It’s a factual statement that programmers and developers dislike meetings. But have you ever wondered why such professionals dislike meetings so much compared to other people? The answer is simple but obvious once pointed out: meetings are in essence costly to them.
This blog is about the two stick figures from the comic by Jason Heeris, ‘THIS IS WHY YOU SHOULDN’T INTERRUPT A PROGRAMMER’: the maker and the manager and the fundamental problem that occurs when their schedules meet.
Note: Much of the content of this blog post is borrowed from this essay by Paul Graham. It was written in July 2009, more than 10 years ago! If you can find the time I highly recommend the original essay, it’s a classic.
So what does this mean?
For managers:
• Understand that the cost of an interruption is significantly higher for makers than for managers.
• The next time you want to interrupt a programmer deep in thought, think of the comic.
For makers:
• Understand that managers operate on a different day-to-day schedule than you do and respect that.
• Clearly communicate that you need long stretches of uninterrupted time to deliver great work, but be willing to compromise.
Maker’s schedule v. manager’s schedule
In his work, Graham argues that there are two different types of schedules, which he calls the maker’s schedule and the manager’s schedule.
The manager’s schedule can be thought of the traditional calendar. The day is neatly sliced into hours. You can schedule more than 1 hour for an appointment or meeting but by default you can switch tasks every hour or 30 minutes.
The maker’s schedule is different. The maker’s schedule is for programmers and writers who prefer longer stretches of uninterrupted time. For a writer or programmer, it takes time to get started, it is difficult to produce something truly valuable in half an hour.
For people on the maker’s schedule, ill-planned meetings come with a cost that is both high and not immediately obvious. A single meeting can ruin a whole morning by breaking up a long period into just short enough periods where exactly nothing of value can be produced. Meetings are like the interruptions from the comic, but on a macro level.
Sources:
http://www.paulgraham.com/makersschedule.html
https://heeris.id.au/2013/this-is-why-you-shouldnt-interrupt-a-programmer
