The Engineering Manager

A school playground in England, 1997. I am 12 years old. I am walking towards the entrance where my mother is waiting to drive me home. I am giddy with excitement during the journey back. Tonight is the night that I’m finally going to get it. I barely look up as I eat my dinner, shoveling it into my mouth as quickly as I possibly can. As soon as the knife and fork hit the […]

“To be able to work 996 is a huge blessing. If you want to join Alibaba, you need to be prepared to work twelve hours a day, otherwise why even bother joining.” Jack Ma 996. That terminology means 9AM to 9PM, 6 days a week. A 72 hour work week with little time for much else. Once sleeping and commuting to the office is accounted for, one might wonder how ambitious tech workers fit in […]