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Ask HN: How can a unhireable person get a job?

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Re: Ask HN: How can a unhireable person get a job?

#161

Post by decafninja »

hinkley wrote: post #120
hbt wrote: post #113

Earlier quoted context omitted.

you call him a creep, I would call him a go getter. it is immensely frustrating to deal with automated systems, resume keyword matchers, no contact within a company and being ghosted after taking the time to write a proposal and cover letter that is a fit for the job description. so what, he called an executive and got around their spam filter? my advice treat job hunting like a sales process. you're successful based…

> you call him a creep, I would call him a go getter. I've not had terribly good luck with people who use the term 'go getter.' Quite a few of them have been creeps. Smooth and slick, definitely, but at the end of the day, manipulative people who I avoid making eye contact with at public events, hoping that they don't remember me. Creeps.

Sounds like many external third party recruiters, or perhaps many sales oriented jobs. Assuming you have a thick skin for rejection.

I tend to avoid dealing with such recruiters that use heavy handed forceful tactics, but there are a lot of them.

Re: Ask HN: How can a unhireable person get a job?

#162

Post by klodolph »

snakedoctor wrote: post #121
honkycat wrote: post #88

Your writing is not strong, i can tell you did not attend college. Written communication is important in tech. Your applying to those companies with 0 experience or college degree is unrealistic. The entry level is extremely competitive and you have nothing to make you interesting to hire. They get thousands of applications for those jobs. You are still young, plenty of time to learn, but I recommend taking a step ba…

Not to be argumentative. But yes, I did attend college. Send me a email, and I'll send you an email from my college email address (Hasn't been deactivited yet). I can send you my college transcript if that helps.. Well, I did get hired by IBM as a programmer so... I've contributed to a GNU open source project.. So I feel that I am qualifed for a entry level developer/SecEng/Security Analyst role. I went above my boss…

Not trying to argue either. Contributing to an open-source project is a very different kind of activity from being a member of a team at a company. Programming is only half the job.

Re: Ask HN: How can a unhireable person get a job?

#163

Post by david38 »

What are your qualifications and skills?

Can you code?

What roles did you apply for?

Did you reach out to any recruiters? Some recruiters will help you with your resume.

You need a coach with an understanding of the tech world. Someone to tell you what’s wrong with you.

Maybe you come off as creepy, intense, stupid, spacey, who knows. Either way, people seem to fail you on the question “do I want to work with this person?”

Re: Ask HN: How can a unhireable person get a job?

#164

Post by xpe »

hinkley wrote: post #120
hbt wrote: post #113

Earlier quoted context omitted.

you call him a creep, I would call him a go getter. it is immensely frustrating to deal with automated systems, resume keyword matchers, no contact within a company and being ghosted after taking the time to write a proposal and cover letter that is a fit for the job description. so what, he called an executive and got around their spam filter? my advice treat job hunting like a sales process. you're successful based…

> you call him a creep, I would call him a go getter. I've not had terribly good luck with people who use the term 'go getter.' Quite a few of them have been creeps. Smooth and slick, definitely, but at the end of the day, manipulative people who I avoid making eye contact with at public events, hoping that they don't remember me. Creeps.

What you describe seems very different from the poster.

Re: Ask HN: How can a unhireable person get a job?

#165

Post by holografix »

I read a bit of the responses here: some sadly very judgemental but I have also read OP’s responses.

I think seeing a therapist is a great idea given your difficult upbringing. However try to see someone who will help you improve on your professional presentation skills. Unfortunately this stuff matters a lot during interviews.

I mean someone who will candidly give you feedback on how you dress, communicate, your personal hygiene, language used etc.

Also, you have a powerful story of intellectual achievement.

I’d start reaching out to individuals on LinkedIn with a VERY SUCCINCT AND HIGHLY RELEVANT TO THEM message on why they should consider your for a position.

If you have references that can vouch for you this will go a LONG way. You mentioned IBM, anyone in there of some professional stature that could say: “yeah this is a good person to work with”?

Re: Ask HN: How can a unhireable person get a job?

#166

Post by snakedoctor »

chillfox wrote: post #144
snakedoctor wrote: post #89

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm seeing a therapist. I had an abusive childhood. Not that it justifies anything. I was also homeschooled since the 6th grade, so I didn't really have any IRL friends etc. I hope that I'm not a sociopath... I might be on the high functioning autisim scale. I've never been tested so I don't know.

As someone who was also home schooled and had problems with social interactions in my early twenties the best advice I can give is join several clubs that does things in person. You MUST learn how to make friends, how to not upset people, how to be comfortable in social situations and empathy. To do this I would recommend that you force yourself into social situations regularly. Afterwards spend some time thinking ab…

I've tried out meetup.com and went to one meetup. It was ok. I felt a little uncomfortable though. They solicited for my name, and email to be added to the Slack. There was a lot of recreational clubs etc at my college. I tried rock climbing, and liked it. There wasn't a lot of social interaction with rock climbing though. I went to a party in Austin. Chatted with strangers etc. Wasn't really sure what else to talk about. I've read somewhere that asking strangers for the time might be a good exercise to become more comfortable talking with people.

I asked people that for a while. Except when one guy responded "It's time to get a watch" lol, I became blushed and kinda embrassed. I saw a comment recommending How to Win Friend and Influence People which I definitely want to read.

Re: Ask HN: How can a unhireable person get a job?

#168

Post by denkmoon »

snakedoctor wrote: post #77
BeetleB wrote: post #54

So far none of the replies has mentioned this, and it may be unpopular in HN, but: Seriously consider going back to school and finishing a degree. Although it's "known" that you don't really need a degree for a SW role, there are plenty of well established old school companies that will not consider you at all unless you have a degree. On the flip side, you'll get jobs more easily. A lot of interviewers who choose to…

I've thought about it. Community College, Deep Springs etc. I think autodidacticism is a better way to learn vs academic path. Though I didn't want to finish high school but I did.. So, it might be just one of those things that I'll have to suck up and just do. I disliked that I would have to take 2 years of core curriculum stuff before even being allowed to take major related courses. I had to reach out to instructo…

>I think autodidacticism is a better way to learn vs academic path.

A better way to learn, yes perhaps.

A degree shows that you can consistently show up and complete tasks. That's the important part. I haven't read all your posts but it is unclear to me that you actually completed a degree and got the slip of paper?

Unless you have notable (4-5yrs) experience for the position I am looking for, I probably wouldn't hire someone without a degree. It's just a baseline thing you need.

Based on your comments you seem talented but unreliable.

Re: Ask HN: How can a unhireable person get a job?

#169

Post by chillfox »

snakedoctor wrote: post #121
honkycat wrote: post #88

Your writing is not strong, i can tell you did not attend college. Written communication is important in tech. Your applying to those companies with 0 experience or college degree is unrealistic. The entry level is extremely competitive and you have nothing to make you interesting to hire. They get thousands of applications for those jobs. You are still young, plenty of time to learn, but I recommend taking a step ba…

Not to be argumentative. But yes, I did attend college. Send me a email, and I'll send you an email from my college email address (Hasn't been deactivited yet). I can send you my college transcript if that helps.. Well, I did get hired by IBM as a programmer so... I've contributed to a GNU open source project.. So I feel that I am qualifed for a entry level developer/SecEng/Security Analyst role. I went above my boss…

The problem now is that you likely can't use either of those managers that you went over the heads of as references for future jobs (they may not say nice things).

Re: Ask HN: How can a unhireable person get a job?

#170

Post by issa »

snakedoctor wrote: post #77
BeetleB wrote: post #54

So far none of the replies has mentioned this, and it may be unpopular in HN, but: Seriously consider going back to school and finishing a degree. Although it's "known" that you don't really need a degree for a SW role, there are plenty of well established old school companies that will not consider you at all unless you have a degree. On the flip side, you'll get jobs more easily. A lot of interviewers who choose to…

I've thought about it. Community College, Deep Springs etc. I think autodidacticism is a better way to learn vs academic path. Though I didn't want to finish high school but I did.. So, it might be just one of those things that I'll have to suck up and just do. I disliked that I would have to take 2 years of core curriculum stuff before even being allowed to take major related courses. I had to reach out to instructo…

Without completely dismissing the idea of going to school, it might be more your speed to work on an open source project of some sort. If you can build something and launch it, that is cheaper, faster, and (potentially) a lot more fun than going to school. For someone who doesn't like playing the "games" involved in office work or interviews, setting yourself up for consulting work might be a good move too.
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