Minus: You'll never get promoted because no one else can do that job
Plus: You'll never get laid off for the same reason
this post was submitted on 21 Oct 2025
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Never underestimate the ability for middle management to not know how important you actually are.
The trick is to use your PTO all at once and be out for a week or so - everything falls over and it reminds your boss how you're the only thing keeping it all together.
The key to a good career in IT is to not have everything run too smoothly. If your systems have 100% uptime, it's easy for people to forget that you exist and are needed. The occasional bug reminds them that their lives would collapse without you.
I should go unplug the router for a bit.
use your PTO all at once and be out for a week or so
oh no
The trick is to use your PTO all at once and be out for a week or so -
This might be the most American sentence I have read this week.
Shit, sometimes they'll lay you off just because you are worth too much and cost too much money.
Or just do RTO
Me rn and I hate it
Look for another job rn so when you ask for a raise you can shortly after present your 15 days
I've already started looking. I've asked for a raise twice and I got laughed at.
Oof, when I asked for mine, I at least got some empathy even though it was a non-answer. Wish ya best luck.
Recently met a surgeon specialist who was responsible for covering multiple hospitals in the area. Had 13 surgeries lined up waiting for her, after my friend, who she finished working on at ~midnight that day.
Being important sure can have downsides.
Yeah, can’t imagine the medical field anymore. You don’t get paid to treat the patient, you get paid by the job rate. And they schedule the hell out of you to make sure you’re profitable for them.
was your friend the first?
I honestly don't know but i think it's unlikely.
Worse, you become important but with no pay raise
Then it becomes all pain no gain
That one has a simple answer:
If they are not paying you, they don't consider you important, simple as that.
I think it’s a bit more complicated than that.
I would say if they’re not paying you what you’re worth then there’s a few possibilities:
- You are less important than you think you are
- You think you are less important than you are
- They just underpay everyone and don’t care if you leave
That's called leverage. "Oh you don't want the only person who knows how to do X to quit? Sounds like a you problem."
Yup. I go out of my way not to be important at work. Get things done. Stay under the radar. Don't take any promotions unless you reaaaally need that money or think they'll get rid of you if you don't.
I've had excess responsibility at jobs and it makes life a living hell. Ain't worth it.
Samesies.
I used to be a programming monkey. It was absolutely fine, I enjoyed it and other people got the flak if things weren't done on time or there were other problems. My code was never the problem - each day, I spent at least four hours working for the company and up to four hours on my own projects, on the company dime.
Seems like I got too.. confident in meetings. Made suggestions. People took too much notice.
Now I'm some kind of lead architect which pays really well, but there's no more time for myself, there's much more pressure, I can't code nearly as much as I want to and the fun is gone.
Confidence in meetings and paying attention is like a death punch to the face made of money. It happened to me too.
That's why I'm leaving.
EDIT:
The important guy before me already left and I already see the next one.
Mood.
They're about to find out just how important I actually am. Which isn't a lot and it frightens me greatly. Or, I'm wrong, and I'm more important than I realize.
The grippy socks will be here soon and either way they'll be necessary to survive until the next burnout.
Sounds like an Anime title
This is why you should not work too hard, but just at the right amount. Employers might deem you are too valuable to be promoted. And exceeding way beyond expectations and performance might also raise the standards impossibly high for most other workers, and that will cause resentment.
Within a few months at my current job, someone unironically referred to me as a thought leader in my department at the company in an all-hands meeting. The look of surprise on my face… I almost blurted out “it’s fuckin’ chat GPT, man!” Glad I didn’t, but seriously… LLMs used correctly are a powerful tool.
God dam that hits close.
I’m really damn good at what I do. I am not a good teacher. If you make me teach the new class because I’m good at doing the job…it won’t go well.
Nah I'm vibing. I've been working here for so long, I know a lot about many things and people keep coming to me for help, it's great! And yes, I'm content with my pay.
Ahh, the friendly sibling of: "My co-worker accidentally became important at work, and they laid them off, now my life is ruined"
HAHAHAHAhahaha...ha...😭