Life Musings

Back in grad school, I had a neurotic roommate who was dilly-dallying on an important paper that he needed to write. The deadline was coming up fast, so I suggested that he put in some extra hours. He yelled, "Why??? Why should I put in any extra effort? When I graduate and get a job, I am only going to work from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. -- not a second more. Why should today be any different?"

I shook my head in disappointment. Here was a guy who was pursuing his doctorate in engineering, and he honestly felt that he could insist on only putting in the bare minimum amount of work required by his future job. Talk about unprofessional.

Mind you, this fellow was well into his thirties at the time. He was still in grad school, and he had never held a real job in his life. In fact, he didn't finish grad school until he was nearly 40, which amounted to a huge blemish on his resume. This probably gives you some indication of his bizarre, lazy mindset.

This same fellow who prided himself on his simple time management philosophy. "When I'm at work, I work." he said. " When I'm not, I don't work." Needless to say, this is a pitiful description of time management. It says nothing about HOW he uses his time, or how much if it he uses for work. No wonder it took him forever to actually finish his degree.

I think this guy could stand to read some articles on business productivity. I tried to share such ideas with him, way back when, but he continually resisted the notion.

I do feel kinda sorry for him, but not much. After all, I warned him that he was dooming himself. Repeatedly, in fact. He never listened, and so I don't feel too bad for him now.