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Ask HN: I joined a FAANG and it is awful

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Re: Ask HN: I joined a FAANG and it is awful

#211

Earlier quoted context omitted.

rejectedandsad is a obviously a troll

I'm absolutely not. How is this your interpretation? I have nothing.

This is your, what, third account in a few years posting exactly the same kind of sensationalistic self-pity? That doesn't really seem like posting in good faith. (Though trolling seems a bit harsh, the goal clearly is not to incite a flame war but to get positive attention. Kind of like Munchausen syndrome, except for forums rather than hospitals.)

Re: Ask HN: I joined a FAANG and it is awful

#213
I also work at Amazon and although some of my colleagues are fantastic, it definitely has the most variance in IQ I’ve experienced. Particularly in the non SWE roles. There are very few “hard problems” being solved. Most problems are figuring out the labyrinthine toolset, legacy code, and patching updates. And brutal soul crushing bureaucracy. The money is good but if you don’t need it you should leave ASAP given your situation.

Re: Ask HN: I joined a FAANG and it is awful

#214

Ex-Navy & programmer here: It feels like I am pointing out the obvious, but FAANGs have big problems, way bigger than a startup, and I'm not referring to only the technology. They have big organizational problems, like managing an aircraft carrier. They need to hire the smartest people and pay them a lot of money to manage those problems. Not every problem is sexy and many people are needed in the engine room to keep…

Considering it's budgeted to run at a cost of $1.5 billion a year and it actually runs at $2.5 billion a year, a toilet flushing problem that costs a couple million a year doesn't really seem notable beyond "lol poop". I hate how our government spends and manages money so poorly.

Re: Ask HN: I joined a FAANG and it is awful

#215

I appreciate all the comments (even the criticism). In so many ways, this post has already helped me see things more clearly. One final thought is that I know I can quit - that isn't the question. I could make more money (with less stability) consulting, or find a middle ground at a Series C+ company. What I probably should have said in my OP is that quitting feels wrong. I've never quit a position after three months…

Quitting doesn't have to be "wrong". Sometimes it's just not a right fit and leaving doesn't have to be dramatic, and you can still leave on good terms. If you frame it positively and have a good attitude about it, it will be fine. It's a FAANG company, everyone is just a cog anyway.

Re: Ask HN: I joined a FAANG and it is awful

#216
post #194
post #39

> below-average IQ people. .. > Any advice is appreciated. Not shitting on your colleagues with this generation's phrenology would be a great start. More generally, it sounds like you are starting with the idea that you're better and smarter than everyone you work with and only you can see the problems, as opposed to everyone you work with being (by and large) decent and hard working people who are making the best of…

I don't necessarily agree with your point of view, but these two concepts were new and interesting to me. Posting their meanings for others that haven't heard of them either: > Phrenology Pseudoscience which involves the measurement of bumps on the skull to predict mental traits. The study of the conformation of the skull as indicative of mental faculties and traits of character. > Chesterton's fence Principle that r…

>> Phrenology

> Pseudoscience which involves the measurement of bumps on the skull to predict mental traits.

Funny story (for us who live a century later):

I heard Norwegian phrenologists traveled around Norway to measure Norwegian skulls and how it related to personal traits and their conclusions were that there were broadly two kinds of Norwegians:

- "long-skulls" in the eastern part: these were friendly, generous, open-minded and intelligent.

- "short-skulls" on the western coast: these were dumb, stingy and distrustful

Wonder were those researchers came from ;-)

Re: Ask HN: I joined a FAANG and it is awful

#217
post #209

Earlier quoted context omitted.

IQ is literally the strongest predictor of job performance across every category. Even stronger than years of experience in the job. This result has been replicated by industrial psychology resource again and again over decades. I get that it’s kinda rude to bluntly talk about IQ, but without a doubt intelligent colleagues make for a more effective work environment.

You can just directly observe how productive your teammates are, why bother using IQ as a proxy. And it's not like OP gave his co-workers IQ tests.

I think there's three different potential points/statements:

* a) The main overall productivity issue * b) Making a more general point that they don't seem very bright, at least compared to former colleagues * c) Specifically mentioning IQ score

Yes even though the main topic is (a)... b/c is just extra context.

I think OP's goal was to make point b/c to give some further context on their perception of the situation (whether it's true or not doesn't matter, the point is explaining what they think).

Sure both (b) + (c) especially can make you look like a dick, but I don't think making the (b) point is totally irrelevant to the overall post. It at least gives us more insight into what OP thinks, even if they're wrong.

So perhaps going the (c) route (rather than b) was just an attempt at trying to be slightly more objective (even though there's obviously no evidence at all). (b) is vaguer than (c), so I don't see that (c) was completely irrelevant, even though it comes across arrogant.

Re: Ask HN: I joined a FAANG and it is awful

#218

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You shouldnt have to feel bad for calling people low IQ. I work at FAANG and feel the exact same way. Completely underwhelmed by the talent.

I work at the FAANG considered the “dumbest” - do you think people like me have any hope for the future?

I have no idea which FAANG is considered “the dumbest”…

Re: Ask HN: I joined a FAANG and it is awful

#219
post #39

> below-average IQ people. .. > Any advice is appreciated. Not shitting on your colleagues with this generation's phrenology would be a great start. More generally, it sounds like you are starting with the idea that you're better and smarter than everyone you work with and only you can see the problems, as opposed to everyone you work with being (by and large) decent and hard working people who are making the best of…

This. Wonder what this person's teammates might have to say about them? "They just started and think they have all the answers without even considering there might be complex and higher-level reasons why a decision was made." "This supposedly smart person joined our team and does not respect the strengths our diverse experiences and skills bring to make the sum of the team greater than it's parts." "This person is a…

"This guy just joined and has no clue about what problems we deal with and the importance of write simple and maintainable code, and instead insists in throwing in half the GoF book in what should be a simple six-liner code change."

"To make matters worse he handles code reviews very poorly, complains about his abstractions being flagged as unacceptable while systematically failig to understand they are not needed and just worsen code quality and maintainability while really adding nothing in return."

"Ultimately he just shows he has a fundamental misunderstanding of the basics of software engineering, specially the importance of making things as simple and as maintainable as possible, displays an unwillingness to learn and adapt, and when faced with any sort of criticism he shows poor attitude and professionalism such as accusing everyone around him of being dumb."

Re: Ask HN: I joined a FAANG and it is awful

#220

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You shouldnt have to feel bad for calling people low IQ. I work at FAANG and feel the exact same way. Completely underwhelmed by the talent.

I work at the FAANG considered the “dumbest” - do you think people like me have any hope for the future?

There is no linear ordering on workers! You might be dumb at algorithms but great at stakeholder management and average at coding. Takes all sorts of strengths to make a good team.
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