“Flow” is meant to be a key component of happiness. I’ve experienced flow while programming and in similar activities, generally solitary and mentally challenging. When I’ve been in management roles, however, my sense of “flow” subsides. Management generally consists of tasks that are, for me, less conducive to flow: meetings, one-on-one conversations, writing email, occasional planning.<p>Do others find it true, then, that management work is simply less “flowing”? If so, then does it therefore tend to be less happy work than eg programming? Or are other people more gifted to management such that they experience more flow while managing? I’m interested to know what the various experiences of HN readers reveal.
Manager schedules are more about bringing order to chaos. It's constant context switching that prevents entering a flow state. It attracts those who are motivates by vice over virtue. What their title or comp is. Not what they work on, or who they work with.<p><a href="http://paulgraham.com/makersschedule.html" rel="nofollow">http://paulgraham.com/makersschedule.html</a>