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01-billable-vs-non-billable.md

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On the clock vs On the bench 🧠

Working at an agency means that engineers have to switch between two psychological states of work: “Client projects” vs “Time for us”. This can be particularly confusing for people without prior agency experience.

On the clock

When you are on a client project, the way you work should be focussed on delivering as much value for the client as their budget will allow. This means:

  • You should avoid rabbit holes at all costs.
  • If you are blocked for 30 minutes, ask for help. If you don't get the help you need, escalate up the engineering ladder.
  • You should be checking at least daily with either the technical and/or product lead that you are focussing your time on the task with the highest priority.
  • You should be in asynchronous contact with your teammates multiple times throughout the day.

When you are on the clock there will be a clear deadline to meet, and this brings with it some stress. So be kind to yourself and be organised and clear in your daily goals.

On the bench

When you are on the bench, or it is Friday Kicks, or you have some allotted time for personal development, the way you work can be less focused on output. This means:

  • You can take a look down rabbit holes. Especially if it relates to something you're interested in. Maybe you've always wondered what EXPLAIN ANALYZE does, and now you have the opportunity to spend some time finding out.
  • If you are blocked, still ask for help after 30 minutes, but it’s less important to get unblocked rapidly. If the team is busy with client work, you might need to spend longer on the problem yourself.
  • Arrange standups with other people on the bench so you’re not too isolated and you’re still challenged on your commitments for the day.
  • Team members on client projects won’t have much visibility of what you’re doing, but they’d still like to know! Share with the team on Slack what you’re planning to do that day so everyone knows what you’re up to.

You’re free of big deadlines! Spend your time on the bench following your sense of curiosity. Ultimately, bench time should be fun and rewarding. If it isn’t, ask the team for help structuring your valuable bench time better; it won’t last forever!