Manager's schedule vs "maker" 's schedule
Under the cut - my free translation (part) of a curious article by Paul Graham, describing the fundamental difference between the schedule of a typical manager and a typical “maker-a” developer in particular.
Free - because I translate thought into thought, not word for word. Why parts of an article? Because I translated what constitutes its main content, and I wanted to make the translation simple and clear.
Missed for the most part are examples from the life of the original author of the article, which I omitted. All interested - welcome link at the end.
')
So - let's go.
One of the reasons that programmers do not like business meetings so much is that they live on a different schedule, even on a different type of schedule, than other people (managers of any type). Rallies cost them more.
There are two types of schedules, which I would call - “the manager's schedule”, and “the programmer's schedule” (in the original - maker's schedule). Schedule Manager - designed for ... well, yes, managers :). Its embodiment is the classic diary, in which every day is distributed by the hour. Yes, sometimes you book several hours of your time in a row for a task, but usually you can constantly, every hour, review your schedule.
When you allocate your time this way, you usually have no problem meeting someone. Just find a free slot in your schedule and schedule an appointment for that time.
Powerful, power-hungry people live for the most part on such a schedule. This is the schedule of the chief. However, there is another way to distribute your time, and it is usually used by those people who do the real work with their hands - for example, programmers and technical writers. They prefer to distribute their time in continuous chunks, at least half the size of the working day. You cannot effectively program or write documentation if you are torn off from work every hour. Often, an hour for them is the time it takes to get into working mode :).
When you live on a scheduled maker, business meetings are a disaster for you. One such meeting can knock you out all day if it breaks it apart so that you can’t manage to do anything difficult in one piece. In addition, you have to remember all the time that you need to go to a meeting. For those who live according to the schedule of the manager, this is not a problem - their day is divided into small intervals by the hour, and they unknowingly keep in mind all upcoming meetings. But if you live according to the developer’s schedule, you have to force yourself to remember the upcoming meetings.
In essence, a business meeting for a person who lives on a programmer’s schedule is more than just another task. This is a change in the very type of his work.
I found that sometimes a single meeting can take a whole day. Often meetings are eaten at least half a day, breaking it up for "morning" and "after lunch." But, in addition, there is still some effect ... dominoes, or something. If I know that I will have a rally in the middle of the day, then I’m less likely to start some hard, difficult, ambitious work in the morning. Think for yourself - if you live according to the schedule of the maker, do you not dream of a WHOLE day occupied ONLY with your direct work, without any meetings at all? So, when your days are filled with meetings (despite the fact that you are not a manager) - this should depress you, because you are constantly distracted. Since complex, ambitious projects are largely limited by your time you are willing to spend on them - even a small demotivation can lead to their failure.
Each type of schedule is not bad in itself. Problems arise when they encounter. Since the most influential people live on the managerial schedule, they have the opportunity to force others to adapt to it. However, those of them who are smarter than others, limit themselves to this, realizing that for some people who they lead, it is much more convenient to work on a maker’s schedule.
When you work on a schedule manager, you can do what you never want to do, being on the schedule maker-a. You can participate in abstract, speculative discussions. You can meet a person just to get to know him or get to know him better. If a window has formed in your schedule - then why not do it. Maybe this will be of some benefit if you find out how you can help each other in the future.
However, for makers, distracted meetings are a nightmare.
Those who live according to the schedule of the manager are usually willing to compromise. We, programmers, who live according to the schedule of the makers, also for our part understand that a certain number of meetings is necessary. We just would like all managers to understand what these meetings cost us.
Original article - www.paulgraham.com/makersschedule.html
Free - because I translate thought into thought, not word for word. Why parts of an article? Because I translated what constitutes its main content, and I wanted to make the translation simple and clear.
Missed for the most part are examples from the life of the original author of the article, which I omitted. All interested - welcome link at the end.
')
So - let's go.
One of the reasons that programmers do not like business meetings so much is that they live on a different schedule, even on a different type of schedule, than other people (managers of any type). Rallies cost them more.
There are two types of schedules, which I would call - “the manager's schedule”, and “the programmer's schedule” (in the original - maker's schedule). Schedule Manager - designed for ... well, yes, managers :). Its embodiment is the classic diary, in which every day is distributed by the hour. Yes, sometimes you book several hours of your time in a row for a task, but usually you can constantly, every hour, review your schedule.
When you allocate your time this way, you usually have no problem meeting someone. Just find a free slot in your schedule and schedule an appointment for that time.
Powerful, power-hungry people live for the most part on such a schedule. This is the schedule of the chief. However, there is another way to distribute your time, and it is usually used by those people who do the real work with their hands - for example, programmers and technical writers. They prefer to distribute their time in continuous chunks, at least half the size of the working day. You cannot effectively program or write documentation if you are torn off from work every hour. Often, an hour for them is the time it takes to get into working mode :).
When you live on a scheduled maker, business meetings are a disaster for you. One such meeting can knock you out all day if it breaks it apart so that you can’t manage to do anything difficult in one piece. In addition, you have to remember all the time that you need to go to a meeting. For those who live according to the schedule of the manager, this is not a problem - their day is divided into small intervals by the hour, and they unknowingly keep in mind all upcoming meetings. But if you live according to the developer’s schedule, you have to force yourself to remember the upcoming meetings.
In essence, a business meeting for a person who lives on a programmer’s schedule is more than just another task. This is a change in the very type of his work.
I found that sometimes a single meeting can take a whole day. Often meetings are eaten at least half a day, breaking it up for "morning" and "after lunch." But, in addition, there is still some effect ... dominoes, or something. If I know that I will have a rally in the middle of the day, then I’m less likely to start some hard, difficult, ambitious work in the morning. Think for yourself - if you live according to the schedule of the maker, do you not dream of a WHOLE day occupied ONLY with your direct work, without any meetings at all? So, when your days are filled with meetings (despite the fact that you are not a manager) - this should depress you, because you are constantly distracted. Since complex, ambitious projects are largely limited by your time you are willing to spend on them - even a small demotivation can lead to their failure.
Each type of schedule is not bad in itself. Problems arise when they encounter. Since the most influential people live on the managerial schedule, they have the opportunity to force others to adapt to it. However, those of them who are smarter than others, limit themselves to this, realizing that for some people who they lead, it is much more convenient to work on a maker’s schedule.
When you work on a schedule manager, you can do what you never want to do, being on the schedule maker-a. You can participate in abstract, speculative discussions. You can meet a person just to get to know him or get to know him better. If a window has formed in your schedule - then why not do it. Maybe this will be of some benefit if you find out how you can help each other in the future.
However, for makers, distracted meetings are a nightmare.
Those who live according to the schedule of the manager are usually willing to compromise. We, programmers, who live according to the schedule of the makers, also for our part understand that a certain number of meetings is necessary. We just would like all managers to understand what these meetings cost us.
Original article - www.paulgraham.com/makersschedule.html
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/85223/
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