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Impostor syndrome strikes men just as hard as women in technical interviews

blog.interviewing.io

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Re: Impostor syndrome strikes men just as hard as women in technical interviews

#31

Post by sambroner »

taeric wrote: post #9
thomasedwards wrote: post #5

“More experienced engineers are more accurate about their interview performance...” Dunning–Kruger effect returns again! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect

I'm curious, with much of the interview process focused in the "soft skills", how many experienced engineers are actually wrong on their actual performance? That is, they may be more accurate in how they did on the tasks, but do they understand how they impressed on the interviewers? Of course, some of this is a bit of a curve ball. Many people would love to think that the soft skills are not important. My personal t…

OT, but I always thought Feynman was exceptional because he was relatable, i.e. not terrible at the social.

Re: Impostor syndrome strikes men just as hard as women in technical interviews

#32

Post by rconti »

taeric wrote: post #12

The practice interview point strikes me as odd. In large, because I have never done one. Do folks really typically do that many practice interviews? I don't even know how to study. I sometimes consider it, but have never spent more than an hour prepping for an interview. :( It worries me, because I know that interviewing is a skill. But are we not setting folks up to over index on that skill such that they have diffi…

I've been successfully employed the valley for over a decade (and other tech work before that). I've never done a practice interview, I don't worry about my GitHub. I agree with the cargo culting comment.

Work on your network. Apply for jobs that interest you. Interview. Get job.

Re: Impostor syndrome strikes men just as hard as women in technical interviews

#33

Post by duxup »

erikb wrote: post #28
twoquestions wrote: post #11

It doesn't help that job ads are wanting "Top 3% only!" or "Only top 1% Ninja Rockstars need apply!". Kind of reminds me of the market for singers or concert pianists, you absolutely need to be the best, even imperceptibly worse makes you unemployable. Should those of us who aren't top 5%/didn't go to a top school just find another industry, one where sub-perfect work doesn't actively make other people's jobs harder?

You must really suffer from imposter syndrome if you can't find a company that is worse than you at software development.

Just because they're bad (or worse) at it and you're better doesn't mean they'll hire you. That probabbly is why they're bad (or worse) at it.

Re: Impostor syndrome strikes men just as hard as women in technical interviews

#34

Post by eumenides1 »

taeric wrote: post #12

The practice interview point strikes me as odd. In large, because I have never done one. Do folks really typically do that many practice interviews? I don't even know how to study. I sometimes consider it, but have never spent more than an hour prepping for an interview. :( It worries me, because I know that interviewing is a skill. But are we not setting folks up to over index on that skill such that they have diffi…

Interviewing is a skill like any other. Everyone starts off a different points and everyone gets better with practice.

You maybe have good enough interviewing skills naturally and you get all the jobs you've aimed for. Perfect, great!

Most other people are just no good at it. For example: "Do you want this job?" "Maybe, i don't know..."

Practice may not make you perfect, but it's does go a long way.

Re: Impostor syndrome strikes men just as hard as women in technical interviews

#35

Post by ravenstine »

twoquestions wrote: post #11

It doesn't help that job ads are wanting "Top 3% only!" or "Only top 1% Ninja Rockstars need apply!". Kind of reminds me of the market for singers or concert pianists, you absolutely need to be the best, even imperceptibly worse makes you unemployable. Should those of us who aren't top 5%/didn't go to a top school just find another industry, one where sub-perfect work doesn't actively make other people's jobs harder?

There's another similar problem that I'm seeing that I don't think has been pointed out before.

Recently, I've been applying for web developer positions and am coming across applications with these sorts of questions:

- What's the coolest thing you've done both in life and at work?

- What are your dreams?

- Where do you see yourself in 10 years?

I certainly do have answers for these questions, but I can't tell if they're the ones that employers want to hear. And are these things for other random people to know?

There are things I've done that I think are cool, but that doesn't necessarily mean that most people will think they are cool. Honestly, there really isn't anything about my life that is conventionally cool, even by the standards of the nerdiest nerds. Should my life have been more unique and exciting by this point?

The same can basically be said of my dreams, although I do not aspire for big dreams. I haven't made enough money yet to even think about anything more grandiose than simply living comfortably. Do my dreams need to be more exciting? Should I be shooting the moon? I feel like any honest answer I give to the question will sound disappointing to any startup.

Should I see myself anywhere in particular in 10 years? Beyond making more money and taking on more responsibilities in my career, where should I be in 10 years? My field evolves so rapidly that I can't honestly predict that far ahead, let alone 5 years into the future. But maybe I'm not cut out for what I do if I can't see that far ahead?

I could very well be what's wrong in the picture, but it seems to me like we are culturally intolerant of "normal" people who have a skill and want to make a living. Everyone needs to have dreams, grand aspirations, and a little clairvoyance. I tend to have pretty high confidence, but seeing this kind of language when applying for jobs does stir up that feeling of imposterhood in me.

Re: Impostor syndrome strikes men just as hard as women in technical interviews

#36

Post by jknz »

_swfb wrote: post #26

As someone with no credentials or official training, and someone who also works at a big megacorporation as an engineer, imposter syndrome hits me fairly hard, especially during interviews. It's really hard to compete with the people who actually have proof that they know what they're doing, and I'm usually interviewing for a job that has a strict requirement of a "bachelors in CS, Math or Physics, Masters preferred"…

Employers look for these degrees because in their experience this is a somewhat meaningful signal that let them filter applicants.

But having someone at work for real for a few weeks give employers a way meaningful signal than any degrees on a resume. If your employer maintains their relationship with you, you are likely worth more than the degrees you mentioned--dont overthink it!

Re: Impostor syndrome strikes men just as hard as women in technical interviews

#37

Post by michaelt »

taeric wrote: post #12

The practice interview point strikes me as odd. In large, because I have never done one. Do folks really typically do that many practice interviews? I don't even know how to study. I sometimes consider it, but have never spent more than an hour prepping for an interview. :( It worries me, because I know that interviewing is a skill. But are we not setting folks up to over index on that skill such that they have diffi…

  Do folks really typically do that
  many practice interviews?
I didn't do any practice interviews intentionally but I did get rejected from the first two places I interviewed out of college, so the effect was the same.

If for some reason a person absolutely couldn't risk being rejected by a few places, practising some other way might be a sensible move :)

Re: Impostor syndrome strikes men just as hard as women in technical interviews

#38

Post by noonespecial »

taeric wrote: post #12

The practice interview point strikes me as odd. In large, because I have never done one. Do folks really typically do that many practice interviews? I don't even know how to study. I sometimes consider it, but have never spent more than an hour prepping for an interview. :( It worries me, because I know that interviewing is a skill. But are we not setting folks up to over index on that skill such that they have diffi…

I went through a phase where I interviewed for fun. When there's nothing on the line and you're treating it like a TV gameshow, the innate absurdity of the whole process is laugh-out-loud funny and a generally good time to be had.

Re: Impostor syndrome strikes men just as hard as women in technical interviews

#39

Post by aplummer »

ravenstine wrote: post #35
twoquestions wrote: post #11

It doesn't help that job ads are wanting "Top 3% only!" or "Only top 1% Ninja Rockstars need apply!". Kind of reminds me of the market for singers or concert pianists, you absolutely need to be the best, even imperceptibly worse makes you unemployable. Should those of us who aren't top 5%/didn't go to a top school just find another industry, one where sub-perfect work doesn't actively make other people's jobs harder?

There's another similar problem that I'm seeing that I don't think has been pointed out before. Recently, I've been applying for web developer positions and am coming across applications with these sorts of questions: - What's the coolest thing you've done both in life and at work? - What are your dreams? - Where do you see yourself in 10 years? I certainly do have answers for these questions, but I can't tell if the…

> What's the coolest thing you've done both in life and at work? - What are your dreams? - Where do you see yourself in 10 years?

Hey, I ask a lot of these questions in consulting. What I’m looking for is to tell if a) you can communicate a point clearly b) if you can talk generally about your career and are growth oriented.

If you said that field evolves rapidly bit above that would be a good answer. If you span it as a joke “surely writing angular 25, the last web framework ever” even better.

I wouldn’t ask the dreams question, but the coolest question is loaded with coolest, I would say “tell me about a previous project you enjoyed working on” and see if you have had a good project you are passionate about.

Re: Impostor syndrome strikes men just as hard as women in technical interviews

#40

Post by lysium »

ravenstine wrote: post #35
twoquestions wrote: post #11

It doesn't help that job ads are wanting "Top 3% only!" or "Only top 1% Ninja Rockstars need apply!". Kind of reminds me of the market for singers or concert pianists, you absolutely need to be the best, even imperceptibly worse makes you unemployable. Should those of us who aren't top 5%/didn't go to a top school just find another industry, one where sub-perfect work doesn't actively make other people's jobs harder?

There's another similar problem that I'm seeing that I don't think has been pointed out before. Recently, I've been applying for web developer positions and am coming across applications with these sorts of questions: - What's the coolest thing you've done both in life and at work? - What are your dreams? - Where do you see yourself in 10 years? I certainly do have answers for these questions, but I can't tell if the…

I used to have the same thoughts until I did interviews myself. I don’t use these questions but I understand how other interviewers use them to get to know people. They won’t find your stuff cool (or maybe they do) or judge your cool stuff. And if they do you are at the wrong place anyways.
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