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I would also add to this. Aligning your personal goals with your company's mission can be a game-changer in achieving both professional success and personal fu

I would also add to this. Aligning your personal goals with your company's mission can be a game-changer in achieving both professional success and personal fulfillment. When your values and objectives resonate with those of your employer, every project becomes more meaningful, and motivation naturally increases. Your personal goals become much easier to achieve, and you have more fun achieving the company goals because they're also helping you.

appendix-rock 2y ago
Amen to that. I work for an organisation that operates in a sector that I care about deeply. I am a high performer, but ‘doing well at work’ is more a byproduct of me following my passion.
iamEAP 2y ago
This is a great perspective. I believe that great leaders facilitate this, whether by setting a meaningful mission in the first place, or by aligning company needs with the personal beliefs and needs of individuals in a team. That being said! I think the likelihood that you land at a company with a mission that truly aligns with your own is approximately the same as the likelihood your equity ends up being worth a damn at the end of the day. Cherish it id you’ve got it.
Traubenfuchs 2y ago
This makes me wonder, as a misanthropic European software engineer, what would be the best way to get into the weapons or (governmental) surveillance industry?
- anon22981 2y ago
  I’m not sure what kind of an answer you are looking for, but a simple one is to apply for jobs in the fields you are interested in.
- PradeetPatel 2y ago
  It really depends on the level of seniority. If you are applying for a junior role, I don't know much about Europe, but in India the defence and security sector often have internship programmes for university students. Alternatively, same as all other jobs, keep your eye open and make sure your CV and cover letter is catered towards the job. You don't need to be a misanthrope to work in defence and security. Despite the bad PR, it's comforting knowing that your work is making the world a safer place.
  - jajko 2y ago
    That 'making safer place' is 50:50 at best, every single arms/bombs/rocket/ammunition manufacturer has seen its products used for smaller or bigger genocides of civilian population across whole age spectrum, with obviously the biggest being US and Russia/CCCP. Its supremely dumb to blame manufacturers in any way of course, they are just (pretty efficient) tools.
  - deleted 2y ago
    [deleted]
- e4325f 2y ago
  Add /s for the Americans, it'll go over their heads otherwise!
- RandomThoughts3 2y ago
  The same way than any other companies: they advertise the positions they are looking for. But you will find very little misanthropy there. The salaries are not that great so most of the engineers are either genuinely interested in the complexity of what they build (aerospace and naval is often like that) or invested in the mission (serving the nation).
deleted 2y ago
[deleted]
phreeza 2y ago
It's a two edged sword though in my experience, because it can lead to self-exploitation. I found it much easier to separate work from private life in jobs where I didn't personally identify with the outcomes.
RandomThoughts3 2y ago
> Aligning your personal goals with your company's mission can be a game-changer in achieving both professional success and personal fulfillment. That’s a fairly dangerous way of doing thing in my experience. Unless it’s your company, you have very little say in what the company actually does. Generally speaking, I advocate keeping a sane distance between what you do for a living and the rest of your life. You are not defined by the company that pays you. Find a job which helps you achieve what you want to achieve, work honestly and leave work at work.
- KolenCh 2y ago
  Not an expert here, so I'll quote one from the highlights I have reading the following book: “Harsh as this sounds, if you’re not in the right job—a job that is moving you toward where you want to be in life—then you’re wasting almost all the time you’re spending at work.” “First, “you should do what you love” means finding work that “matches well with your expertise, your creative thinking skills, and your strongest intrinsic motivations.” Intrinsic motivation means liking the substance of the work for its own sake. The second part, “you should love what you do,” means “finding a work environment that will allow you to retain that intrinsic motivational focus, while supporting your exploration of new ideas.” Excerpt From 168 Hours: You Have More Time Than You Think Laura Vanderkam
  - jimbokun 2y ago
    I suspect there are far too few jobs meeting that description relative to the number of people needing employment.
    - KolenCh 2y ago
      Laura anticipated that response: “Ferriss downplays the idea of dream jobs. As he writes, “For most people . . . the perfect job is the one that takes the least time. The vast majority of people will never find a job that can be an unending source of fulfillment, so that is not the goal here; to free time and automate income is.” And then she further elaborate from there, discussing how to create the right job, bridging the gap between the ideal and the reality. Here's the 3 levels of changes to do that: “... If the answer is “no” to any of these four questions, what can I change? In the next week? In the next year? Can I create the right job within my organization? Another organization? Or will I need to go out on my own?” I know we're not in a book club, and I, even the author, does not have to ultimate answer. But as she argued, there are things we can have more meaningful/fulfilling life from our 168 hours a week and it is not as pessimistic as it seems. I invite you to give the book a chance. Excerpt From 168 Hours: You Have More Time Than You Think Laura Vanderkam
refurb 2y ago
> Aligning your personal goals with your company's mission can be a game-changer Maybe it's my own experience, but I've never worked for a company whose mission didn't funnel down to "make money". They might play lip service to "changing the world", "make products customers love" or "engineering excellence", but they were all done for the purpose of making money and would often be dropped without discussion if it impacted the bottom line. I could see how industry selection could align with personal value (e.g. weapons versus healthcare), or if a company invests a lot in technical skill (because they think it makes them more money) and provide you with an environment to gain skills you personally want to gain, but in the end it all comes down to money. Not to be overly cynical, I'm just sharing my own experience. My personal approach is to go in eyes wide open (it's all about money), figure out what I want to get out of the job, and take advantage when the two overlap. But the entire time knowing it's likely temporary and to be prepared to jump ship if things change.

appendix-rock 2y ago

Amen to that. I work for an organisation that operates in a sector that I care about deeply. I am a high performer, but ‘doing well at work’ is more a byproduct of me following my passion.

iamEAP 2y ago

This is a great perspective. I believe that great leaders facilitate this, whether by setting a meaningful mission in the first place, or by aligning company needs with the personal beliefs and needs of individuals in a team. That being said! I think the likelihood that you land at a company with a mission that truly aligns with your own is approximately the same as the likelihood your equity ends up being worth a damn at the end of the day. Cherish it id you’ve got it.

Traubenfuchs 2y ago

This makes me wonder, as a misanthropic European software engineer, what would be the best way to get into the weapons or (governmental) surveillance industry?

anon22981 2y ago
I’m not sure what kind of an answer you are looking for, but a simple one is to apply for jobs in the fields you are interested in.
PradeetPatel 2y ago
It really depends on the level of seniority. If you are applying for a junior role, I don't know much about Europe, but in India the defence and security sector often have internship programmes for university students. Alternatively, same as all other jobs, keep your eye open and make sure your CV and cover letter is catered towards the job. You don't need to be a misanthrope to work in defence and security. Despite the bad PR, it's comforting knowing that your work is making the world a safer place.
- jajko 2y ago
  That 'making safer place' is 50:50 at best, every single arms/bombs/rocket/ammunition manufacturer has seen its products used for smaller or bigger genocides of civilian population across whole age spectrum, with obviously the biggest being US and Russia/CCCP. Its supremely dumb to blame manufacturers in any way of course, they are just (pretty efficient) tools.
- deleted 2y ago
  [deleted]
e4325f 2y ago
Add /s for the Americans, it'll go over their heads otherwise!
RandomThoughts3 2y ago
The same way than any other companies: they advertise the positions they are looking for. But you will find very little misanthropy there. The salaries are not that great so most of the engineers are either genuinely interested in the complexity of what they build (aerospace and naval is often like that) or invested in the mission (serving the nation).

deleted 2y ago

[deleted]

phreeza 2y ago

It's a two edged sword though in my experience, because it can lead to self-exploitation. I found it much easier to separate work from private life in jobs where I didn't personally identify with the outcomes.

RandomThoughts3 2y ago

> Aligning your personal goals with your company's mission can be a game-changer in achieving both professional success and personal fulfillment. That’s a fairly dangerous way of doing thing in my experience. Unless it’s your company, you have very little say in what the company actually does. Generally speaking, I advocate keeping a sane distance between what you do for a living and the rest of your life. You are not defined by the company that pays you. Find a job which helps you achieve what you want to achieve, work honestly and leave work at work.

KolenCh 2y ago
Not an expert here, so I'll quote one from the highlights I have reading the following book: “Harsh as this sounds, if you’re not in the right job—a job that is moving you toward where you want to be in life—then you’re wasting almost all the time you’re spending at work.” “First, “you should do what you love” means finding work that “matches well with your expertise, your creative thinking skills, and your strongest intrinsic motivations.” Intrinsic motivation means liking the substance of the work for its own sake. The second part, “you should love what you do,” means “finding a work environment that will allow you to retain that intrinsic motivational focus, while supporting your exploration of new ideas.” Excerpt From 168 Hours: You Have More Time Than You Think Laura Vanderkam
- jimbokun 2y ago
  I suspect there are far too few jobs meeting that description relative to the number of people needing employment.
  - KolenCh 2y ago
    Laura anticipated that response: “Ferriss downplays the idea of dream jobs. As he writes, “For most people . . . the perfect job is the one that takes the least time. The vast majority of people will never find a job that can be an unending source of fulfillment, so that is not the goal here; to free time and automate income is.” And then she further elaborate from there, discussing how to create the right job, bridging the gap between the ideal and the reality. Here's the 3 levels of changes to do that: “... If the answer is “no” to any of these four questions, what can I change? In the next week? In the next year? Can I create the right job within my organization? Another organization? Or will I need to go out on my own?” I know we're not in a book club, and I, even the author, does not have to ultimate answer. But as she argued, there are things we can have more meaningful/fulfilling life from our 168 hours a week and it is not as pessimistic as it seems. I invite you to give the book a chance. Excerpt From 168 Hours: You Have More Time Than You Think Laura Vanderkam

refurb 2y ago

> Aligning your personal goals with your company's mission can be a game-changer Maybe it's my own experience, but I've never worked for a company whose mission didn't funnel down to "make money". They might play lip service to "changing the world", "make products customers love" or "engineering excellence", but they were all done for the purpose of making money and would often be dropped without discussion if it impacted the bottom line. I could see how industry selection could align with personal value (e.g. weapons versus healthcare), or if a company invests a lot in technical skill (because they think it makes them more money) and provide you with an environment to gain skills you personally want to gain, but in the end it all comes down to money. Not to be overly cynical, I'm just sharing my own experience. My personal approach is to go in eyes wide open (it's all about money), figure out what I want to get out of the job, and take advantage when the two overlap. But the entire time knowing it's likely temporary and to be prepared to jump ship if things change.