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Lest I be misunderstood:
Slack time is quite different from a break in the action during heated
battle. In a peacetime environment, I am expected to spend between 80% and
90% my time on production and the remainder on career development and
administrivia.
The situation is far different when hundreds of people are all working
hard and long to meet a rapidly approaching deadline. Even at such times,
there are breaks in the action for various factions. If you've been working
60-hour weeks for an extended period, you don't use your down time to learn
a new software application. You use it to sleep, or spend time with your
family, or anything else that helps restore your energy for the next time
the battle swings in your direction.
