> I think it’s pretty clear we have an epidemic of burnout on our hands
I agree, but I also agree with your observation that a lot of the burnout is coming from the activities that people choose to fill their free time with.
I see a lot of people in the tech communities boasting about quitting social media, but they then go on to spend countless hours every day on non-traditional social media like Reddit or HN. Or they endlessly scroll news articles and outrage bait that isn’t really relevant to their lives. Or they spend hours upon hours in video games or watching TV. Or they immerse themselves in drama around things that don’t directly impact them, like anti-vaxxer debates or Twitch live-streamer drama or online culture war arguments.
I’ve also noticed several common themes among the burnout-resistant people I’ve worked with, even at some very demanding jobs. These people tend to be unaware of the latest news headlines or the latest culture war debates. They aren’t keeping up with weekly COVID case counts or fretting over the latest anti-vax trends because they aren’t interested in the drama. They program in their language and framework of choice and aren’t concerned about using the latest and greatest every time the landscape changes (with allowances for steady learning and adapting to mature trends). They’re happy with their job even if it isn’t paying top of market year after year. Most importantly, they spend their free time doing things that make them happy and active instead of angry or lazy.
Unfortunately, I think HN comments and articles tend more toward the former group because debate is interesting and results in engagement. That’s partially why burnout seems to be an epidemic especially in HN discussions, whereas the situation isn’t as universally dire in my real-world experience. Still a problem, but there’s more to it than blaming jobs and Facebook/Instagram/Twitter.
Like you said, a lot of the idle activities that people choose to fill their free time are actually quite draining.
Burnout is from people doing tasks that bring little fulfillment for most of their one life on Earth. If you have 1 free minute in 1 year, it's irrelevant what you do on that 1 free minute. This is an exaggeration, but it's to show my point. People want to be spending time doing things they like. 40 hours a week is way too much time spent doing the opposite, regardless of what you do outside of those 40 hours.
I agree, but I also agree with your observation that a lot of the burnout is coming from the activities that people choose to fill their free time with.
I see a lot of people in the tech communities boasting about quitting social media, but they then go on to spend countless hours every day on non-traditional social media like Reddit or HN. Or they endlessly scroll news articles and outrage bait that isn’t really relevant to their lives. Or they spend hours upon hours in video games or watching TV. Or they immerse themselves in drama around things that don’t directly impact them, like anti-vaxxer debates or Twitch live-streamer drama or online culture war arguments.
I’ve also noticed several common themes among the burnout-resistant people I’ve worked with, even at some very demanding jobs. These people tend to be unaware of the latest news headlines or the latest culture war debates. They aren’t keeping up with weekly COVID case counts or fretting over the latest anti-vax trends because they aren’t interested in the drama. They program in their language and framework of choice and aren’t concerned about using the latest and greatest every time the landscape changes (with allowances for steady learning and adapting to mature trends). They’re happy with their job even if it isn’t paying top of market year after year. Most importantly, they spend their free time doing things that make them happy and active instead of angry or lazy.
Unfortunately, I think HN comments and articles tend more toward the former group because debate is interesting and results in engagement. That’s partially why burnout seems to be an epidemic especially in HN discussions, whereas the situation isn’t as universally dire in my real-world experience. Still a problem, but there’s more to it than blaming jobs and Facebook/Instagram/Twitter.
Like you said, a lot of the idle activities that people choose to fill their free time are actually quite draining.