Mastodawn

The most important employment lesson.
1. HR is not there to protect you. They are there to protect the company.
2. Document EVERYTHING.
3. Food is not a reward for hard work.
4. Do the bare minimum, or you'll get rewarded MORE work.
5. Use them sick/ vacation time/ PTO.
6. Everyone is replaceable.
7. Keep them emails.
8. Your family is more important than any job.
9. Some of your coworkers secretly hate you.
10. Never stay at one job longer than 4 years unless the pay increase is substantial.

I'm consistently paranoid about #9.

Janne Moren Dec 28

@cmconseils
Everything except #10. You may have very good non-financial reasons to stay where you are.

Patrick Morris Miller Dec 28

@jannem @cmconseils Or financial, if you have one of those rare, rare jobs that still has an honest to Cthulhu pension system *where the money is already held by an outside agency* and your employer can never touch it.

Janne Moren Dec 28

@kentenmakto @cmconseils
To be fair, that's the case for all jobs in many countries.

Patrick Morris Miller Dec 28

@jannem @cmconseils Lucky so and sos.

(My pension scheme covers lots of the public sector jobs in my state. But my skills aren't very portable and my house is less so (less than a mile from work) and I'm most of the way to retirement so unless things get *really* bad I'm staying where I am.)

Andreas K Dec 28

@kentenmakto
Shrug, the pension system here is state run. No dependency on the stock market or similar blackmail opportunities.
@jannem @cmconseils

Patrick Morris Miller Dec 28

@yacc143 @jannem @cmconseils As it should be, but around here that doesn't happen.

Misuse Case Dec 28

@kentenmakto @jannem @cmconseils My mom had a job like this but the toxic culture of her employer was so well-known and the number of people staying just to fully vest their pension was so widespread that the pension plan was known as “golden handcuffs.”

IMO she should have left earlier than she did, pension or no pension, because I’m pretty sure that job caused or exacerbated her current chronic pain issues.

Omnivore Dec 28

11. Find the thing that everyone uses and no one understands and become an expert.

@Ralph @cmconseils this one is the key to literally my entire career to date (~30 years and counting) :)

eestileib (she/hers)Dec 29

@Ralph @cmconseils

So, git?

Dave Mason Dec 28

@cmconseils
Bullseye on every single point.
I couldn't agree more! 🙂

Patrick Morris Miller Dec 28

@cmconseils Re 3: "You've all worked really hard to get us past (collapse of major vendor), so I'll bring pizza for everyone on Friday. Sorry, Patrick, I know you can't eat wheat."

(What I should have said: "That's okay. By the way, I'm going to take Friday off.")

Parttimesailor Dec 28

@cmconseils Assume any company -provided device or service is being monitored. Watch what you say or write.

@JCBlubaugh @cmconseils 12. or wherever we are now. Don't let the bastards grind you down.

Blort™ 🐀Ⓥ🥋☣️Dec 28

I was 100% onboard with 1-9. I don't disagree with 10, but it surprised me as I don't see a real reason for it. I mean, sure, don't be "loyal" to them to the point you're giving stuff away for free, but if the pay and benefits are better where you are that the alternatives at the time, what's the point of switching? Maybe it's more that you always want to be looking for something better so you don't get taken advantage of out of intertia? idk

joosteto Dec 28

@Blort @cmconseils
It turns out most companies only say they love loyal employees, but in reality pay new employees better than loyal ones.
But sure, not all companies are like that.
And it also depends on the job market.

Georg Arne Spenden Dec 28

@Blort @cmconseils Apart from getting raises it's about maintaining your employability, lest you end up locked in an unbearable situation. Could be a new boss, a reorg, or just the outside world requiring a move. Being prepared is always a good idea.

@Daseinsappeal @Blort @cmconseils IME it’s okay to violate #10 if you’re a very adaptable generalist with transferrable skills or a leading expert in your field.

The dangers are mostly around having to change jobs after 40, because of discrimination. Common traps include becoming overspecialized in role or technologies or becoming middle management, the constant target of layoffs and the scapegoats for poor leadership.

nschotschi Dec 28

@cmconseils Stimmt alles! Hätte ich nur gerne früher gewusst. Deshalb hat man ua auch gerne jüngere Arbeitnehmer, die wissen das alles nicht 🙃

frankvaneck Dec 28

@cmconseils 9: only some???

frankvaneck Dec 28

@cmconseils 9: only some???

@cmconseils
Dang, I am failing hard at... most of this. I actually tried to follow item 10 a few years back, but can't get hired elsewhere without a pay cut, which sucks as I don't actually make all that much.
Item 5 I've never been good at, but previously places at least paid out unused PTO... In my current situation I've probably lost 30 weeks of PTO over the years.

7 is one I do consistently, and I try to keep up with 2.

pizza terrorist reloaded Dec 28

@cmconseils I agree except 4 years may be too long honestly

Kettwachsler Dec 28

@cmconseils I would add health to number 8

derptron Dec 28

@cmconseils 4 would be perfectly fine with me. I like what I do, I like to be challenged, and I've been aching for more responsibility.

Thing is, that's not what happens. What happens is that everything is fine until you aren't fucking perfect once and then everyone hates you. People love to watch people fall and your boss expected better.

The Animal and the Machine Dec 28

@cmconseils @Deglassco
Also, don’t “stay for the people”. If you’re being exploited, they are being exploited, they will quit. The ‘people’ will change.

Mister Wanko Dec 28

@cmconseils yeah i can't abide four and ten. do a fucking good job just don't kill yourself for it. your bare minimum might be fucking up the rest of us even if we're all in on the rest of the guidelines. i guess that's what ten is for. boat anchors suck.

EndlessMason Dec 28

@cmconseils
Are you hiring?

Pomegranate County Irregulars Dec 28

@cmconseils I don’t like (4), not for the day job, not for volunteer work, not for writing music or performing. Absolutely against my nature and the people I respect don’t do that.

(10). I guess the guidance assumes that it’s all about money or advancement (it has appeared to me that improved job titles occur when one changes employers.) I think it’s difficult to not be about the bucks at work and not off-work, but I’m naive at times. I have stayed more than 4 yrs., didn’t make me miserable.

Project 1789 Dec 28

If you are irreplaceable, you will never be promoted. You will have to leave to be promoted.

Nyan Max Dec 28

@cmconseils Thanks and note it

Urban Camera Dec 28

Amending 7: keep those emails in an account that is not work controlled.

Virginicus Dec 29

@uc If I did that it would be grounds for firing, and probably criminal investigation.

UkeleleEric Dec 28

@cmconseils This may be true in the States. In the UK, it's not quite a s bad. For a start, after 2 years' employment, you have a lot of rights, which you will lose if you keep moving employer. You also get rights to sick pay (albeit a measly amount unless a union has negotiated better), plenty of holiday, which you are expected to take, and can't be sacked without notice or equivalent number of days pay (often several weeks). Having said that, some USA employment practices have filtered here.

> 10. Never stay at one job longer than 4 years unless the pay increase is substantial.

Hahahaha

Maria Langer | 📝💎🌵🛥️Dec 29

@cmconseils @dreamos82 #4 is also a great way to make sure that you're never promoted or move up in the company. Ask my sister.

@mlanger @cmconseils well I can tell you from my experience tjat whatever you do is not important at all. And apparently thebless competent you are, and easier is for you to advance. If they want to penize you they just look for the needle in the haystack of whatver you do. Also, I work more to make the company earn more without them giving anything back? No thanks!
I given more and they penalized me when i started to ask for a promotion . So...

@dreamos82 @mlanger same here

Maria Langer | 📝💎🌵🛥️Dec 29

@dreamos82 @cmconseils I guess things have changed since I was in corporate America. Starting at entry level fresh out of college at age 20, I was managing 13 people, all older than me, when I was 22. I was promoted pretty regularly at two different companies. My salary tripled in eight years. And then I left for a freelance career, bringing along my work ethic, and did very well, retiring at 62.

I've met people like you folks. Here's a tip: attitude is everything.

@mlanger @cmconseils yeah thimgs have changed, i had always good attitude. And never complained, and it didn't bring me anything. And in last 4/5 years things are getting worse and worse.

Maria Langer | 📝💎🌵🛥️Dec 29

@dreamos82 @cmconseils Maybe time for a change?

@mlanger @cmconseils yeah that is what i'm doing. But honestly It doesn't change my mind, the corporations wants me to care about them, but they don't care about me. Look at all the layoffs. People that worked always more than they should have done, got fired, now not even by their manager, but by an algorithm.
We are just number for them. So...
And I assure you, things are going downhill, since the only money they spend now is for the shitty LLM stuff...

Maria Langer | 📝💎🌵🛥️Dec 29

@dreamos82 @cmconseils My corporate time was spent in another era. We still bounced from job to job to get raises, but in the two jobs I had, I was rewarded for my work and motivated to stick around. The only reason I left the first job was that the only way I could get promoted beyond where I was was if someone either retired or died.

@mlanger @dreamos82 I'm at least at my 10th job and looking for a new one 😅

Maria Langer | 📝💎🌵🛥️Dec 29

@cmconseils @dreamos82 Good luck!

@mlanger @dreamos82 thanks!

@dreamos82 @mlanger true

MrAptronym Dec 29

@cmconseils I agree except for the last one, maybe you are better moving every few years from a purely professional point of view, but honestly I will not do this. There are good reasons besides cash to keep one job. This one in particular just feels very tech-sector specific.

Eric Lawton Dec 29

@PhoenixSerenity

I have always taken at least my contracted/legal holidays, often negotiated more in compensation for extra hours to meet deadlines.

I've always been amazed at co-workers who didn't. Especially when they expired if not used.

SirWumpus 👾🍁Dec 29

3/ Food is not a reward for hard work.

I cook much better anyway; make much better pizza at home than that industrial cardboard they'd offer.

cognitively accessible math Dec 29

@cmconseils That's 10 lessons.

@cmconseils
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@arx sure

Lot of people really feeling called out about #10. If you are white collar and aren’t in a union you need to be leaving jobs every 2-4 years.

You don’t have to be a cuck forever.

@bflipp There are many reasons for people to stay at a job for over 4 years other than pay rises.

- stability is actually a good thing - especially the older one gets, the harder it is to find a new job in certain areas;
- proximity to one's residence;
- field of work and scarcity of similar jobs;
- lack of resources to move residence;
- lack of job opportunities to allow for a job change;
- coworkers: working with people you get along with actually helps a great deal;
- many neurodivergent people have different reasons as to why they don't change jobs often.
- Changing jobs often might be good for a prospective rise in pay, but ultimately it will fuck you over long term when people start asking you "Why do you have a new job every x months/years?" And you will be lucky if you are asked that, and not have prospective employers assume you just suck and aren't reliable enough to hire.

It's not a matter of being "a cuck", it's a matter of being responsible.

cuck behavior

Maggie Maybe Dec 29

@cmconseils ooh also don’t start off being extra awesome or there’s no “improvement” to cite when it comes time for a review. If you must kick ass start kicking ass shortly before a performance review so you can get a raise.