At my first job in advertising, we pulled a lot of late nights. Presentations and big pitches would always go late the night before they were due and as the junior art director, I was typically stuck managing the deck and laying out the images as they would come in at 2 or 3am. One particular night, my boss came over to my desk just to make sure I was ok. It had been a long week and this night was going to be a really late one. He started by asking me a question:

“Are you a fireman or a banker? For me,” he continued, “ I’m a fireman. We have a very important job of putting out the fires. We get a call that something is burning, we rush over and we’re here working all night and into the morning as long as there’s still a fire. Bankers, on the other hand, clock in at 9 and clock out at 5. No matter where they are with their work. No shame in that, just a different kind of person.”

Answering this question has helped me find the right job and ask the right questions in interviews to understand a company’s culture and process.

How do you work?

So which one are you?

Caveday is a company aimed at improving your relationship to work. We write regular posts on Medium and send out monthly Newsletters with productivity tips, life hacks, and recommendations. Sign up for the mailing list here.

Or sign up for Jake Kahana’s personal emails, called “The Email Refrigerator” here.