The Programmer’s Guide to a Sane Workweek
<i>Finally, you&#x27;ll need to have the self-confidence or stubbornness to choose and stick to a path that most people don&#x27;t take.</i><p>You don&#x27;t need self-confidence or stubbornness, just commitment to your principles...<p>I have <i>never</i> worked more than 40 hours per week for anyone else. Ever. I arrive at 8. I leave at 5. I don&#x27;t work from home.<p>Except for emergencies.<p>My definition of emergency: If someone is dying or their production software isn&#x27;t working. That&#x27;s it. Anything else, I&#x27;ll be in all day tomorrow and will be happy to talk about it then.<p>All you really need to do is reach an understanding with your manager about your boundaries and the definition of &quot;emergency&quot; at the beginning.<p>If they want to pay 40 hours for more than 40 hours of work or have a different definition of emergency, they I&#x27;ll work somewhere else.<p>It&#x27;s really that simple. I&#x27;ve been doing this for almost 40 years and have never had a single complaint about it.<p>And I&#x27;m not sure which &quot;most people&quot; OP knows, but &quot;most people&quot; I know have a philosophy similar to mine. We&#x27;ll do whatever it takes to get the job done, but we won&#x27;t be suckers.<p>OP, do you really need a whole book for this?