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Comment by michaelochurch | Hacker News Reader

Get to work, it's what you're being paid for. Don't forget that.

You sound incredibly entitled. While I agree that it's strategically a bad idea for him to go outside of his job description, why is it not "work" for him to want to know how the company runs? He's not looking to upset apple carts; he just wants to know how the decisions are made.

Anyway, I hate this attitude you're showing. I'm not downvoting you, because people need to see that your attitude exists (as it's fairly prevalent) so it shouldn't be buried, but I find it this "fuck you, I'm the boss" attitude revolting.

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I was a jr programmer once as well and I was curious and engaged people outside my direct work assignments but was always focused on making sure the work I was expected to do got done.

More than enough time is wasted in project specific meetings so actively looking to sit in on unrelated meetings screams 'wasted time'.

I'm not 'entitled' I'm speaking as someone under pressure to deliver software projects and to explain why they may be late or off course.

If I have a jr programmer who is constantly away trying to understand how to run a business so he/she can fly the coup to start their own company then I'm not going to be impressed with said programmer.

I enjoy working with people who are creative, engaged, and curious -- but also focused.

Call it what you will.

Somehow, I suspect that while you might be upset with him, and even let him go, that junior dev will be better off learning what he can and then jumping ship then staying and working diligently in subservience. This advice is not how to make your managers happy by advancing their careers, it is how to make yourself happy by advancing your career.

Perhaps I should have said: focus on your work.

My comments are not about advancing anyone's career. When you are a junior member of a software development team your primary objective should be to help the team deliver the project. There's a reason you have 'jr' in your job title.

There are some interestingly ironic comments about how the team lead is labeled as 'entitled' and 'advancing my career' when the OP is essentially advocating those same concepts from a different perspective.

I get the sense from the tone of comments that there are a lot more jr programmers on this thread than sr programmers.

I suspect some of the adverse reactions are because of the focus on the 'jr'.

Shouldn't all members of a software development team have a primary (work) objective of delivering the project?

It's also a bit of a drag on your fellow developers. If I'm a senior dev working on my tasklist, and we hire a junior dev who goes off to go see what marketing's doing instead of working on his tasklist, it would really start to get me pissed off. It doesn't matter that he might be a superstar and knocking off his tasks in 25% of the estimated time, what matters is that the department that we're both in has things that need doing, and by buggering off to talk with the CTO he's not helping get those things done.

Objecting to his attitude is above your pay grade, son.

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