[Ryan_IRL]

First off, I think the primary objective should be creating value for the company you work for. Bums in seats, lines of code written does not always produce value.

I think any position where you can automate away your daily tasks, and that's an expectation of the job, is great. There is no shortage of companies that maybe run on legacy software that requires a ton of effort to keep things running. You'd be surprised how often companies do things just because that's how they've always done it.

The other great option, which is what I did, is to become an important part of the team, and start negotiating for shorter work weeks.

I think you can find what you're looking for if you combine these strategies, and nobody would fault you on it.

[ipnon]

Let's assume that we, like our employers, are rational economic actors seeking to maximize the returns we receive from our capital and labor. Then our primary objective in job with static hours and static compensation would be to expend the bare amount of effort needed to retain employment. Creating value for the company would be an auxiliary objective in support of retaining employment.

You and the OP seem to be basing your arguments off different assumptions.