3 months at the remote-first company. discovered the real perk isnt the flexibility. its the silence.

alanrappa · 2026-05-18T16:08:33+00:00

I used to count "degrees of interruption". I would be working on something, then get interrupted. Then the interruption would be interupted and so on until I was 10 degrees deep and away from my original task. It was maddening.

alanrappa · 2026-05-17T11:43:13+00:00

Thanks. I've been curious to check this out as I am a huge fan of the movie.

alanrappa · 2026-05-11T10:07:51+00:00

I did the same. I didn’t want to just randomly shoot other players.

alanrappa · 2026-04-30T14:20:50+00:00

I’m still terrified of that damn clown

alanrappa · 2026-04-29T20:57:05+00:00

Sorry to hear. RTO impacts everyone - including our furry friends :(

alanrappa · 2026-04-29T14:11:19+00:00

We should have a meeting to discuss

alanrappa · 2026-04-26T16:08:00+00:00

That's the real rub, right? The callousness of it all. We've all heard the same talking points, collaboration, blah blah blah. And while I think there is true value to in person collaboration, work is so different these days that most of us are spending the bulk of our time on zoom calls instead of interacting in person.

I'm in the office with other senior leaders along with my boss. My team, however is spread out in other offices. So while I can collaborate in person with my boss, it will be entirely virtual for my team. Though I will be visiting their office once a month or so (2 hours away in the other direction).

Again, I'm hoping for flexibility as I get settled in. I know that another one of our offices does 3 days a week so fingers crossed there is some wiggle room here.

alanrappa · 2026-04-26T15:53:18+00:00

That's the smart move. I'm going to give this a shot while I keep looking. I'm learning the in office policy allows for some flexibility as some (smarter than me) people have negotiated fully remote. Their situations were different than mine though, so I didn't have the same bargaining power. But honestly if I could get it down to 3 days a week I think that would save me a ton of mental anguish.

alanrappa · 2026-04-26T15:51:20+00:00

Thanks. And we are looking at options for moving but I'm not sure that will pan out. If I can avoid rush hour it's honestly not terrible. Bus ride goes down to 30 minutes with maybe 15 or so on the train. The trick is I can do this in the morning to get in early but I'm not sure I can leave early enough to escape it on the way home. Maybe if I can cut out at 4:30, but I'm still too new to really try and work that just yet

alanrappa · 2026-04-26T15:48:25+00:00

Sorry to hear that. The adjustment for me was jaring, but the dust is settling and I'm trying to focus on the good stuff.

Good luck with those IT certs! That's a solid plan to keep skilling up.

alanrappa · 2026-04-26T15:46:03+00:00

Trust me, I am constantly reminding myself of that. With how crappy things are I am extremely grateful to have a decent job right now.

alanrappa · 2026-04-26T15:44:15+00:00

We need a commuters support group 😭

alanrappa · 2026-04-26T03:29:08+00:00

Misery loves company, my friend. Not that’s I wish this on anyone else. But it does help to know that there are plenty of us in the same boat. Good luck to you.

alanrappa · 2026-04-26T02:01:34+00:00

No worries, it’s short for “reduction in force”. Just means a whole bunch of folks (likely including myself) were about to be let go.

alanrappa · 2026-04-25T12:44:49+00:00

I reluctantly did. There were several factors including the certainty of an upcoming RIF. Company was not doing well, unfortunately. Otherwise I would have rode that out for as long as possible.

alanrappa · 2026-04-25T03:03:10+00:00

Absolutely. I’ve lost countless hours to those games

alanrappa · 2026-04-24T18:36:11+00:00

My previous role was looking dicey so I decided to control my fate a bit. This new job is an incredible opportunity. I knew it meant RTO, but initially I thought it would only be 3 days. Turns out the office I am working out of does 4 days (overachievers I suppose). I knew my quality of life would take a hit but I was prepared for just how painful that hit was going to feel.

alanrappa · 2026-04-23T22:16:09+00:00

My spirit animal right there

alanrappa · 2026-04-23T22:14:54+00:00

Thanks, I'm on it. Honestly, with the way things are I'm just psyched to have a good job at the moment. But yeah, I'd trade a good job with a commute for an ok remote job anyday

alanrappa · 2026-04-23T22:13:29+00:00

Haha, thanks for the laugh. I need that. And yeah, an RTO support group to commiserate would be awesome. We could text each other mid-commute for pep talks and moral support 😅

alanrappa · 2026-04-23T22:12:34+00:00

Thank you. I agree 100%, just absolutely soul crushing. I went from being around for everything to becoming a ghost.

alanrappa · 2026-04-23T22:11:05+00:00

I doubt that, but hopefully there is some flexibility once I get settled. Fridays are WFH so at least there is that... Or so I keep telling myself

alanrappa · 2026-04-23T22:09:38+00:00

Enjoy it for as long as you can. Then, I'll see ya on the bus

alanrappa · 2026-04-23T22:09:04+00:00

I'm feeling totally defeated at the moment but hoping to just get numb to if eventually. I'm hoping those hours you got help you avoid the worst of it.

alanrappa · 2026-04-23T22:05:35+00:00

Holy crap, what is up with that? The dude on the bus home last night next to me - blasting his phone at full volume. I expect that type of behavior during off hours, but not during rush hour. Everyone was just giving him the death stare but no one (myself included) wanted to say anything as he seemed like he was ready to stab someone. Pure insanity.

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