- What Exactly Are Death-March Projects?
- So Why Should We Avoid Death-March Projects?
- Death-March Projects Are a Sign of Poor Management
- Don't Get Me Wrong; Long Hours Are Okay
- Hell, No, I Won't Go!
Don't Get Me Wrong; Long Hours Are Okay
As developers, we sometimes get really passionate and enthusiastic about what we're working on. When this happens, you should go with the flow and work until the sun rises againif you're truly energized by what you're doing. After all, there's something magical when everything suddenly clicks and it no longer feels like work; we laugh because we're actually getting paid for doing something we really love to do.
That's the real beauty of being a software developer, of being passionate about our craft. My resistance to death-march projects is to the way that we're expected to apply the same energy and enthusiasm to insignificant, unrewarding projects. Sure, we can do it, but in the end we feel lifeless and used rather than energized and fully alive.