Involution (involution), also translated as "overdensification", Geerz proposed that "farmers continue to increase the labor input in the rice planting process under population pressure to obtain higher yields. However, the ultra-intensive labor input does not Without a proportional increase in output, there has been a diminishing marginal return of unit labor, that is, the phenomenon of overdensification." This phenomenon is called "involution".
The term "involute" used in the programmer industry now means that there are too many parallel imports, too few advanced ones, stagnant technological development, and various internal friction.
From the perspective of overtime culture (such as 996, "wolf"), programmers have long been a highly involved profession.
For example, in a certain R&D team, at the earliest, all programmers did not work overtime. During the 8-hour working hours, everyone competed in an orderly manner. Whoever wants to stand out will improve work efficiency and work hard on creativity. In other words, before overtime has become "culture", the competition between programmers can only be intelligence, not physical strength. At the same time, when the boss allocates wages, he refers to efficiency and creativity, because everyone does not work overtime.
Suppose that this team has 10 programmers, and the boss is willing to pay 100,000 yuan a month. It turns out that everyone doesn't work overtime. When the boss allocates the 100,000 yuan, he can only refer to efficiency and creativity. However, one day, a certain programmer started to work overtime proactively in order to win the competition. Then, in the next period of time, the programmer who worked overtime first will temporarily show better performance (or posture). Later, when the boss allocates the same salary of 100,000 yuan, he will naturally favor the programmer who worked overtime first.
However, there is a key point here. For the boss, his total expenditure has not increased. It is still the original 100,000 yuan, but the distribution ratio has been adjusted internally to favor the programmers who work overtime first. In this case, if other programmers want to keep their income, or just want to keep their jobs, they can only follow up and work overtime.
But soon, when all the programmers in the team started to follow up overtime, overtime itself was no longer competitive and became standard. At this time, those who do not want to work overtime, programmers who want to return to efficiency and creativity have become an alternative. Such people, regardless of their level, cannot survive in a team that uses overtime as their "culture" because of their "attitude".
Finally, we will come back to see the boss. Regardless of whether you work overtime or not, when the boss pays the salary, the total amount is still 100,000 yuan, or between the 10 people. But now, because all programmers have started to work overtime, the labor time can no longer reflect the difference, the boss has to refer to efficiency and creativity when allocating the 100,000 yuan.
So everybody, after a round, in the end, judging from the money allocated by each programmer, no one has increased, and it's back to before overtime did not form a "culture". But what is unacceptable is that for programmers, the money in hand has not increased, but the labor has been doubled.
In the whole process, the only real winner was the boss, because he paid the same money but bought more labor. The loser is the laborer, because everyone's income has not changed, but they have paid more labor. Therefore, from the perspective of the revenue of the entire programmer team, the competition among programmers based on overtime is a zero-sum game and a typical involuted competition. Moreover, this is not the saddest.
There was a piece of news recently that aroused public anger. An employee of Pinduoduo suddenly died on the way home after working overtime. Pinduoduo's official account made a comment.
Although this comment was subsequently deleted, netizens with quick eyesight cut off the picture, and the comment caused the whole network to burst and the incident was fermented.
Everyone's anger is not just in Pinduoduo.
It is a collective vent of long-term dissatisfaction with the 996 work system. The inability to fight against capital.
"996" entered the public eye with the topic of "996ICU" in March 2019. It means "go to work at 9 am and leave work at 9 pm, 6 days a week, work 996, sick ICU (Intensive Care Unit)".
The "culture" of overtime has not only worsened the working environment of programmers. In the long run, it also directly shortens the career life of programmers, making the mid-life crisis a fate that programmers cannot escape.
Under high-intensity labor (such as 996), skills and creativity eventually become meaningless. The competition of 996 is not more outstanding and creative than anyone, but who can put the bottom line lower and sacrifice his life and health more.
So you said, can we end 996? At least not in the Internet world.
You see, from the first programmer who worked overtime until overtime became a culture, programmers destroyed their working environment and ended their professional lives.
This has become a "normal" in society, and if you want to break this "normal", you will become a "morbid state" in the eyes of others. This kind of "morbid state" means that there is no enterprising spirit, no contribution to the company, no radiance...
996 does not only exist in the Internet industry, this process is enlarged to the entire industry still established.
In the earliest days, all companies in the industry did not work overtime, and everyone started a benign, orderly competition based on technology and creativity. At the same time, all workers in the industry can take care of family and work, and the entire industry is full of gentle and happy atmosphere.
However, one day a certain company suddenly began to advocate the so-called "overtime culture", and began to work overtime first. Then, for a period of time, in the industry competition, this company will win a temporary advantage. But soon, in order to survive the competition, other companies in the industry also began to learn the "overtime culture" and began to work overtime. In this way, the competition in the entire industry is back to before.
So knowingly it is a volume. Also had to roll. Because this is the best way out in a bad situation.
Enterprises have also invented cultures such as struggle, wolfishness, and blessing to hypnotize society.
Any company, if it wants to gain a larger market share in industry competition, it must rely on technology and creativity. Look at the above, after a big turn, the competition between companies and employees has finally become a bargaining chip at the expense of personal life and health.
The competitive landscape has returned to the original, but a so-called "overtime culture" and "996 blessings" have emerged.
I was very moved when I saw a comment from a netizen:
"I think that the eight hours and weekends that others worked so hard to facilitate in those days have not yet been fully popularized, and now they have been ruined by the phrase "good fortune"!"
We envy the three-day rest a week in other countries, but after experiencing the single rest, we feel that it is very difficult to get a week. The normal "double break system" has become a luxury.
But as workers, we can only complain while working hard. I only hope that this morbid culture can be corrected someday, and I also wish everyone here!
It seems that the 996 system cannot be terminated in the short term, but we believe that there will be a day when it will "correct." On that day everyone competed more on ability and innovation! We just need to improve ourselves and wait for that day to come!
In order not to be replaced by others, many people around me have been trying the full stack. Many people don't understand. In fact, the real meaning of the full stack is not to learn a few more technologies, but to say that you have the ability to completely transform an idea into a product. This ability allows you to go from being an employee who cannot leave the production line, and who cannot live independently from the company, to a person who has the right to choose his own job, his own life, and his own career.
If you also want to become a full-stack engineer and spend less cost learning, here is a learning group recommended for you. The knowledge in the group involves : programming introduction, game programming, network programming, Windows programming, Linux programming, Qt interface development, Hackers wait...
In addition to the sharing of learning materials, there are also questions and answers online by software engineers who have many years of experience in your learning process. Your change starts here, click me to enter the learning exchange group