Re: Today (Feb 26) IBM announcements

In article <62p0lhF24r975U1@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>,
Pete Dashwood <dashwood@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:


<docdwarf@xxxxxxxxx> wrote in message news:fq7bn2$eo9$1@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

[snip]

Ahhhhhh, the 'Professional Day' routine, or something close to it. I
think I posted about that a while back... let me see... ahhhhh, a decade
or so back, from

<http://groups.google.com/group/comp.software.year-2000/msg/a30a874ee923d7e1?dmode=source>

--begin quoted text:

60 miles from Wall St... my wager is that this is the Summit, NJ office
where I had an interview... it went sorta like this:

PHM: 'We expect a Professional Day out of you... if you have to put in a
little extra time to get the job done then you do it.'

Me: 'That sounds reasonable... and if I get the job done in less time the
I get to go home early?'

PHM: (odd sound of surprise... kinda like a *snoouurk*) 'No, you see it
Just Doesn't Work That Way, there's *always* something more to do.'

Me: 'I understand... well, sir, given that situation I cannot, in Good
Professional Conscience, work with you on this contract; it is not my
habit to allow my time to be stolen and thereby turn my clients into
thieves.'

PHM: 'Hunh?'

Me: 'Simple... if I were to bill you for hours which I did not work then I
would be a thief; monetary matters aside this is not honorable. If I,
being an hourly employee, fulfill your demands that I work hours for which
I do not bill then I allow you to steal time from me; this turns *you*
into thieves and I refuse to put you in such a position.'

--end quoted text

DD

I disagreed then and I disagree now, Doc. :-)

As the Germans say, 'Plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose.'


BUT, I disagree less vehemently now... :-) I see your point and given that
that is your position, then you are right that daily billing probably won't
work for you.

It might... but one very important condition must be met.


For me it works. I don't mind them "stealing" some of my time; in fact, I'm
happy to "donate" it, as long as it works both ways. If the minimum daily
time was 8 hours, then it wouldn't be working both ways and I would move
much closer to your position.

Bingo. It has to be mutual, it has to be multilateral, it has to work
both ways. If I put in an 18-hour day in order to meet a deadline nobody
should blink an eye; I do what is needed of me. If the Muse descends upon
me and I am granted a Vision of the Beyond which allows me to get three
days closer to my milestone in four hours... then, in exact and like wise,
I take a day or two off and there's an equal lack of eye-blinking.

Note the very specific condition of '...there's *always* something more to
do'. It sets me up for a 'heads I win, tails you lose' situation... and I
approach such games by not playing.

DD

.

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