- cross-posted to:
- memes@lemmy.world
- cross-posted to:
- memes@lemmy.world
cross-posted from: https://sh.itjust.works/post/44032044
(TikTok screencap)
You must log in or # to comment.
I’m currently in “do a week’s worth of work in 2 days” hyperfocus. Building up my nest egg for the next time my brain says I need to spend several days spending less than 15 minutes on actual work.
My brain decided I can’t do that anymore. Worked in software for 10 years now and it’s just fucking gone. Can’t do the hyper-focus thing anymore.
It probably doesn’t help that my company is supporting a genocide in Gaza.
Oh, well, I got laid off a month ago anyway. Basically, spent the last year not doing work at my company so I guess I deserved it. But, really, the company deserves to be convicted of supporting war crimes; so I guess I did the moral thing.
I really hope the hyper-focus ability comes back. I can still do it with other things. Just not with job searching yet. Wondering when that will kick in.
Edit: Microsoft for anyone wondering.
Conventional wisdom: Do the smallest, easiest piece first.
For me, counter intuitive: Do the biggest/hardest thing first.
When people come to you with a small thing, tell them “I’d like to, but X has priority.”
Typical response is “OMG, yes, do that first.”
Once it’s done and out of the way, everything else looks small.
My problem is ignoring / declining the small things, especially if
-
it’s to help someone else, or
-
it’s more interesting than the big thing
The big thing gives you permission to pass on the small things.
The smaller they are, the more likely someone else can help. If not? It’s not world ending, they’ll still be there.
One thing at my last job that killed me was the security requirements for login. I would spend a week procrastinating and then be met with having to do multifactor verification to get access to the source code again. But it was this massive headache involving git credentials, the companies own “security” software, all wrapped inside of a virtual machine that needed additional steps, on top of the software just straight up not working randomly.
But I digress. The details aren’t too important as long as it’s understood it’s a headache.
This shit literally just stopped me from working. It was so much hassle between other emails to reply to and distractions that I would literally spend a day getting logged back in correctly, end my day. And then just lose all motivation to work for awhile after.
I am not meant for this type of environment. It literally makes my brain turn to mashed potatoes.
So, to actually respond to your comment. Sometimes the “small things” are fucking massive for me. Like the hardest hurdles to get over. Because I get so frustrated or bored with them that I just lose all interest.
Maybe I’m desperate for social interaction or maybe it’s just a hyper-focus trigger. I’ll spend hours of my time trying to help someone else when it’s something I am good and confident at doing.
I literally wish there was a position at a company for someone that just went around listening to people’s problems or complaints and then was able to offer solutions or optimizations.
This is probably autism kicking in a bit. But I need a new problem to solve each day and no job offers this. If I can’t hyper-focus a solution in a day or two. I just lose interest and stop caring.
Oh this thing is due in two weeks? Sounds like something that I don’t give a shit about.
I’m 100% with you on the “traveling helper” idea. I love hearing about a pain point from someone during a meeting and thinking I have an idea for that… Like you said, I’ll spend hours ignoring my actual work in order to help make this other person’s job easier. In the past, I’ve referred to myself as a “force multiplier” by doing things to make other people’s jobs easier, and I think this fits that quite well.
It’s not something appreciated until you’re gone sadly.
My first job out of college was at Cisco. I worked on the software team but all our work was done on hardware in remote labs. So a lot of the job was just getting connected to that hardware in lab.
I wrote a bunch of scripts to automate reservation of hardware, remote power cycle, running tests. It was all initially to make my life easier. Would get asked to share them by other engineers.
Eventually after 4 years I had a complete library written that our entire team was using. I wonder if they’re still being used today. I liked writing those scripts and helping other engineers more than my actual job.
If those scripts broke after I left I would assume the entire team probably lossed productivity significantly.
This is actually something I’m actively worried about.
At my current job, I’ve made a bunch of QoL improvements to various spreadsheets and slack channels, primarily (relatively) simple scripts to automate things. While I’m nowhere near a “programmer”, no one else really has any experience with it. I’m looking for a different job and am worried that if something breaks after I leave, it’s going to screw over my coworkers. They’d either have to ask an actual Dev/Eng to take a look, or go back to the old way.
Beyond Dev/Eng likely just not having the time, who knows what fuckery the Pandora’s box of “hey, can you take a look at this script written by a guy who’s no longer here?” holds, so I would completely understand them declining to go anywhere near it.
If I do end up leaving, I’d like to be able to dedicate a good chunk of my last two weeks writing comments and guides and making sure things are as robust as possible. 🫤
You’re not screwing over your coworkers. Your company/boss is by not (1) not paying you more for the value you bring or (2) they’re not prepared to have you leave.
Its not your fault at all and you shouldn’t feel bad. Hell, you should use it as leverage along with a job offer to get a massive pay raise.
DO NOT do prep work for your company for free in your last few weeks if they are not asking you to. Do as little work as possible. You are the value. Not your scripts. Charge them $200/hr if they come crying after you leave.
-
Yep and when it’s small it really doesn’t seem like it needs doing.
