a vote about working efficiency
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I feel completely unlike the rest of you. I don't seem to get my groove until 4 or 5pm, just when everyone else is winding down for the day, then I end up staying too late and get in trouble with the home front. Its hard to focus in the morning, too much news and CP to read. :)
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I couldn't disagree more. People's metabolisms vary widely, and it's not something you can change by corporate policy. I function at my peak between 2PM and 9PM, and I always have. My company starts work at 7AM and quits at 4PM. Over the past three years I've learned to wake up in time (5AM) to get to work, but I can't function until about 9 or so. Neither can anyone else. That means I take a lot of work home, because it just isn't physically or mentally possible to do it during working hours. And I'm not the only one. An electrical utility, our company has office staff (me, the accountant, the customer service lady, the meter guy, and the boss), and outside staff (linemen). The linemen start at 5AM in Summer to avoid the peak heat of the day, which can easily exceed 120°F, and quit by 1PM. They arrive on time, but get nothing done until 7AM, and usually want to quit by 11AM. In the office, we arrive at 7AM, but can get nothing done until 9AM because no other company we deal with opens until then. That's just as well, because none of us is in any mood to work until then, anyway. Most of our morning time is spent doing brainless administrative stuff that does little to accomplish our goals. We all tend to arrive with a plan in mind for the day, but until 9 or 10 we can't remember what the plan was. By then the boss shows up, and his priorities have changed overnight, so anything we'd planned on doing is out the window. In summary, any claim that mornings are more productive is corporate bullshit, promulgated by idiots who wake up early because they have nothing better to do with their useless, empty lives.
"A Journey of a Thousand Rest Stops Begins with a Single Movement"
One thing I've found from getting to dip my toes in the PM world (long enough to run and beg to just be a developer) was that the "management BS" type stuff seems to be easier in the morning (and I'm *not* a morning person). You have your list of stuff you need written up, reviewed, scoldings to be given, meetings to prep for, and nobody has had a chance to call and toss it all out the window for today's big fire yet. So, I'd imagine management types (who generally are the types interested in these studies, which are often perpetrated by HR types who have all of the above except the calls it seems...) are themselves most productive in the morning and magically their studies agree. Meanwhile I *can* get some decent code pushed out in the later morning (11-ish), but of course in the normal workday that is very quickly trumped by lunch. The afternoon is hit-or-miss, I've always been able to concentrate best in the evening (8-11) when left up to my own devices (so, a day of forcing myself on-task means I don't get bupkiss done at night, even the dishes are a pain), and of course there's the college-style "2-5 a.m. dash" when things are crunched but I hardly think that counts for "mornings are more productive. So, I disagree if you're talking about programmer-types, and trying to pin down when good design work gets done generally has more to do with how hot the shower water is, how relevant the day's meetings are, and the price of tea in china...
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I couldn't disagree more. People's metabolisms vary widely, and it's not something you can change by corporate policy. I function at my peak between 2PM and 9PM, and I always have. My company starts work at 7AM and quits at 4PM. Over the past three years I've learned to wake up in time (5AM) to get to work, but I can't function until about 9 or so. Neither can anyone else. That means I take a lot of work home, because it just isn't physically or mentally possible to do it during working hours. And I'm not the only one. An electrical utility, our company has office staff (me, the accountant, the customer service lady, the meter guy, and the boss), and outside staff (linemen). The linemen start at 5AM in Summer to avoid the peak heat of the day, which can easily exceed 120°F, and quit by 1PM. They arrive on time, but get nothing done until 7AM, and usually want to quit by 11AM. In the office, we arrive at 7AM, but can get nothing done until 9AM because no other company we deal with opens until then. That's just as well, because none of us is in any mood to work until then, anyway. Most of our morning time is spent doing brainless administrative stuff that does little to accomplish our goals. We all tend to arrive with a plan in mind for the day, but until 9 or 10 we can't remember what the plan was. By then the boss shows up, and his priorities have changed overnight, so anything we'd planned on doing is out the window. In summary, any claim that mornings are more productive is corporate bullshit, promulgated by idiots who wake up early because they have nothing better to do with their useless, empty lives.
"A Journey of a Thousand Rest Stops Begins with a Single Movement"
Roger Wright wrote:
In summary, any claim that mornings are more productive is corporate bullsh*t, promulgated by idiots who wake up early because they have nothing better to do with their useless, empty lives.
Could you please, Roger, not hold back? I mean, tell us what you really think, eh? Quit beating around the bush! :-O As for myself, I'm usually good between 0930 and 1500 then again from about 1630 to 1800. I have a definite "sinker" at around 3 in the afternoon. I used to stay up really late writing code, too ... but after 30 years of this I just ain't in that mode any more. -CB ;-)
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I agree with Roger Wright. I've just got in to work and know I wont be at my peak until after 12pm (and after several coffees.) What should it matter. A company should only care that you are at you peak sometime while your working for them. Regards, Chris. PS. Sorry for any mistakes, it's 10:30am and I'm not at my peak yet. :)
Member 3828506 wrote:
What should it matter. A company should only care that you are at you peak sometime while your working for them.
Zackly. I get paid to produce results. It's none of their business how many hours I'm productive as long as I meet my deadlines. -CB ;-)
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I like to work in the mornings, too. The best time for me is when it's not so bright yet outside and it's quiet. But unfortunately I tend to start my day with a cup of coffee, mail, news and forums so usually it's already 10AM before I start working. :D I almost never use the computer in the evenings, so morning is the best (and only) time that I can read news and some articles.
Pawel Krakowiak wrote:
I like to work in the mornings, too. The best time for me is when it's not so bright yet outside and it's quiet. But unfortunately I tend to start my day with a cup of coffee, mail, news and forums so usually it's already 10AM before I start working. [Big Grin] I almost never use the computer in the evenings, so morning is the best (and only) time that I can read news and some articles.
Yeah, that sounds a lot like my day, too. Mail/news/forums, then a burst of work, afternoon nap then a little more work before calling it a day. -CB ;-)
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Some people are more efficient in the morning and others drag through it. I pride myself in being consistent throughout the day. I'm very inefficient the entire day through.
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I'm a student, and I always find that I never learn much in classes before lunch; I'm simply not awake enough. Between about 11pm and 3am is when I find I work best, it's nice and quiet so there are no distractions, I'll often do the days work plus a bit extra in this period.
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If by "morning" you mean the time between midnight and sunrise, yes.
We are a big screwed up dysfunctional psychotic happy family - some more screwed up, others more happy, but everybody's psychotic joint venture definition of CP
blog: TDD - the Aha! | Linkify!| FoldWithUs! | sighist -
Cake. Get up. Walk downstairs. Put coffee in cup, microwave 60 seconds. Go to bathroom. Get back to microwave before #$%$^%#$ beeper goes off. Walk 10 feet. Boot computer. Oh yes, I can get to "the office" at 4am. Well, 415....
Charlie Gilley Will program for food... Hurtling toward a government of the stupid, by the stupid, for the stupid we go. —Michelle Malkin
OK, you got me. Who are the yahoos coming into your home while you're still in the bathrobe sipping zapped bean juice?
I've heard more said about less.
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For me its morning. Whether I'm getting to work by 7:00 and enjoying the quiet time, or whether I'm coding at 3 am enjoying the quiet time. But really it all depends on the work. If I'm creating something and I'm on a roll, then I'll code 15 hours straight and I have to pry my cramped fingers from the keyboard and force myself to go to sleep, but I'm always worried I'll lose my momentum. That thought gets canceled by the fifth stupid mistake though. But if I have to do some mundane piece of work, like back update design docs from the code which are supposed to be there to drive the code, well... I tend to drown in self pity for being stuck in such an organization. Company policy to have a design doc. "OK, ready to begin, where's the doc?" "Go ahead and code it and then update the doc." Heh. The docs consist of pseudo code. Ha! Glad I don't work there anymore... the refreshing relief of salvation.
I've heard more said about less.
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Member 3828506 wrote:
What should it matter. A company should only care that you are at you peak sometime while your working for them.
Zackly. I get paid to produce results. It's none of their business how many hours I'm productive as long as I meet my deadlines. -CB ;-)
CodeBubba wrote:
Zackly. I get paid to produce results. It's none of their business how many hours I'm productive as long as I meet my deadlines.
I've had this discussion with my boss more than once, but in order to get him to see my side, I have to have periods where I produce 12 hours of work in the 4 hours that I'm actually productive. Luckily, I'm a tricky so-and-so ;-)
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Pawel Krakowiak wrote:
I like to work in the mornings, too. The best time for me is when it's not so bright yet outside and it's quiet. But unfortunately I tend to start my day with a cup of coffee, mail, news and forums so usually it's already 10AM before I start working. [Big Grin] I almost never use the computer in the evenings, so morning is the best (and only) time that I can read news and some articles.
Yeah, that sounds a lot like my day, too. Mail/news/forums, then a burst of work, afternoon nap then a little more work before calling it a day. -CB ;-)
:omg:
CodeBubba wrote:
Yeah, that sounds a lot like my day, too. Mail/news/forums, then a burst of work, afternoon nap then a little more work before calling it a day.
hey, that's MY work schedule :omg:
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It really depends on what kind of coding i'm doing. If i'm trying to design components for a large system i'm better when i'm fresh and awake, but if i'm just knocking out some simple code, i'm more efficent when i'm a little tired because I just knock it out and I don't get bored and start playing with new ideas. I really think the better question is what drugs help you code the best in which situations? I know some coders that like to get good and baked and actually perform better, and others that get all jacked up on coffee and/or amphetamines and hammer out a 2 KLOC's an hour.
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If by "morning" you mean the time between midnight and sunrise, yes.
We are a big screwed up dysfunctional psychotic happy family - some more screwed up, others more happy, but everybody's psychotic joint venture definition of CP
blog: TDD - the Aha! | Linkify!| FoldWithUs! | sighisthere, here.. My best coding is always done after midnight when I have absolute silence and the ability to focus on the task at hand with no distractions...
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Exactly the same for me. Only thing is I work 10:00AM to 7:00PM or so.
John
Standard hours are 9-5. I switched to 10-6 and am currently 11-7. That 2 hours at the end of the day with no distractions is my most productive.
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I agree. I work from 9-5 and the majority of my "coding blocks" are solved in the first 2 hours.
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OK, you got me. Who are the yahoos coming into your home while you're still in the bathrobe sipping zapped bean juice?
I've heard more said about less.
ok, I know I'm late responding... still... about the time people get in to their office (cubicle ville), the email and phone calls start. The only 'yahoos' I have coming through the office at home are the family. I was a bit unclear there, you think? Oh, bathrobe? Nah, I wear what my family euphemistically call "thinking pants". :)
Charlie Gilley Will program for food... Hurtling toward a government of the stupid, by the stupid, for the stupid we go. —Michelle Malkin
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If by "morning" you mean the time between midnight and sunrise, yes.
We are a big screwed up dysfunctional psychotic happy family - some more screwed up, others more happy, but everybody's psychotic joint venture definition of CP
blog: TDD - the Aha! | Linkify!| FoldWithUs! | sighist