

Rands in Repose: The Noise - filament
http://www.randsinrepose.com/archives/2011/02/02/the_noise.html

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scotch_drinker
I don't think this article is just about having a job that's full of Noise,
it's having a life that's full of Noise. Every day, every week, every month, I
do things. I walk the dog, clean the kitchen, stay in touch with people on
Facebook (ack!), contribute minimally to HN. But all of this is Noise in the
same way answering emails, consoling coworkers and contributing tiny fixes are
noise.

So many of us live Noisy lives, lives that look busy and productive and in
many ways are all of that. But I'm 38 and if I died tomorrow, none of that
crap would amount to a hill of beans except that my family would be reasonably
provided for and would think I was a super swell, no-nonsense guy. But it
takes an immense amount of courage to begin to eliminate the noise and take on
more signal. Lots of people say do it slowly but the more I run into the
Noise, the more I begin to think you have to "Burn the Boats" as was mentioned
in another thread. It's just too easy to slip back into the comfort of the
Noise. Because for all it keeps me from doing, the Noise feels good because it
helps me avoid the fact that there's almost no Signal in my life.

~~~
gvb
The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation.

\- Henry David Thoreau _Walden_ (1854)

[http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Henry_David_Thoreau#Walden_.281...](http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Henry_David_Thoreau#Walden_.281854.29)

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andr
Think beyond the workplace. A lot of what we read during the day (Twitter, HN,
etc.) is noise, even though we give it value. Ever gone on a vacation for 2
weeks and realized nothing important happened while you were gone?

It's not that we shouldn't read, but we should not deceit ourselves about the
value of what we read.

~~~
Detrus
Yes. Haven't taken a proper vacation since I got hooked on these services and
realized the whole lifestyle is insane. I wasn't in my right mind, couldn't
focus, had horrible productivity.

After a few months the noise crept back, it was a way to take a break from
work that took less effort than getting off my ass and going outside.

There's also a factor of having nowhere to go if you live in a shithole. I
wonder if people from Europe waste as much time on Twitter/HN because
typically their real world surroundings are better. Maybe the whole social
networking craze is driven by the horrible residential planning in the US.

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lovskogen
If your job is 100% noise, quit. But a workplace will always have some noise,
face it. But measure it, know when it's too much, and quiet some of it.

~~~
paulbaumgart
Any advice on the last bit?

~~~
lovskogen
Work from home. Do communication with instant messaging and email (you can
decide when to be available for input, limiting noise).

Take a mental step back and look at what you are doing on a larger scale. I'm
not good at this, but I think it would make the noise clearer, and easier to
quiet.

~~~
bad_user
I have a wife and a 7 months old son; and while I love them both very much,
working from home is really hard because of all the distractions. Not to
mention it gets really hard to separate home from work time. It also gets
pretty boring (smelly too, since the incentive to take care of yourself
decreases :)).

I do work remotely, with flexible schedule and all that, but I have rented an
office pretty close to my home.

Just wanted to say: I don't know how other people can work from home.

~~~
lovskogen
Then don't work from home when your son still is at home daytime. Not taking
care of yourself and having a hard time separating work/home time goes hand in
hand.

Start early, put on real clothes. Work out tasks, then get cracking.

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martinkallstrom
It seems this article has a higher ratio of upvotes to comments than normal.
Am I to hasty to conclude that the people upvoting avoid leaving a comment in
order to not reveal to the public that they loathe their current work
position?

~~~
gyardley
Yes, you're too hasty. I upvoted this without commenting because the article
was strong and interesting and I had nothing to add.

Since 'great article, I agree completely' comments get downvoted on Hacker
News (that's what the up arrow's for), a lot of upvotes and few comments means
the article is both good and not particularly contentious.

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usedtolurk
Pick your signals carefully - many turn out to be a different-sounding noise.

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Mz
Funny, I don't think I have a lot of noise in my life, even though I would
like to leave my job and am generally feeling frustrated here lately with not
having moved on already. But I know why I haven't moved on: I had to get well.
Perhaps my increased sense of frustration is a good sign -- an indication of
rising energy and awareness that my burden, in terms of health and the time
and work needed to resolve it, is substantially less. If so, then the odds are
good I will move on in the near future.

