That's what I thought, until I never understood and was way more emotionally involved than I actually was involved. How will you handle that frustration?

I didn't realize it at the time, but everyone of the same seniority level, but a few years older, already realized not to give a single fuck about anything beyond their immediate sphere of influence. They had already learned that the work truly did not matter, and at a moment's notice they'd be tossed aside as person if given enough reason.

So, don't hope for much if you can't really control it, or spend your time gaining control, as in agency, over decisions that are actionable. Otherwise, burnout is on the horizon, because your expectations and devotion are way higher than you might get out of it, but the stress is maxxed out.

The parent here is perfectly on the money.

I'd also extend this to other areas of life. Probably try not to involve yourself too much with things that you can't influence, or things that you think people should care about but really don't. Not that they aren't inherently good, but you'll grind yourself down trying for nothing specific.

Caring too much results in burnout, but I think not caring at all is just as damaging. I would rather experience some frustration than feel completely disconnected from my work.

I'm not quite foolish enough to think that I will be able to control how things work no matter whether I'm a junior or senior. Even if my involvement was limited to observing, that would still be a win to me though.

> Probably try not to involve yourself too much with things that you can't influence, or things that you think people should care about but really don't

I appreciate the warning, though I think that I've already cultivated this type of attitude. I have a healthy amount of cynicism towards certain things thanks to reading about other people's experiences.

By the way, I'm curious what sort of companies you have worked in. Non-tech companies, tech companies, FAANG, etc?

I've worked in a variety of companies, but the one that this comment is mostly based on was a large non-tech auction company.

You can’t prevent yourself from getting worn away by pre-emptively crushing yourself.

Your advice is contradictory: you’re just immediately causing future pain.

In retrospect, my comment sounds more dramatic than I intend. I'm not recommending that, I'm just saying it's not worth letting yourself get too invested in a company or role that you really don't have much agency over. Your personal investment should be commensurate with your control and influence.