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One, there's always going to be work to do. Set your boundaries, or the company will set them for you. Hello, and welcome to the PI Bytes podcast, where we talk about Python career and mindset. We're your hosts. I'm Julian Sequeira. And I am Bob Baldebos. If you're looking to improve your python, you, your career, and learn the mindset for success, this is the podcast for you. Let's get started. Welcome back, everybody, to the Pivots podcast. This is Bob Baldeboz, and I'm here with a very special guest. Hey, everyone, it's Julian. Welcome. Thanks for having me on the podcast, Bob. As you all know, you probably know Julian from py Bytes. That's been a while, right? It's good to be back, man. After two. Two episodes of not being here. Two weeks. Jeez. Long time, man. Maybe people thought Robin was taking over permanently. Robin, we love you, but you can't have my podcast seat, okay? Not happening, buddy. But, yeah, it's good to be back. I've had a quiet couple of weeks off the podcast with travel and everything else happening, so it's been. It's been nice to sit back and listen to our podcast for once, rather than consumer. Exactly. Just sit back, listen to it in the car, in the shower. That sort of thing's good. But I realized that in my absence, it seems that code has taken over. Yes, some mindset in there, but still, it makes sense in there, bro. Makes it. No, it was great. They were a great couple of episodes. Give us some kudos here. That was good. It was good. But, you know, give me some more of that mindset. So I'm back, and I'm going to enforce some mindset today. You have to be dangerous today. I'm cranky. I'm frustrated. I'm on my high horse. I'm ready to dig into some stuff. You ready? Yeah. So what do you want to talk about? All right, I'm going to start with a quote, because actually, you know what? For context, everyone, you know, if you. If you're a regular listener, you know that we talked about boundaries at the start of this year, I think January 14 or something, that whatever date that episode came out, whatever we said, this was going to be our year of boundaries and about making sure we set boundaries with family, with work, with, you know, making sure that we have time for everything. Now, I want to revisit this, and because repetition is the key to success, I wanted to talk about this again because I like your educational, Oxford kind of voice when I'm being very proper. We talk like this. Go on. Sorry, had to call it out. No, thank you. I appreciate it. Thank you for acknowledging my impression. My accent is wonderful. So we're going to talk about this again because I keep hearing things, I keep seeing things and being typical me, opinionated me. It frustrates me. It frustrates me seeing the lack of boundaries with people. And it's from everywhere. It's not just me talking about one specific workplace or anything. This is everywhere. Everyone that I come across, whether it be family, work through pie bytes, you name it. Boundaries just do not exist anymore. And it is toxic and it is frustrating. So I'm going to start with this quote from a very well educated friend that I've had a meeting with recently who said to me, when we talked about this sort of thing, this was a great two liner. It was one, there's always going to be work to do. Set your boundaries or the company will set them for you. And I thought that was so profound, so intelligent, because it's true. If you don't come into the job with any boundaries, they're just going to set it for you. They're going to milk you for every second of time that you have. And especially, you know, not to generalize here, actually, I will generalize, especially the younger crowd we tend to, before we have families and stuff, we tend to really give that time away because we think that's how you climb the corporate ladder, that's how you get seen, that's how you become successful. And then those of us, when we eventually do have kids, some of us who, if we decide to, those kids, those, the family, they tend to put the boundaries, the hard boundaries in the line for you, at least that's how it starts. But then once you get that comfort factor going in that routine going, you hop back on the laptop after work, after the kids go to bed, that sort of thing. So it, it's in, what's the word, Bob? Insidious. Insidious. It's insidious. It just creeps in and it destroys your routine. It destroys your relationships. So what are your thoughts on this, Bob? Yep. Boom, you've set the tone. Um, so yeah, we definitely want to give some practical tips, but, uh, I think first, uh, I selfishly talking, have to having the privilege of this very special guest. Want to kind of understand where this is coming from, right? Because supposedly we sign a contract and it says like 96. And so that quote is actually profound because it assumes that boundaries are not a given. And the company is definitely not going to set them. So. Sounds a bit abusive. Sounds extreme, even. So why, where is this coming from? Is it like the mentality, I guess slack is always to blame. These nice tools that always pop up expectations. Yeah. Where is this coming from? I think what a lot of people. That's a good question, Bob. Thanks for asking it. Now, I think a lot of people, it comes down to that feeling of, well, hang on, this company pays the bills, this job puts the food on the table. If I don't do, do exactly what they say when they it say it, if I don't just toe the line and do it, then that stuff is at risk. Right. And I can't remember what I was reading. I think, yes, I was reading a book. And, you know, there are three things, three instincts that we have as people, right? We have the instinct to survive. There's the survival instinct. So we'll try to protect ourselves. We have the instinct to protect our young, right. And the third one is the instinct for social connection, whereas humans. Right. We want that social connection and the one that's at risk when we set boundaries, that we feel that survival instinct is that first one. And also that's the second one about protecting our children, our young, because we feel like if we don't do what they say, we're going to lose the job and not be able to survive, not be able to protect our families, you name it. Right. But the reality is, and this is something I say to people very often, is that when you're talking about interviewing for companies, you're interviewing them as much as they're interviewing you, right. You're providing them with value. Just imagine you get to that point where you're providing, you realize that you're providing this company with value, that without you, they're losing something. Now, I'm a strong believer as well, that, you know, companies, especially big companies, everyone's replaceable, but you also bring a unique skill set. You bring unique value to wherever you happen to work that can be irreplaceable. So you need to find that balance. So do the work, put the effort in, but set the boundary and set that expectation. So on that note, before I go down the rabbit hole, we have a bunch of tips. We're going to split this up into a few tips. So, Bob, do you want to kick off the first one? Yep. Thanks for elaborating on that. So, yeah, a few tips here to control this one I was actually discussing with somebody yesterday. It's very hard to set like an end time of your work, right. There's always more work. Always reason to go back and check and email or especially that kind of busy work. Set an end time and just set that expectation, I guess, to let people know that at that point, point you end your shift. I think we definitely can talk about shifts in this case. And then don't check back. Go spend time with your family. Go, go read, go to the park, go. Do, you know, whatever you want to do. And that goes back to the quote, because the work will always be there. Like, it's very rare that something needs your attention, like right away or a fire starts somewhere, right? Yeah, can happen. And then obviously we'll be called in then people. People can still call you, right? Or mobiles, 99 out of hundred, that's not the case. So switch off, come back fresh the next day. You will be more productive as well. So set that boundary. I actually set an alarm now in my phone to go off at 630. I'm not respecting it every day, but it's at least a reminder. And, yeah, I'm working on it. I'm working on it. And then I just switch up. Right? And then I noticed that the next day I'm better because I have that recharge in the afternoon and of course my family demands it simply. So you'd be in trouble. Now, that's a good one. Especially because if you really think about it, that notion that we have to be available all the time, that, oh, geez, if I don't reply to this message, the world's going to end. To be pretty blunt, that's just ego. That is 110% ego. To sit there and really think to yourself that the world will end. If I don't respond to this message, that the company is going to fall over, the team is going to suffer. Not a chance in hell is that going to happen, because there is always someone else. There are people paid to be online right now. So right now there are people online from the EU during business hours. They can handle it. And if they can't, then you got a problem, but it's not your problem, right? You need to set those boundaries and you can't take the weight of the world on your shoulders. It's not. Not healthy. So that leads me on to step not step two, but number two here, which is learn to negotiate. Negotiate the work that you're doing. Negotiate the potential perceived requirement that you need to be online at that time, that you need to continue after your shift or your day technically ends. So if your day technically ends at five. And you find yourself

still working by 630 or 07: 10:40

00 p.m. Then there's a problem there. What are you doing differently? What are you doing wrong? What is not working? Well, you know, so, yeah, I think that that's another tip, is talk to your manager, talk to the stakeholders, and again, set that end time, negotiate the work, make sure it's actually the stuff that's important and it's not just busy work for the sake of, you know, just doing it. Yep. And apart from really having clarity, what's part of your job description? Also, see, maybe there's a bigger issue at hand. Like maybe you have to be training engineers and that's not officially part of your job description. Of course you like it because you want to help people, but maybe there's a training issue and they need to bring in an instructor to do that. Right. Why do they put the burden on you? Right. So, yeah, really look at, like, am I working? So, a, is it part of my job description? B, am I actually solving a bigger issue that management is just not willing to address? So those were the next two, which is great. The next one was easy, so to categorize, to split them up. The first one from there was, is it really part of your job description? You're making sure you're doing the work that you should be doing. And the second one, is there a bigger issue at hand? Is there a training issue? So, really good call outs there. Thanks. Thanks, Bob. I appreciate you ruining the flow. So let's give it a try, man. Can you give it a try? All right, so this one here, number six, this one is, I think, an important one that we don't often think and definitely don't take this action, but for those of you with people in your lives that are affected by your work. So I'm talking about partners, families, kids. You know, it could even be your parents, could be your best friends, whatever. Check in with those people that are closest to you and actually have that honest conversation. Are your hours affecting them and how and understand that it matters. You're not the only person. Odds are you're not the only person in your life that your presence affects. And if you are fortunate enough to have people in your life that care about you and are impacted by your busyness and constant constantly being switched on, then take note of that, take heed of that and realize, well, what's more important, the constant incessant hours of work or those people who are here for you day in, day out, who want to be there for you, but can't because you're just always on conference calls or traveling or something like that. And the last tip is automation. Look at trends where you're doing the same thing over and over again. And I think a great example of this is documentation. If you constantly have to explain things to other developers, well, maybe you should improve your documentation. Last week we spoke with Sebastian, and he's a great, his projects are exemplary in this space. I think he will prevent a lot of questions because he provides excellent documentation with fast API, SQL model, et cetera. Yeah, and to add to that, it's also just about automating the stuff that's taking up your time. So if you do that, we've mentioned in our productivity course before, which we'll link in the show notes, gives you lots more tips than you've got here. But talk about a time audit. Maybe you're just doing the stuff that is the regular day job, but maybe there is a lot of time being wasted throughout the day. And maybe there are some tasks that can be automated. Right? Example, quick one, excel work. There's always something you can automate when it comes to Excel. There was certainly something I was doing recently that I realized, okay, this can totally be automated. And I wrote a script to take care of it, and it probably saved me one to 2 hours every time I had to do that task. Right? So really important to throw your python skills in there as well into this, to really help you out. Because at the end of the day, those boundaries are so important. And ending at that end, time is going to free you up to do everything else that matters to you. And getting into our coaching side of things, this is where you start to work towards your goals. When you

set that boundary at 05: 15:04

00 p.m. And you actually switch

off at 05: 15:08

00 p.m. You've got another five, 6 hours, perhaps in your day that are suddenly free and guilt free to focus on you and the people around you, your relationships, your goals, all the things that matter. So this is where you can say, pick up the guitar, or you can work on learning something new in Python so that you can go for another job. This is what opens doors for you. This is where you network. This is where you do all that stuff. So really important, again, just to finally wrap this up and have a conclusion here, this is why it's so important to have boundaries and that people who don't have boundaries stagnate. This is where they stagnate. They find themselves in the same position five years later, no growth, just more stress, less hair, more or more gray hair and just burnt out. And that is not where you want to be, especially these days with the world in such a haphazard, off kilter state. So there's the I'm going to step off my higher horse. Give me 1 second. I'm going to get a bit shorter now. Okay, I'm off my high horse. I'll stop my soapbox. I think Jim Rohn said, work as hard on yourself as you work on the job. And that's really profound because it's very tempting to always deliver more. But at the end of the day, you're not going to be in that job forever. And especially these days, the length that people are at jobs is decreasing. So you always have to think about yourself and your future growth. And I think it's kind of a blind spot. We have that in the moment. We just don't think that that longer term vision. Right. But you have to already plant those seeds today to have that great future in ten years. Exactly right. So it all comes back to those boundaries, people. You got to get there and make sure you're protecting yourself, protect the asset, look after yourself. Don't burn out and, you know, don't devalue your salary. If I'm going to throw some cash in there, especially these days with the increasing interest rates and stuff, don't devalue what you're earning. The second you put in an extra hour, bang. That's a drop to your hourly wage. So do the math, figure it out and see what it is that you're giving away for free. So people that are seriously struggling with this, where should they go? What do we have for them? We have the productivity course. That's the first thing. Go through that. Build some good habits. Do some exercises that we have in there to really analyze your day, analyze the way you're tackling your work, get some understanding about how it all works and implement some changes. Super practical course. You even have role plays about negotiation. Check it out. Yeah, it's a good one. And then come and talk to us about coaching. That's what I'm going to say to everyone. Just come to us for some coaching. That's what we do. Yeah, because it's twofold. Right. That's like with the freed up time, you can start working on your goals, as you said before, and it means app building. Right. And. Yep. On the other hand, you also have a weekly mindset call where you talk about this stuff. Right? Don't you? Damn right. Damn right. And then it might even free you up to do something new so, and different. And that's, that's the exciting part of it all. And with that, Bob, I'm going to ask you as we wrap it up, reading quickly, the missing readme and robust Python. How can you read a missing readme file? Yeah, that came recommended by Heather in PDM. So thanks, Heather. And it's a good overview what you get into when you get into developer job and do this professionally. So it's a great overview and robust Python. I picked that up because as far as I know, it's the only in depth book on type hints at this time. So I'm getting pretty excited about type ins, what they mean for, especially after last week with Sebastian, what they mean for code quality and all that. And yeah, the opportunities it opens. So I want to learn more. And next week we're also going to talk a bit more about that. So stay tuned. What about you? More tech stuff on a tech podcast, I tell you. What am I reading? Yes, I'm reading now. This is a book I started. I got to admit I didn't finish it. I started reading it a couple of months back and I picked it back up and really been inspired by it. But I'm reading the insider's guide to culture change and it's just really nice, easy read. I actually don't know why I stopped. I think it was just travel and stuff, but really great read on just building culture that is much more about people, essentially about putting people first. And I really, really love that. So, yeah, just, just my kind of jam. And I think everyone should give it a read. It's very quick. I was just going to say that's your jam, putting people first. Exactly. Right. Okay. Well, look, Bob, thank you for having me back on the podcast. You're allowed back in. Yeah, thanks, man. I'll be off next week, I imagine. So with our special guest. I probably won't be here. So I'll be back in two weeks. Take the break, even if you want to. It's probably outside of your timezone. So. No, see, I'm putting the boundaries in, man. There's no, I'll be sleeping that there's no chance I'm waking up for that. So you two enjoy and give them a hug for me. Awesome. All right, Ben. All right, everyone. Thank you so much for. Yeah, and thank you everyone for listening and tuning in. As always, we appreciate you. We love your feedback and look forward to being back next week. Yeah, thanks for listening and as always. Any suggestions? Info at Pibit Es and we'll be back next week. We hope you enjoyed this episode. To hear more from us, go to Pibyte friends, that is Pybit es friends, and receive a free gift just for being a friend of the show. And to join our thriving slack community of python programmers, go to PI bytes community. That's Pibit es forward slash community. We hope to see you there and catch you in the next episode.