Intellectual Ore

I like free time as much as the next person.  However, something I’ve noticed lately on Wall Street is the unspoken assumption that it’s a great day, just because it’s Friday.  Work is basically awful, the thinking goes, and so any “escape” possible is warmly welcomed. 

The attitude described above is pretty sorry.  When I look forward to free time, it’s in anticipation of doing specific, enjoyable activities.  Last weekend, I spent time with my old roommate Dan, and visited the Museum of Modern Art.  The weekend before that, I spent a lot of time outdoors with Stephanie.  The idea of being happy simply for the sake of not having to work, at least to me, seems like a pretty strong indication that a person is wasting their life doing a job that isn’t right for them.

“Get busy living, or get busy dying.” - Andy Dufresne, The Shawshank Redemption

code grinder: n.

1. A suit-wearing minion of the sort hired in legion strength by banks and insurance companies to implement payroll packages in RPG and other such unspeakable horrors. In its native habitat, the code grinder often removes the suit jacket to reveal an underplumage consisting of button-down shirt (starch optional) and a tie. In times of dire stress, the sleeves (if long) may be rolled up and the tie loosened about half an inch. It seldom helps. The code grinder’s milieu is about as far from hackerdom as one can get and still touch a computer; the term connotes pity. See Real World, suit.

I’ve been thinking a lot about Tim Ferriss’s Four Hour Work Week.  In a nutshell, the book explains why most people don’t place enough value on their time.  Instead of our mundane, drab office-space jobs (selling our time), Ferriss explains that we should work to create income-generating systems (sell products, buy rental property, etc.) enjoy life more, and stop “living for the weekend”.

A lot of what Ferriss writes is spot-on.  For one, we Americans need to think harder about lifestyle design, that is, the entire package: work, vacation, time with significant others/kids, where to live, minimizing commute time, etc.  A lot of my friends are moving to take jobs, and the overriding concern seems to be the job itself, and not the lifestyle that comes with it. 

Also, Ferriss is right that the American workplace has a serious problem with information overload.  The “always-on” nature of email and the telephone is largely responsible for the total absence of concentrated, productive time.  I am appalled how frequently I see people “multitasking” BlackBerry use with various activities: driving a car, religious activities, participating in a business meeting, or, my personal favorite, using the restroom at work (I’ve witnessed all of these firsthand). 

So I mostly agree with the book.  However, I have one major gripe: the book talks a lot about getting our lives in order financially, but doesn’t comment much on what to do after we’ve cut our work week to ”four hours”.  And I think this is a big problem.

Right now, I’m craving engagement.  I have a job where I’m making plenty of money, but my day-to-day work is rote drudgery.  This probably seems strange, but in the face of having my material needs fulfilled, I’m bored out of my mind; I’m over-recreated.  Vacations, walks outside, and reading books have all become intolerable.  I can’t wait to get back to Champaign-Urbana and work with my research group; only five more weeks.