And that sounds bad, but there's another argument that gets thrown around: "why should I greatly invest myself in this business, when to the business I'm just a number".

"Being managed" could also be called "outsourcing executive function"--make your manager think about what you're supposed to be doing.

Reserve that executive function for what you love, your escape plan, or whatever.

Oh -- FWIW I didn't mean for "more easily managed" to have some negative implication.

I dunno. On some grander level, I know companies mostly just see us as numbers, but (and perhaps I've been lucky) most of the managers I've had have been basically nice folks, some have even given good career development device (some of which seemed much more beneficial to me than the company).

Right on.

And I bet those nice folks did a good job of taking executive function burden off your back :-)

Bingo. Many people at a certain point have figured out they’re fine (or have to) be a rat, but they’ve had enough of the race.

Just do a decent job while preserving as much of your mental energy as you can for your family and your actual life

I’m the person you’re taking about. I want an environment where I can more easily manage myself. A coworking space would even be an improvement.

I might have misread your emphasis on being managed by others, but it’s not what I meant.

I guess I view it as something where both parties contribute -- the manager does some managing, people are to some extent independent, it is all about figuring out what mix works. It looks like "being managed" has some negative connotation but I didn't mean to put it there!