

Don't be a startup martyr - rywalker
http://differential.io/blog/dont-be-a-startup-martyr

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diminoten
I'm getting tired of this "everyone should work as I do" mentality.

Does everyone work well past 8 hours? No. Do some people fucking love it, live
for it, are great at it, and wouldn't do it any other way? Fuck yes.

Every single one of these pieces reads as a justification for why the writer
doesn't work as many hours as the person he's writing about. He creates this
gangly strawman who's overworking for all the wrong reasons, and inevitably
burns out, but this just doesn't represent reality.

Sure, people burn out, sure people overwork, but that is _not_ the inevitable
conclusion everyone's trying to paint it as. Some people have more work
endurance than others, period. Sure, you work hard for 8 hours and go home,
but the guy you bash worked just as hard as you did for the same 8 hours, and
then he stuck around for another 5 or 6 hours and kept working just as hard.

There's unnecessary glorification in getting no sleep and eating like shit -
that's a signaling problem, and has nothing to do with the acts themselves.

I just don't get why people refuse to accept the fact that there are others
out there who can do more than they can. It's true for _literally_ everyone
(except one guy. In the world.).

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lolwutf
Since it's easy to confuse, it's worth explicitly highlighting the benefits
of, above all, ultimately, maintaining a healthy work-life balance.

You and the author, together, are correct.

Someone may achieve 'balance' at 30, 60, 80 hours a week. YMMV. But the
operative phrase is 'balance'.

I also consider the phrases 'unnecessary' and 'signaling problem' far too
light to describe the ill effects of '[glorifying] getting no sleep and eating
like shit'. It is a fucking cancer.

As an industry and a niche, we're _really_ bad at promoting this.

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lolwutf
To that end, what is 'balance'?

Some may argue the weight on the other side of the seesaw - the startup or
product you work on - has such dismally low possibility of 'taking
off'/earning you life-changing money/etc that it's not worth putting a premium
on work hours, as opposed to living and enjoying your youth.

That, right there, is the substance of debate.

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ananth99
Well said. It seldom is about the number of hours someone puts on building
something. It's the experience, journey and the continuous learning curve that
matters. :)

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joshowens
So true, thx for sharing!

