I agree that it's vitally important to keep burnout in mind when you're the type of person prone to it (I suspect a great many HNers are), however I wonder whether being over-cautious is potentially as, if not more, damaging in some circumstances.
Let's say, theoretically (cough ;-) you're in a job you don't like which is absolutely making you miserable but is actually quite easy in many respects, what if the only way to actually get a job you might like is to work really hard outside of work-work?
The problem is that if you're the kind of person who cares about this stuff, it's worth anything to avoid a life stuck writing CRUD surrounded by people who don't care in a place where even the concept of code review or non-sourcesafe source control is laughed off by seniors (cough again ;-)
It's a fine line to walk in this kind of situation. To me, the key is to have plenty of scheduled breaks, accept + deal with f-ups (i.e. not doing the amount of work you wanted, it happens), have clear goals with smaller goals along the road, etc., and most important of all - do stuff you absolutely love. Nothing is guaranteed to protect you from burnout, however.
A lot of the problem with transitioning from somewhere sucky to somewhere decent is that, in order to actually be up scratch for a job like that, you have to put in a lot of hours in your own time, especially if you don't have a computer science degree and have gaps to fill in.
IMHO, sometimes burnout is just a risk you have to run, though you can certainly work to minimise it.
Let's say, theoretically (cough ;-) you're in a job you don't like which is absolutely making you miserable but is actually quite easy in many respects, what if the only way to actually get a job you might like is to work really hard outside of work-work?
I am specifically in this situation right now, and below you can find my story about previous burn-out.
Frankly, I've set myself a schedule for extra work that is stiff but not brutal. I am for an hour and a half of work on my personal stuff per day. It doesn't seem like much, and I could probably do more, but I'm playing it safe.
I don't think I'm being over-cautious. I'm making good progress, I'm not sacrificing my personal life, and the benefit is that -- and this is the important part -- I'm not forcing myself on to a schedule I can't maintain. Which I think is ultimately the leading cause of burnout.
I keep a google docs spreadsheet of my work, so I know I'm not slacking. But I can load balance in a way I can't do at my job -- if something isn't entertaining, I pick a different part of the project to work on.
Ultimately I feel I'm on track to set myself free within two years tops, and I do so safely.
I absolutely applaud your reasoned approach - being reasonable about a schedule while consciously avoiding practices which lead to burnout is the way to actually get out of the situation.
I think a key part of resolving burnout issues is separating feelings of self worth from hours worked; strictly enforcing breaks as well as work is vital - you are doing what you can, while consciously avoiding burnout.
I definitely think logging stuff is a key part of the whole scheme; me being me, I feel like I've done nothing, but looking back at my logs I can see I've put in quite a few hours.
Personally I'm aiming for around 3 hours each weekday, more on the weekend, but have for several weeks failed to meet this for various reasons. I've avoided beating myself up about it, rather trying to find ways to make the work more feasible. It's a hard thing to do.
Let's say, theoretically (cough ;-) you're in a job you don't like which is absolutely making you miserable but is actually quite easy in many respects, what if the only way to actually get a job you might like is to work really hard outside of work-work?
The problem is that if you're the kind of person who cares about this stuff, it's worth anything to avoid a life stuck writing CRUD surrounded by people who don't care in a place where even the concept of code review or non-sourcesafe source control is laughed off by seniors (cough again ;-)
It's a fine line to walk in this kind of situation. To me, the key is to have plenty of scheduled breaks, accept + deal with f-ups (i.e. not doing the amount of work you wanted, it happens), have clear goals with smaller goals along the road, etc., and most important of all - do stuff you absolutely love. Nothing is guaranteed to protect you from burnout, however.
A lot of the problem with transitioning from somewhere sucky to somewhere decent is that, in order to actually be up scratch for a job like that, you have to put in a lot of hours in your own time, especially if you don't have a computer science degree and have gaps to fill in.
IMHO, sometimes burnout is just a risk you have to run, though you can certainly work to minimise it.