[ferguess_k]

That's fair. Programming Starship's flight computers is definitely one hardcore job that I can sleep on the floor. I do have a family but this feeling of "in something, for something" beats everything else combined by one hand.

[madeofpalk]

I can't ever imagine "sleeping on the floor" for any job.

Seems like an incredibly short-sighted and unsatisfying way to live your life.

[ferguess_k]

I get it, just different opinions I think.

[vonneumannstan]

How sad. I'm sure your kids will speak fondly of how you missed major milestones in their lives so you could help Elon land himself on Mars. Imagine the headstone "Absent father but hey he wrote a kernel that handled Starship's fuel mixing servos."

[ethbr1]

Don't yuck someone's yum, if they're making decisions for themselves with open eyes.

Plenty of astronauts' kids and spouses are probably super proud of what their family member did, even with the sacrifices they all made.

Conflating Elon's ego into the picture is strawman-ing the question -- whether sacrifice in the service of a greater goal is worth it.

My answer? It depends, and it's everyone's own choice to make.

[Dusseldorf]

Gotta disagree here. When you choose to have kids you're giving yourself to something greater. Ignoring them to dedicate yourself to a career is not someone's "yum", it's just being derelict in your duties to your children. Don't have kids if your "yum" is dedicating your life to your career, and no one will have any problems with your choice.

[ethbr1]

Taking umberage on behalf of someone's children is unfair -- who are you to disempower them to make their own value judgements?

[garfield_light]

>Don't yuck someone's yum, if they're making decisions for themselves with open eyes.

Why? You cannot critique the decisions of anyone? They are free to ignore me, or think I'm wrong. In respect to you points, an engineer is not a astronaut, a seaman or a pilot. You are not required due to the nature of your job to be away from your children, or sleep in the a cold floor like an animal.

Not even the quality of the work needs it, it's just so you don't hire more people. Sure, there are real emergencies were you might take a rain check with your kid once or twice a year, but a constant culture of grind is different. The whole "hardcore" mentality is cultivated because it is cheaper, the sacrifice is yours and the Elons of the world reap the rewards.

This is not mere personal choice, it's purposely engineered. The plan is that everyone in tech becomes a corporate GameDev, and like it.

[vonneumannstan]

Dude the difference between Astronaut on the Space Station and SWE at SpaceX is incredibly vast and conflating them makes you look silly.

[ryandrake]

Truly sad. While lying on your death bed contemplating your life, nobody's ever thought "Gee, I wish I worked more unpaid overtime".

[ryandrake]

> feeling of "in something, for something"

LOLOL. These companies have really got some people fooled. My goodness. If you're actually sleeping on your office floor, all you're "in" is "in line for extreme burnout" and all you're "for" is "for making your CEO and shareholders wealthy."

[ferguess_k]

I guess I prefer working with rockets. But again I never had the experience so I could be wrong. I'd like a chance :)