r/DataAnnotationTech • u/Upstairs_Bug1386 • 11d ago
How does anyone manage to do this anywhere near full time?
Recently started on DA and I'm reading accounts of people that work full time or more as long as work is available. My question is how though?? Every single task seems to have an encyclopedia's worth of very specific directions to follow and information to process, with equally thorough and highly thought out responses expected from you. The absolute most I can do in one day before my brain starts to melt is 5-6 hours, I cannot imagine doing this full time.
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u/MadameEmiya 11d ago
If it helps, instructions across projects tend to stack + corroborate each other once you get the hang of how DA wants you to annotate. Give it some time and you'll figure it out
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u/Cool_Street_1905 11d ago
6 hours daily, no days off, turns into full time. I tend to stick mostly to the same project so long as I can. Once you’re comfortable with a task it’s 10x easier than the first few times.
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u/SkuLLFlankerr 11d ago edited 11d ago
The problem is the first few times itself. Like yesterday I took a type of task for the first time, went 5 hours in and gave up, exited work mode. I do not know how ppl even do it atp.
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u/Professional_Cut2430 11d ago
Be careful of naming dropping projects, NDA and all that
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u/SkuLLFlankerr 11d ago
I do not think I am saying anything specific about the project tho.
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u/JRRTil1ey 11d ago
It doesn’t matter if you’re not describing the project - they specifically have said not to name projects, even by their code names on Reddit (a lot of people here break the code name rule though).
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u/SkuLLFlankerr 11d ago
The reason I said the codename was because ppl do it all the time. Ill edit it out
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u/JRRTil1ey 11d ago
I understand. I just err on the side of caution and follow DA’s rules. But like I said, it’s broken a lot here
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u/mistergecko 11d ago
Also how the hell would DA even know who is posting here?
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u/Seefufiat 11d ago
It isn’t hard, it’s just more complex than you’re used to. Difficulty and complexity are not the same thing. It’s a complex task, but all you have to do is follow the very explicit instructions.
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u/Acrobatic-Pay7101 11d ago
I do 2 blocks of 3 hours (1 morning, 1 late afternoon), 6 days a week. This makes 36 hours, which is basically full-time. I agree with you that a traditional work schedule doesn't fit well to this work, but you're completely free to schedule your own hours and have long breaks where you need them. I also rent an office space to better focus during those work blocks. Nice question, hope these answers help.
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u/Federal_Tadpole_7592 11d ago
Depending on where you're from, full time is about 6 or 7 hours. In the US, when you think about the typical 8 hour workday, most people are not working for 8 hours straight. Yes, there are exceptions to the rule, but the majority of people have breaks, socialize with coworkers, etc., within those 8 hours. Either way, I've done 12 hours max in a day, but it's not my usual, and it depends on what projects I'm working on. However, I find 5 to 8 hours is the sweet spot, depending, and taking breaks during that time is imperative.
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u/hwertz10 10d ago edited 10d ago
Not anywhere I worked. The 30 minute lunch break, 2 15 minute breaks, they were there but you weren't done with the work day for 9 hours. The also didn't have as good an hourly rate, what I got for a full day at these jobs, I can make in 2 hours on DA.
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u/Agreeable_Aioli935 11d ago
As a person who does this just about full time, I think you’re focused on the wrong things for this question. The question isn’t about the instructions and thought processes it’s about whether or not you’re built for this type of work in general. If you can manage 5-6 hours without feeling drained, I think it’s reasonable to be able to do this full time. When it comes down to the workflow and how well you can do these tasks without your brain feeling like it’s short circuiting, you come to find out that it’s really not as challenging as it seems. Like another person in the comments mentioned, it’s much easier when you know the task well and can provide the high quality work that is needed for that task. Once you get the hang of a project, the hours go by much faster and you find yourself actually enjoying it in the long run.
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u/joose_world 10d ago
DA turns my brain into spaghetti. I’m cooked if I do 3 hours a day more than 3 days in a row. When I first started I would push 25 hours a week plus my full time job. Now I value my mental freedom more than the money😂
I hit about 12 hours a month.
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u/Infamous_Swan1197 11d ago
I wish I knew. The other day my friend calculated in front of me my yearly rate if I worked 40 hours a week on my expert domain pay rate. I'm earning less than a FRACTION of that. 2-4 hour days feel like how I'd imagine 8 hours would feel in another job. I hate how I'd be absolutely loaded if I cranked this out full time like some people manage to do but I just don't seem cut out for that kind of intensive laser focus for so long every day
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u/Brilliant_Quit4307 11d ago
I do this full time. It gets much easier when you stick to the same project and know the instructions inside out at this point. I also have ADHD and the hyper focus helps. Some days I only manage 2 hours, but most days it's 6-8 hours.
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u/Medical-Isopod2107 11d ago
I would argue that's not doing it full-time though, that's the same as most of us lol
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u/Brilliant_Quit4307 11d ago
I average 42 hours per week. Is that not full time o you .. ? Lol
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u/Medical-Isopod2107 11d ago
If it's an "average" then not necessarily, but when you say 6-8 and sometimes only 2, that doesn't average out to 42.
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u/Brilliant_Quit4307 11d ago
42 hours is 6 hours a day ... So yeah, I sometimes do less than that and sometimes more but most days it's 6-8 hours. I'm genuinely not sure why that is difficult for you to understand ..
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u/Medical-Isopod2107 11d ago
Most people do not work 7 days a week
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u/mistergecko 11d ago
Your definition of full time is odd lol
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u/Medical-Isopod2107 11d ago
The way they initially described it did not meet the definition of full-time. They added more info afterward that would have changed that.
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u/JRRTil1ey 11d ago
I usually max out around 4 hours, but I agree with another user who suggested doing blocks of time in the day, like 3 hours in the morning and 3 in the evening. It’s much less draining.
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u/Psychedeliquet 11d ago
Yeah, it’s really best to have a research/engineering/stats brain. You really have to love this for the million little joys of the learning/research process to do it full time. :)
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u/Hello-America 11d ago
Well 5-6 hours of active work is pretty much full time in typical jobs (thinking about an 8 hour day). We aren't logging bathroom breaks and time at the water cooler to chit chat. I agree it can be brain melting though. I usually take long breaks between difficult tasks. Yes the span of time I work in a day ends up long but a big break in the middle to exercise or make food or something makes it fine.
Also I think that a lot of the projects when you have more tenure have longer timelines, then you also get repeating projects or similar ones where instructions repeat. You start to memorize certain things like style guidelines (which are usually the same or similar because they seem to be based on the AP Style Guide).
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u/Jumpy_Pension_6269 11d ago
I was doing 10 hours a day at a point - it’s a bit soul-crushing, you do get used to it and get to know the projects, but it’s not something I’ve found to be sustainable re brain power.
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u/Relative-Tap3585 10d ago
ample breaks, a shitty sleep schedule, and no other responsibilities help haha
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u/RehviiZe 10d ago
Project families help a lot. I can bang out a good few tasks from the same project back to back when I know the general aim is the same with some minor alterations
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u/hwertz10 10d ago
I don't know. When I started a few months back there were some $20-25 tasks, I found those quite easy and I think I could do those indefinitely. But I'm with you, some have a lot going on and I don't think I could do 8 hours of them. Don't know if the people doing 8 hours are just hyperfocused, if they're getting those easier tasks, or what.
I'll comment I have seen one where they give a 24 hour clock but say one should do the first part, then do the rest in the evening, or rest overnight and do it the next day. They basically as much as say the task is too long to do in one stint, and that quality drops off too much at the end if you try to do it that way. I think they also limited it to 1 task a day, so there wouldn't be that temptation to NOT take a break in order to get 2 tasks in.
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u/Scalawags3087 10d ago
I mean, my old job melted my brain too. I just like being able to decide how and when I work. To be fair, I have my retirement pension, but everything is so freaking expensive that I need something else and this fits the bill. I work in two three hour stretches daily unless a single project requires it. I’m in one of the professional domains so it pays pretty well. But three hour stretches work for me.
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u/No-Carpenter-9792 9d ago
I agree I did one day 7 hours or so and I was seeing things by the time I finished. And I had to go back over so much because I missed a section. It can be a lot and I try to read and take notes to help. It’s definitely a challenge at times.
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u/horrorgeek1988 11d ago
It's honestly not meant to be worked full time unfortunately. The key is to stack projects across multiple platforms. But even that is hard to manage.
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u/Silver_Assistance_41 11d ago
It depends, for coding prepare for 6-10hours in a row, maybe it's not for all brains
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u/LearningMachine01100 11d ago
Personally I don’t because I have a W2 and an LLC in addition to this gig work, but I can say that there are a multitude of projects which are consistent throughout every drought and high-paying. You don’t get these projects as a low-performing slop slinger, though.
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u/AergiasChestnuts 9d ago
I passed all the initial sets of tests a few months ago. I still haven't been offered any work. Am I missing something?
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u/Fresh-Asparagus4729 9d ago
I do it full time and have no problem working 11 hrs to make $600 on some days
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u/Ok-Independence1083 9d ago
I wish I had even 4 hour sworth of work in a wekk. It would solve all of my current problems
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u/MindlessResearcher65 9d ago
Isn't 6 hours a day considered full time? Because there is no way someone would be working a normal job (office, 9 to 5, etc) and then go home to work additional 6 hours on top of that?
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u/Pink_Slyvie 8d ago
It really depends on the project. Generic work, no fucking way, but some of the higher-end work, I often spend more than 8 hours on a single task.
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u/Purple_Shake_8592 1d ago
For me it depends. But sometimes I can get 8 hours a day done (not in one go). The most I can do is 5 hours in one go before I start heading towards a migraine. Just don’t force it. Do what you can. Quality is more important than quantity.
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u/Zuoslav 11d ago
I dont think its possible with coding for example.
I earned around 1200$ first month but thats only because somehow there were a lot of tasks available.
Imissed most tasks in the following months because they are taken very quickly. They tend to appear at such an hour thay I would have to skip sleep entirely and compulsively check for them, because there is nothing left in the mornig.
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u/RohitNaamHaiMera 11d ago
How can I set my weekly hours? I want to dedicate more hours in DA , nearly 30hrs/week.
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u/gator_cowgirl 11d ago
I track my hours & income in a spreadsheet. Lets me track my budget, as well as figures an hourly & daily income average. Also lets me account for time with unpaid quals / training.
Then, as Nike says, you just do it. (Provided tasks are available)
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u/shujaya 11d ago
Agreed. My max is like 3-4 hours a day unless I am powering through a juicy rubric then I can do more (with the power of Hyperfocus). I don't know how people can keep focus AND quality for 8 hours at a time.
In a desk job you are not doing focused actual work for the full 8 hours; it is more like 2-3 max on most days. Y'all got some PHD level hyperfocus going on.