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Ask HN: Tips for students before starting their first job

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Re: Ask HN: Tips for students before starting their first job

#71

Post by andy_ppp »

I’ve only recently learned this but letting go of your ego and being easy to work with rather than constantly believing you are “right” is going to get you extremely far and you’ll be able to learn how people think and be able to judge if you want to model them (or absolutely not).

So basically if you think your boss knows nothing, got there by luck and you are finding everything they do irritates you; it’s you not them.

We could also talk about not getting too involved in general, work is work and you should have important things you’re interested in outside of what you are doing in exchange for money.

Re: Ask HN: Tips for students before starting their first job

#72

Post by _l8xu »

Illniyar wrote: post #53

Can't really say much about landing a job. But I think the best advice I can give when getting a job is this: Your job will most likely have nothing to do with what you were taught in school. It might have some superficial resemblance because you might use the same tools or in rare cases even apply something you learned but the the day to day work, the skills you need succeed and what you need to do to do something w…

Always important to learn stuff besides theory and the stuff from school. Something I do since 7th grade with CS.

Re: Ask HN: Tips for students before starting their first job

#73

Post by _l8xu »

andy_ppp wrote: post #71

I’ve only recently learned this but letting go of your ego and being easy to work with rather than constantly believing you are “right” is going to get you extremely far and you’ll be able to learn how people think and be able to judge if you want to model them (or absolutely not). So basically if you think your boss knows nothing, got there by luck and you are finding everything they do irritates you; it’s you not t…

I really need to trust my skills. Sometimes I take a step back although I have the knowledge to solve the problem.

Re: Ask HN: Tips for students before starting their first job

#75

Post by noir_lord »

_l8xu wrote: post #70
noir_lord wrote: post #56

> And whats your best tip for life in general? 1) Take copious notes (in whatever format works for you). 2) Confirm managers decisions with a recap email (especially when you disagree with them). 3) Understand that while you may not like politics (I don't) knowing how the game is played allows you to mostly stay out of it. 4) Work time is work time, learn to be productive and then go home and switch off . 5) Work fri…

> 1) Take copious notes (in whatever format works for you). Documentation is always key. And notes about experiences is also important. Check on this one. > 2) Confirm managers decisions with a recap email (especially when you disagree with them). This is always important. I discussed a lot to with people in higher ranks than me to find for the perfect fit for a project. Check on this one. > 3) Understand that while…

> That's something I really need to learn. For me it is really hard to switch off my head.

Find a hobby that requires focus but isn't your day job.

If you are focussing on rebuilding a motorcycle you aren't worrying about that project that is going to go late because the stakeholder is MIA or is present and their intelligence is MIA.

For me it's Motorcycles, Cycling, Chess and Reading but for you it could be painting, woodwork whatever - if you are a developer try to pick something away from a screen or that has screen work be the ancillary part - there is a therapy in sitting outside on a sunny day working on a bike that I can't find anywhere else.

Re: Ask HN: Tips for students before starting their first job

#76

Post by KineticLensman »

noir_lord wrote: post #56

> And whats your best tip for life in general? 1) Take copious notes (in whatever format works for you). 2) Confirm managers decisions with a recap email (especially when you disagree with them). 3) Understand that while you may not like politics (I don't) knowing how the game is played allows you to mostly stay out of it. 4) Work time is work time, learn to be productive and then go home and switch off . 5) Work fri…

> 5) Work friends are NOT friends.

I have made some extremely good friends through work, including the individual who, outside my family, is the person who I still see that I have known the longest in my life (we started our new jobs at the same company on the same day, approx 35 years ago).

The mistake is when your colleagues become your only friends. Changing jobs can see you lose your entire 'support network'. Always take the time to maintain friends outside your current work.

Re: Ask HN: Tips for students before starting their first job

#77

Post by almost_usual »

Be receptive to feedback from _anyone_.

Senior engineers and managers usually have lives outside of work. Don’t bother them off hours if it’s not an emergency.

The late night hacker archetype is usually immature and not a team player.

Careless mistakes are worse than calculated mistakes.

Re: Ask HN: Tips for students before starting their first job

#78

Post by _l8xu »

brunojppb wrote: post #60

One thing that worked well for me was to look for a mentor early on. Try to find someone experienced in the field that could lead you through your career, recommend books and give you feedback. Two things that happened to me while following this: 1. I was learning much quicker and way more valuable content than my peers during university. I think it was mainly because I was getting curated content/tips from my mentor…

What would be a good way to find a mentor? I had looked into that topic a while back, but haven't found something promising.

And I think the first step for me would be getting to know people in the institute district we have here next to the university. But meetups are definitely something I want to go to in the future. But Twitter was something I always failed on. Any tips for Twitter?

Re: Ask HN: Tips for students before starting their first job

#79

Post by bvergara87 »

It really depends on what kind of career you want to have. If you're looking for a career at a FANG company, you pretty much just need to do what everyone else is doing and cater to your PM.

If you're more risk-prone, find a problem and start a company. Too many good developers are wasted at FANG companies instead of solving the world's biggest problems. When you graduate, you'll likely be around 22-23, if you spend 4 years working hard on something you truly care about you'll only be in your mid-twenties and haven't really lost all that much time.

Obviously, handle any financial obligations (Student Loans mainly) before jumping into the startup deep-end.

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