Comment Can someone explain the "young=smart" thing? (Score 1) 222
I'm 32 years old, born 1966 in Canada (GenX by official demographic lingo in Canada means being born between 1960-1966), and just had my first kid. Before then I actually had all kinds of time to learn new languages, screw around with hardware and operating systems. Now, more and more I have less time to keep up to date, and must spend more time making money (and not studying) to pay for all those bills (kids cost $$$$). The result of this after 20 years will almost certainly be either:
1. I seem to be smart, but I'm divorced.
2. I seem to be out-of-date, but I'm happy.
I plan on being #2. I hope to be experienced enough to manage projects and not be worried about the little details; or to be rich enough to retire.
As for the entire degradation-of-the-workplace issue: It has gone downhill. Whatever may be said about how bad it was 50-100 years ago, I like to think that we should be striving to improve our lives, and not make them worse in the name of efficiency. Indeed, there's a lot of evidence sugggesting that the new employer work ethic works contrary to efficiency. Certainly my personal experiences back that. My last job (hopefully my last - I'm self-employed) was straight out of Dilbert. I was paid poorly, lied to, coerced to work 10-30 (sometimes 40) extra, unpaid hours each week, and then labelled as disloyal for job hunting - despite being called 'one of the best' etc...
A large study I happened a few years ago found that 4 out 5 companies that attempt to become lean and mean only to end up thin and neurotic, staffed by employees who are hungry and angry.
Problem is, it's a trend of apparent necessity. Since Company A does it, so must company B, and so on. My way out was to leave, and to name MY price.
1. I seem to be smart, but I'm divorced.
2. I seem to be out-of-date, but I'm happy.
I plan on being #2. I hope to be experienced enough to manage projects and not be worried about the little details; or to be rich enough to retire.
As for the entire degradation-of-the-workplace issue: It has gone downhill. Whatever may be said about how bad it was 50-100 years ago, I like to think that we should be striving to improve our lives, and not make them worse in the name of efficiency. Indeed, there's a lot of evidence sugggesting that the new employer work ethic works contrary to efficiency. Certainly my personal experiences back that. My last job (hopefully my last - I'm self-employed) was straight out of Dilbert. I was paid poorly, lied to, coerced to work 10-30 (sometimes 40) extra, unpaid hours each week, and then labelled as disloyal for job hunting - despite being called 'one of the best' etc...
A large study I happened a few years ago found that 4 out 5 companies that attempt to become lean and mean only to end up thin and neurotic, staffed by employees who are hungry and angry.
Problem is, it's a trend of apparent necessity. Since Company A does it, so must company B, and so on. My way out was to leave, and to name MY price.
