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Comment by codyb | Hacker News Reader

Yea, I really enjoy programming but I have yet to be able to come to terms with this idea that if I'd like to be a professional software engineer I have to want to be the world's saving grace rockstar ninja programmer.

Isn't it enough to want to wake up refreshed every day, put in a good solid 6-7 hours of professional quality engineering work, and then have the time and energy to want to perform all of the other duties and joys to be found in life?

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That is enough. Anyone that tries to convince you otherwise wants to leverage your Life for their benefit.

That's enough for lots of jobs. It's just not enough for all jobs, and the ones it's not enough for tend to get more publicity (and, with good reason, higher salaries).

Yeah if you can find a job that is okay with you only working 30 hours a week while paying you for 40, hang on to it and never let go.

You missed the "quality engineering work" disclaimer. Any reasonably good project manager knows that, between meetings, email, and water cooler conversation, you get about 30-32 hours of actual project work from someone each week.

Please tell my boss that :)

He knows. :) He just doesn't let you know he knows.

Or your boss doesn't know, and isn't a reasonably good project manager.

30 hours sounds pretty high to me :-)

Oh haha, I wasn't even thinking in that regard, I'd gladly take the pay drop for the time since it'd still be a pretty decent salary generally.

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