[bronxbomber92]

The author states it wasn't actually work-life balance that was making him happy and tired. Rather, he discovered:

> By mid-2021 I was tired all the time. I know I wasn’t alone, because it was an ongoing meme inside Google2. It’s only now that I realize what was wrong: I missed the satisfaction of building things and finishing projects.

[PragmaticPulp]

This is the classic justification that leads people to self-defeating workaholism: The idea that you can fill the voids in your life by just working harder.

The false dichotomy is the idea that the alternative to Google is to work more hours + evenings + weekends at a startup. He's replacing one problem with another, but this new problem feels fresh and new and like turning over a new leaf. At least for now.

[ImprovedSilence]

I get what he’s saying though. There can be great joy and a positive feeling of “losing yourself” in your work when you actually get to create. I think his role and and the internal bureaucracy prevented him from using that creative energy.

[bravetraveler]

Indeed, finally fixing something that may have been a thorn in your side for years is a very rewarding thing.

I've worked myself a little extra with a few of these, and I'm glad for it.

I've found a tendency in my line of work/colleagues to call patchwork acceptable, and it regularly comes back to haunt us.

We find a way to stop the 3AM calls and stop there.. neglecting that maybe one person has the necessary context and it may grow out of control again

[theptip]

I don’t think it makes you a workaholic to observe that a shit work environment drains your energy and burns you out, whereas a good one can leave you feeling energized.

They weren’t saying that they needed to work harder at Google to be happy, they were saying they needed to move somewhere else where they could get job satisfaction from completing projects.

[lampshades]

I mean, I'm the same way. I look back at my life and the times I didn't create things of value seem so meaningless. I don't want to go back to creating meaningless things. Even if I'm working harder, I'm enjoying what I'm doing.

The article really hit home for me, personally.

[freedom2099]

I enjoy my work… But it is not the thing that gives meaning to my life!

[vasco]

It must be nice to be so sure about how others should live their lives.

[nnoitra]

This is a bizarre non sequitur.