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Ask HN: ”Coffee date” etiquette

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31–40 of 69 posts

Re: Ask HN: ”Coffee date” etiquette

#31
post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Darn. Never touched coffee myself. People always seem surprised especially when they discover I'm a developer.

We can assume you don't get enough sleep like the rest of us. What are you using then, soda?

Not sure if sarcastic but...some people write code and are well rested.

Re: Ask HN: ”Coffee date” etiquette

#32
post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

We'll just go ahead and assume you don't drink coffee because you're too busy munching on mouthfuls of Adderall tablets like they were Tic-Tacs.

Oh. I think I have a sensitivity to caffeine, because drinking coffee causes an onset of a migraine that I don't like when I'm writing code or managing systems.

Caffeine headaches? You mean the headaches that people get when they try and take away my caffeine and I hit them in the head?

Re: Ask HN: ”Coffee date” etiquette

#33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You can learn a lot about someone's coffee habits. How much sugar, how much milk. How much... whiskey.

Who drinks plain coffee? Latte, espresso, chai - single or double shot - soy or low-fat, the list goes on and on!

If you drink good coffee it's amazing all by itself.

Re: Ask HN: ”Coffee date” etiquette

#34
post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Darn. Never touched coffee myself. People always seem surprised especially when they discover I'm a developer.

We can assume you don't get enough sleep like the rest of us. What are you using then, soda?

I often have a cup of tea, but that's often herbal. I rarely ever drink soda. Strangely, I'll still ask people if they want to meet for coffee, even though I don't drink it. It just seems to be the standard beverage for these sorts of things.

Re: Ask HN: ”Coffee date” etiquette

#35
post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Oh. I think I have a sensitivity to caffeine, because drinking coffee causes an onset of a migraine that I don't like when I'm writing code or managing systems.

Typically caffeine headaches occur when you stop drinking it.

Yes. Only, I have never been a habitual drinker of coffee. When I started drinking regularly for a short period, I stopped once I noticed the pattern. For me, cheese and chocolate, as well, triggers a migraine.

Re: Ask HN: ”Coffee date” etiquette

#36

The purpose of a coffee date is to weed out people who don't drink coffee. You wouldn't want to work with such a freak of nature!

Darn. Never touched coffee myself. People always seem surprised especially when they discover I'm a developer.

- He said with a wide eyed stare, his nose bleeding accompanied by the unrelenting taps of his foot.

Re: Ask HN: ”Coffee date” etiquette

#37
post #35

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Typically caffeine headaches occur when you stop drinking it.

Yes. Only, I have never been a habitual drinker of coffee. When I started drinking regularly for a short period, I stopped once I noticed the pattern. For me, cheese and chocolate, as well, triggers a migraine.

Chocolate of course has theobromine, similar to caffeine with similar effects. Cheese? Any idea why that might be similar?

Re: Ask HN: ”Coffee date” etiquette

#38
As everyone else has mentioned, ask your peers to introduce you directly to the manager. A couple of things:

Include a brief but enticing paragraph on why you are awesome. It makes it a lot easier for the "intro-er" to forward or reword it.

Be respectful of the other's time. Depending on the company and job, some people really welcome a break for coffee for a potential hire or an interesting person; others are swamped, and the triviality of a "coffee date" will be easy to turn down. Try to gauge which this is.

Coffee meetings can be take, take, take. Try to give back. Maybe you have something the other could learn?

Re: Ask HN: ”Coffee date” etiquette

#39
post #18
post #4

I'm a sysadmin manager in the US. Let's suppose that I have a position open (at http://www.smartleaf.com/careers/ ) and that you think you're qualified for it. You could send me your resume and a cover letter. This would be impressive, because very few people manage to do this according to my rigorous demands (plain text or PDF, tell me a story about an interesting technical problem you solved). Or, if you knew someo…

Job Requirement: "You must be: Clever, competent and kind" I wish more job descriptions were like this one. Straight and to the point, not much fluff or buzzword padding all over the place.

Thanks, I spent a while with the LOPSA discussion mailing list giving great feedback.

Re: Ask HN: ”Coffee date” etiquette

#40
> Is it okey to ask someone (my peers) to give out someone else’s (the manager’s) number?

I generally get these kinds of invites via either email or LinkedIn. I wouldn't appreciate a cold call.

After that the only etiquette I'd expect is: - ask to meet close to my office, I will not travel. I usually invite people to the office - Expect no more than 30 minutes - You do the running during the meeting - don't expect me to drive the meeting. If it looks like you'd be a fit I'll have my own questions.

I'm Irish/based in Ireland.

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