Comments on: Work Ethic http://blog.logtar.com/2007/11/27/work-ethic/ Just a child stuck in adulthood Mon, 01 Dec 2008 20:25:09 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.6.5 By: trumwill http://blog.logtar.com/2007/11/27/work-ethic/#comment-354225 trumwill Thu, 29 Nov 2007 18:48:29 +0000 http://blog.logtar.com/2007/11/27/work-ethic/#comment-354225 <i>We or our parents had to work 20 years before they were able to afford the nice house/car/tv/thingie. Now their kids are getting out of college and expecting the nice job with benefits handed to them and to buy the new house/car/etc right out of college.</i> You're right on point here, Mark. Young people (including my 30ish peers) expect the same standard of living their parents worked decades to obtain. Actually, they often figure that they're due more. We or our parents had to work 20 years before they were able to afford the nice house/car/tv/thingie. Now their kids are getting out of college and expecting the nice job with benefits handed to them and to buy the new house/car/etc right out of college.

You’re right on point here, Mark. Young people (including my 30ish peers) expect the same standard of living their parents worked decades to obtain. Actually, they often figure that they’re due more.

]]> By: trumwill http://blog.logtar.com/2007/11/27/work-ethic/#comment-354224 trumwill Thu, 29 Nov 2007 18:46:59 +0000 http://blog.logtar.com/2007/11/27/work-ethic/#comment-354224 <i>Most kids in these generation want an almost equal amount of play for the time the put into work. Places like google and flickr show a “fun” work environment where the dorm room mentality extends to the workplace. So what happens to everyone else that is not lucky enough to work for one of those avant-garde companies?</i> It's worth pointing out that Google employees are also expected to put in a <i>lot</i> of hours. If you're in the office 80 hours a week, it's their job to make it as bearable as possible. Expecting the same kinds of attitudes in a 9-5 job is unreasonable. That being said, many employers seem to go out of their way to make the office unpleasant. I knew some folks that worked at a phone-bank out west. After-hours, off the clock, they would set up a video game system in the conference room and play off against one another. This actually benefited the company because it made employees less likely to leave an unpleasant job <i>and</i> they always had extra people around if they had a sudden influx of calls. They'd just go to the conference room and pluck a couple people out. So of course they did away with it. Half of the employees on my team at my employer were people that left the other company. The video game room was the main reason that they hadn't left earlier. So it works both ways. Most kids in these generation want an almost equal amount of play for the time the put into work. Places like google and flickr show a “fun” work environment where the dorm room mentality extends to the workplace. So what happens to everyone else that is not lucky enough to work for one of those avant-garde companies?

It’s worth pointing out that Google employees are also expected to put in a lot of hours. If you’re in the office 80 hours a week, it’s their job to make it as bearable as possible. Expecting the same kinds of attitudes in a 9-5 job is unreasonable.

That being said, many employers seem to go out of their way to make the office unpleasant. I knew some folks that worked at a phone-bank out west. After-hours, off the clock, they would set up a video game system in the conference room and play off against one another. This actually benefited the company because it made employees less likely to leave an unpleasant job and they always had extra people around if they had a sudden influx of calls. They’d just go to the conference room and pluck a couple people out.

So of course they did away with it. Half of the employees on my team at my employer were people that left the other company. The video game room was the main reason that they hadn’t left earlier. So it works both ways.

]]> By: Mark http://blog.logtar.com/2007/11/27/work-ethic/#comment-354208 Mark Thu, 29 Nov 2007 13:41:29 +0000 http://blog.logtar.com/2007/11/27/work-ethic/#comment-354208 --> JeffG You've been working the Helldesk for 2 years now? Keep working on those certs. If the helldesk isn't enough of a motivation, I'm not sure what would be!! –> JeffG

You’ve been working the Helldesk for 2 years now? Keep working on those certs. If the helldesk isn’t enough of a motivation, I’m not sure what would be!!

]]> By: JeffG http://blog.logtar.com/2007/11/27/work-ethic/#comment-354151 JeffG Wed, 28 Nov 2007 21:06:28 +0000 http://blog.logtar.com/2007/11/27/work-ethic/#comment-354151 Can't agree with you more, and that's saying a lot since (I think) I'm from that generation. Being in my mid-twenties, I know all about people wanting and wanting and just expecting to get shit for nothing. Hell, a few years ago I was one of those people. Fortunately I got over my sense of entitlement, got my shit together, and busted my chops to get where I am today. To be honest, I'm almost as far from wealthy as it gets, but at least I know that pretty much everything I have now I earned, and the things I don't have I don't want or need. Still working on getting out of the debt from my youthful mistakes, but I'll manage. For now, I'm just working on improving myself and getting out of my dead-end field (I work in IT but I've been stuck in helpdesks for 2 years now, working on programming certs to get into a new, hopefully a bit more lucrative niche). Can’t agree with you more, and that’s saying a lot since (I think) I’m from that generation. Being in my mid-twenties, I know all about people wanting and wanting and just expecting to get shit for nothing. Hell, a few years ago I was one of those people.

Fortunately I got over my sense of entitlement, got my shit together, and busted my chops to get where I am today. To be honest, I’m almost as far from wealthy as it gets, but at least I know that pretty much everything I have now I earned, and the things I don’t have I don’t want or need.

Still working on getting out of the debt from my youthful mistakes, but I’ll manage. For now, I’m just working on improving myself and getting out of my dead-end field (I work in IT but I’ve been stuck in helpdesks for 2 years now, working on programming certs to get into a new, hopefully a bit more lucrative niche).

]]> By: Saudade http://blog.logtar.com/2007/11/27/work-ethic/#comment-354140 Saudade Wed, 28 Nov 2007 14:41:56 +0000 http://blog.logtar.com/2007/11/27/work-ethic/#comment-354140 I read an article about "The Spoiled generation", young adults that think that life and people around are for their benefit. I read an article about “The Spoiled generation”, young adults that think that life and people around are for their benefit.

]]> By: Mark http://blog.logtar.com/2007/11/27/work-ethic/#comment-354138 Mark Wed, 28 Nov 2007 13:53:05 +0000 http://blog.logtar.com/2007/11/27/work-ethic/#comment-354138 Wow, very nice post man. True and relevant. This also relates to how so many people have INSANE amounts of debt at young ages! They don't have any concept of working toward something. We or our parents had to work 20 years before they were able to afford the nice house/car/tv/thingie. Now their kids are getting out of college and expecting the nice job with benefits handed to them and to buy the new house/car/etc right out of college. Who instilled those kind of expectations in them? Their parents? Society having "stuffitis"? The ease of acquiring consumer debt? Do you know that our great-grandparents considered ANY debt an evil thing?? Then our grandparents started getting mortgages on homes. Then our parents started getting car loans and credit cards. Now we have no payments for two years on a toaster! Got on a debt rant there. Sorry. We are going through a program at our church right now called "Financial Peace". It is all about getting a hold of our finances so we don't have that cloud over our heads ruining our peace all the time. It is put together buy a guy named Dave Ramsey who has a call in radio show. Anyway Wow, very nice post man. True and relevant. This also relates to how so many people have INSANE amounts of debt at young ages! They don’t have any concept of working toward something. We or our parents had to work 20 years before they were able to afford the nice house/car/tv/thingie. Now their kids are getting out of college and expecting the nice job with benefits handed to them and to buy the new house/car/etc right out of college. Who instilled those kind of expectations in them? Their parents? Society having “stuffitis”? The ease of acquiring consumer debt? Do you know that our great-grandparents considered ANY debt an evil thing?? Then our grandparents started getting mortgages on homes. Then our parents started getting car loans and credit cards. Now we have no payments for two years on a toaster!

Got on a debt rant there. Sorry. We are going through a program at our church right now called “Financial Peace”. It is all about getting a hold of our finances so we don’t have that cloud over our heads ruining our peace all the time. It is put together buy a guy named Dave Ramsey who has a call in radio show. Anyway

]]> By: Markl http://blog.logtar.com/2007/11/27/work-ethic/#comment-354137 Markl Wed, 28 Nov 2007 13:44:57 +0000 http://blog.logtar.com/2007/11/27/work-ethic/#comment-354137 Im reading this while at work. So am I a slacker? Im reading this while at work. So am I a slacker?

]]> By: SmedRock http://blog.logtar.com/2007/11/27/work-ethic/#comment-354126 SmedRock Wed, 28 Nov 2007 03:02:44 +0000 http://blog.logtar.com/2007/11/27/work-ethic/#comment-354126 I have always expected to have to earn my promotions or what not. But I do make it clear after having put in a respectable amount of time in a said position, that I need to know how to move up. As far as job hopping goes, if a said employer is not willing to at least offer a means of upward mobility, then I am off to find out who will. Experience is key, and I understand that, but dead end jobs suck too. Fortunately after having put my time in, I have finally made it to a nice place, where I enjoy my work. And no, I am not from the time when no one was a loser. Losing stinks, but sometimes that is the best teacher. I have always expected to have to earn my promotions or what not. But I do make it clear after having put in a respectable amount of time in a said position, that I need to know how to move up.

As far as job hopping goes, if a said employer is not willing to at least offer a means of upward mobility, then I am off to find out who will. Experience is key, and I understand that, but dead end jobs suck too.

Fortunately after having put my time in, I have finally made it to a nice place, where I enjoy my work. And no, I am not from the time when no one was a loser. Losing stinks, but sometimes that is the best teacher.

]]> By: Crystal W. http://blog.logtar.com/2007/11/27/work-ethic/#comment-354118 Crystal W. Tue, 27 Nov 2007 23:47:12 +0000 http://blog.logtar.com/2007/11/27/work-ethic/#comment-354118 I think that I might "kinda sorta" fall into this category in some areas, my mom spoiled me quite a bit and I never learned a good work ethic. Still struggling to get a grasp on that today. I think that I might “kinda sorta” fall into this category in some areas, my mom spoiled me quite a bit and I never learned a good work ethic. Still struggling to get a grasp on that today.

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