Work Marathon Guidelines | Hacker News Reader

Work Marathon Guidelines

docs.google.com

54 pointslionhearted10 comments

The naming of the event makes it look like a silly way to get more work out of employees, but reading into it, it now looks like a clever way to give employees the latitude to tell their managers to fuck off so they can get some work done. Expected time spend on this 'marathon' is between 4 and 8 hours a day, and they warn Googlers not to push themselves too hard.

> they warn Googlers not to push themselves too hard

I don't think this has anything to do with Google, the company. It just happens to be published on Google Docs. Here is the official website of the organizers AFAICT: https://www.ultraworking.com/

Or it could give managers leverage to accuse people of slacking when they say what they're really capable of. I really don't see how an event like this does anything but concentrate bargaining power.

The way I look at it is that this is for individual self-improvement. For those who want to be on high-performing teams. I personally have like 10 solid ideas I could build a business on, but probably only have time to execute a few of those (really well) in my lifetime, and that is IF I focus well. I have been on many teams where people just go off and struggle.

Pair programming is hugely effective and much more fun at least from my personal experience working on large teams.

I see your concern over managers using it as leverage. I feel like the way it would actually go down is that managers would enroll the team into one of these ultra work sessions, during normal, paid hours, and give it a go.

This. In bad management scenarios -- heroic effort becomes your new baseline.

I remember once working a 15 hours day to implement a new feature-- as I was leaving at 9:00pm, my manager said my performance was unacceptable and she needed to know when the feature would be tested and ready to go.

I told her to have a good night and quit a few days later.

Also, "Yeah, first off, we shouldn’t have to say this but — we’ll have our moderators on the lookout to make sure no one is being stupid and trying to work for 20 hours a day. Be smart not dumb, ok? Your health is your responsibility, but just bear that in mind. There’s “good hardcore” and “stupid hardcore” — be the former, not the latter, eh? "

> Have you ever had a multi-day run of beautiful work?

> Y’know, flow state the whole time, work is clicking, everything is getting done without distraction or interruption, the feeling of unstoppability, time disappears, work gets done…

>… good feeling, eh?

Yes, I get that with work that I enjoy doing. I don't need it with work I don't enjoy doing (doing less so long as I advance at a steady/estimable pace is fine), so this looks like working for work's sake.

That doc waits until the very end to say how to sign up, which directs to https://www.ultraworking.com/work-marathon, which says it is $100 to sign up.

I might actually do this, just for the new experience, could boost my entire output over my career!

I've been a member of Ultraworking and a follower of Sebastian's writing for a long time.

Definitely a great way to kickstart a project.

One thing I like about this program is that it seems like the tool is spreadsheets, and not a proprietary, locked in interface.

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