04/20/2022

Companies Keep Asking Everyone Achieve More With Less

At some point, less is all you have

There's a story academics like to tell, in some variation, about the time in grad school when they were writing their dissertations. Usually it starts with someone talking about how long it took to write, which somehow leads to an offhand mention of someone else in their program who did it faster, with seemingly more ease, and just generally more support.

The secret of their success? They had wives.

The next beat of the story, regardless of the gender or sexual orientation of the teller, usually goes something like "I wish I had a wife to get me through my dissertation!" The rest of the group nods enthusiastically, floating in reverie. Just imagine, during those thick, heady years of research and writing: someone to go shopping and cook meals! Someone to read drafts and catch typos and even give feedback! A wife would be a buoy, a beacon, a savior. What privilege, to have a wife!

Please select this link to read the complete blog post from The Expanding Job by Anne Petersen.