeful idea of "if I try super hard at whatever I'm assigned—more than I'm asked—I'll eventually be rewarded", but it's not a calculated risk if you don't control the outcome of that stress and you're robbing yourself of your own time and energy, the company just accepts it. It might pay off, and it might be due to the merits of the work you've done, but the value you're adding should be very clear, and it should definitely end up in your pocket. There's no worse feeling that putting in those extra hours, stressing yourself off, and then arbitrarily being laid off when times are a bit tougher. Even if you're in a management position, or maybe especially so, you should be paid sufficiently for devoting time outside your regular hours to deal with the bullshit of that job, ideally in clearly defined terms.
  - greedylizard 3y ago
    Thanks. I figure I’ll get around to watching it next year. Although your description sounds a lot like his role in Ozark too.
    - brailsafe 3y ago
      That sounds about right. IIRC I saw a few episodes of Ozark and immediately thought it was appropriate.

greedylizard 3y ago

Can you clue me in on the Jason Bateman reference?

sogen 3y ago
In Arrested Development his character solves everyone’s problems to the detriment of his personal life.
brailsafe 3y ago
@sogen put it pretty well below, but I'm not so familiar with arrested development. His typecast character in most roles though is one who's always draining his personal life in hopes that one day he'll become partner of the lawfirm or be chosen by the woman who only thinks of him as a friend, but usually ends up being passed over for someone else, and divorced in the process. Though it's not perfectly analogous, and at-best a fanciful exaggeration, to me it exemplifies this hopeful idea of "if I try super hard at whatever I'm assigned—more than I'm asked—I'll eventually be rewarded", but it's not a calculated risk if you don't control the outcome of that stress and you're robbing yourself of your own time and energy, the company just accepts it. It might pay off, and it might be due to the merits of the work you've done, but the value you're adding should be very clear, and it should definitely end up in your pocket. There's no worse feeling that putting in those extra hours, stressing yourself off, and then arbitrarily being laid off when times are a bit tougher. Even if you're in a management position, or maybe especially so, you should be paid sufficiently for devoting time outside your regular hours to deal with the bullshit of that job, ideally in clearly defined terms.
- greedylizard 3y ago
  Thanks. I figure I’ll get around to watching it next year. Although your description sounds a lot like his role in Ozark too.
  - brailsafe 3y ago
    That sounds about right. IIRC I saw a few episodes of Ozark and immediately thought it was appropriate.