[mr_gibbins]

I've recently held a senior management position then left and obtained a technical position at a different organisation.

Not kidding, I nearly cried with happiness moving away from SM and into a tech position again. I was GIVEN work to do. I had NO responsibilities for others. Moreover, I was DISCOURAGED from attending unnecessary meetings. I arranged no meetings! Not one!

Went from 7 direct reports to zero. No more approving holiday requests. No more performance reviews. No more management town-halls. No more arguing strategy with anyone. It was brilliant. 'Please write a procedure that does X. Return it by Thursday.' 'Please optimise this statement that hangs during the overnight run'. Yes, absolutely, more of that please.

More money too, oddly.

[adriand]

I too went from management back to coding (freelance) since the start of the pandemic and I also love it. Today I happened to notice that Google Calendar was reporting an anomalous week in terms of meetings: I had 2.5 hours of meetings in my calendar this week, while my average right now is 1.2.

I average less than an hour and a half of meetings per week! I have so much more time in my life for the things I love, it’s crazy.