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Ask HN: Is it possible to fight back against the “big 4” hiring fads?

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Re: Ask HN: Is it possible to fight back against the “big 4” hiring fads?

#21

Post by throway21312 »

JSeymourATL wrote: post #3

> let's do something about this. Career Capital Theory- Research shows that the traits that lead people to love their work are general, and can be found in many different career paths. They include things like autonomy, a sense of impact and mastery, creativity, and respect and recognition for your abilities. Once you recognize that these traits have little to do with following a pre-existing passion, and can be cult…

But how do you become good? How can you tell if you're improving? It's what I struggle the most with as a student.

Re: Ask HN: Is it possible to fight back against the “big 4” hiring fads?

#22

Post by petervandijck »

ljk wrote: post #16
freestockoption wrote: post #13

I've worked in some big names in tech. What I do notice is that sometimes people go into these companies thinking they've made it and that they will just naturally grow due to being at a big name co. I've realized that most companies are similar and opportunities don't just fall into your lap. Want a low growth job fixing bugs for 10 years? You can probably get that at Google (or pretty much anywhere). Want a job whe…

> Don't become complacent. See this advice a lot, are there any tips on this? make more to-do list? set goals?(how to know if goal is too high instead of myself being too lazy? etc)

Set goals, set them high, make them specific. If you don't achieve them, don't worry, at least you've gone some of the way. You could try out OKRs (Google it) for yourself.

Re: Ask HN: Is it possible to fight back against the “big 4” hiring fads?

#23

Post by freestockoption »

ljk wrote: post #16
freestockoption wrote: post #13

I've worked in some big names in tech. What I do notice is that sometimes people go into these companies thinking they've made it and that they will just naturally grow due to being at a big name co. I've realized that most companies are similar and opportunities don't just fall into your lap. Want a low growth job fixing bugs for 10 years? You can probably get that at Google (or pretty much anywhere). Want a job whe…

> Don't become complacent. See this advice a lot, are there any tips on this? make more to-do list? set goals?(how to know if goal is too high instead of myself being too lazy? etc)

For myself, I will often ask myself something along the lines of: "In my current trajectory, will I be doing the same thing in a year? And is that what I want and will I be happy with that?" So I try to imagine the different paths I can take in my current trajectory and if none of the paths interest me, then I know it's time to make changes. Try to draw out a 5 year plan on a spreadsheet. Aim high, but be realistic.

My main point is, you don't need to work for a big N company to achieve your goals (unless your goal is to simply work for a big N company). The sooner I realized that, the sooner I was able to start working on my actual goals where the actions are vastly different than those of "getting into big N."

e.g. I want to design software, but not necessarily at Google makes it a lot easier to achieve than saying it must be at Google. :)

Re: Ask HN: Is it possible to fight back against the “big 4” hiring fads?

#24

Post by cbanek »

I have to say I agree with all that - and on the company side, everyone also says hiring is broken.

Overall, I think the process is just kind of silly, and I'm sure whoever comes up with a better way will be able to make some good money as well.

Re: Ask HN: Is it possible to fight back against the “big 4” hiring fads?

#25

Post by jf22 »

throway21312 wrote: post #21
JSeymourATL wrote: post #3

> let's do something about this. Career Capital Theory- Research shows that the traits that lead people to love their work are general, and can be found in many different career paths. They include things like autonomy, a sense of impact and mastery, creativity, and respect and recognition for your abilities. Once you recognize that these traits have little to do with following a pre-existing passion, and can be cult…

But how do you become good ? How can you tell if you're improving? It's what I struggle the most with as a student.

Chances are that because you care about improvement and becoming better, you are.

People that don't give a shit stagnate.

Re: Ask HN: Is it possible to fight back against the “big 4” hiring fads?

#26

Post by JSeymourATL »

throway21312 wrote: post #21
JSeymourATL wrote: post #3

> let's do something about this. Career Capital Theory- Research shows that the traits that lead people to love their work are general, and can be found in many different career paths. They include things like autonomy, a sense of impact and mastery, creativity, and respect and recognition for your abilities. Once you recognize that these traits have little to do with following a pre-existing passion, and can be cult…

But how do you become good ? How can you tell if you're improving? It's what I struggle the most with as a student.

> how do you become good?

It helps to have Models. Who are the benchmark leaders in your field? How did they get there? What exactly made-up their mythical 10,000 hours of practice?

Hold yourself up to the standard. Emulate the formula, add your own ingredients. You'll know it's working if you feel stretched professionally.

Josh Kaufman has a brilliant take on acquiring new skills quickly > https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CsGihiSE6sM

Re: Ask HN: Is it possible to fight back against the “big 4” hiring fads?

#27

Post by byebyetech »

mrits wrote: post #7

I have super flexible hours. A private office looking over Austin's green belt. Free lunch. Ability to go to any conferences I want. With my salary I can live just about anywhere I want in the city. Why the hell would I want to work for a huge "big 4" ?

Where do you work sir ?
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