421–430 of 433 posts
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This is good to know. I think a lot of people are tired of wasting their lifespan on grinding lc-medium/hards. Is there a website with a list of companies that don't participate in the leetcode/FAANG interview process? I feel like there is a need for one.
https://github.com/poteto/hiring-without-whiteboards
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Asocial? I guess autistic people are out! I assume you’re young: there are many reasons people might be perfectly good at a job but not want to socialize with those people, or any other people. This whole thread makes me sad as an unemployed autistic person. HN folks are horrible hiring managers! Edit: and now downvoted for showing you losers that your personal model of the world and the people in it might be lacking…
I suspect you may be interpreting this a bit too broadly, and it's obviously personal for you. Part of work is, nearly invariably, social. Not wanting to get Friday beers with the team shouldn't really be a factor. Not being able to communicate smoothly and effectively with them in a work context absolutely is. I suspect the poster you are responding to is focusing on the latter, and you on the former.
This is why all the talk of valuing neurodiversity is BS. The leaders want an autistic savant without the autistic part. Playing one is exhausting and can never be done perfectly.
The problem as I see it is that people tend to see communication issues as a character flaw. They don't think it's a handicap like poor vision or a broken leg, but must stem from laziness or worse.
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I suspect you may be interpreting this a bit too broadly, and it's obviously personal for you. Part of work is, nearly invariably, social. Not wanting to get Friday beers with the team shouldn't really be a factor. Not being able to communicate smoothly and effectively with them in a work context absolutely is. I suspect the poster you are responding to is focusing on the latter, and you on the former.
Then there are some of us for whom this smooth communication is a huge challenge. We spend a lot of time and energy masking, trying to fake the perfect vibe (and failing of course, because the result is predictably unnatural), but this is a necessary survival tactic. This is why all the talk of valuing neurodiversity is BS. The leaders want an autistic savant without the autistic part. Playing one is exhausting and c…
I sometimes long for a set of different drugs that people could take that would impair their brain/body for a short time in a similar way to how people experience the world as someone with autism or adhd or whatever else. I am sure that would be a somewhat "bad" idea, but I think it could also be a help in some cases. I'm autistic myself and it took me years of learning about autism and watching my autistic child before I really grokked how much of an impairment it has been for me in my life. That I am an old man with a relatively decent life and financial position for an American is a miracle, honestly, based on what I know now. I definitely had my Swiss cheese holes line up (in a good way this time) for me to be able to sail through the cheese of life this easily so far! I am not sure I can maintain that luck now, though.
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There's a difference into trying to understand what makes everyone tick, and going into deep personal details. It might make sense from employer perspective, but why i should put myself at risk? It is similar to prisoners dilemma.
Design studios also tend to be a lot smaller and their reputation is more transparent than tech companies. If I was applying for a job to be a designer at IBM, I'd be more wary, but you're also much less likely to be doing the really deep-digging conceptual stuff in those roles. But when it comes to the really deep conceptual work, the chance of joining a low-productivity team or even just not jibing with them is too…
There are many people who also keep strict buffer between their personal life and work - basically complete different, but not fake(!), personality.
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Design studios also tend to be a lot smaller and their reputation is more transparent than tech companies. If I was applying for a job to be a designer at IBM, I'd be more wary, but you're also much less likely to be doing the really deep-digging conceptual stuff in those roles. But when it comes to the really deep conceptual work, the chance of joining a low-productivity team or even just not jibing with them is too…
but what the hell has my personal history to do with design job? There are better ways to gauge the person's personality than digging in their history. There are many people who also keep strict buffer between their personal life and work - basically complete different, but not fake(!), personality.
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"A high drive, low aptitude individual", even if they have the best mindset in the world, shouldn't be placed in a sensitive position. As even a small chance of messing up with 'high drive' will really cause a lot of issues.
These are generally junior-level engineers so it's a non-sequitur.
> “Tell me about you. If your life was a book, give me the chapter titles from your birth till now.” Once you’ve gotten the overview, dive into each “chapter” and plumb the depths for their real stories. Go back to their childhood! I learn a lot about their grit and commitment to excellence from their basketball obsession or maybe their experience caring for a dying parent. I don't think I'd be comfortable sharing th…
I've noticed a trend where the lower the position, the more invasive the questions become. I think it's a power dynamic - they can ask the questions because they know the applicants are more desperate. For example, before I was an engineer, I was scraping by on odd jobs after the 2008 crash. Around that time I applied for a job at Red Robin (basically a fast food restaurant for those who don't know). One of the quest…
Or they are more stupid. Stupid people tend to psychoanalyze and stereotype other people more often.
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Just remember that all interview techniques have bias; what works well for one company / role may not work well for your company / role. That being said, it sounds like your interview technique works well for you.
I started an interview at fly like 1.5 years ago. Figured I’d give it a shot, they were very responsive, gave me the challenge and I spent more time than was suggested. They had a few core technologies I was not familiar with at all, but figured I could hack it…I could not. Anyway, I really appreciated it. Walked away with nothing but positive feelings. I have spent enough time applying/interviewing over the last dec…
I did get a decent offer once, declined, and later learned I dodged a bullet. Another time I was impatient and took an offer against my better judgement, and it turned out poorly.
People's intuitions around hiring aren't Bayesian enough. I think a good process reduces down to something like: - Are they smart? (understands quickly + communicates effectively) - Are they cool? (won't put poison in the keurig + pleasant to be around) - Are they high energy? (initiative + action bias) - Do they have the experience needed to be successful in the role? Those are pretty strong priors for success. If y…
I have a 4-quardrant way of thinking about this that's similar. - Y-axis is "drive" - X-axis is "aptitude" - low drive + low aptitude: never hire - low drive + high aptitude: hire for targeted use cases where you need expertise - high drive + low aptitude: hire, train, and foster aptitude growth - high drive + high aptitude: hire on the spot There's an indirect way of testing for this which is to test for curiosity a…
If you do choose to hire this person make sure to isolate them from other. I've seen a single low drive + high aptitude person single handly ruin teams. They are a cancer.
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It’s literally selecting for people who can tell the best stories. Not great for any company dependent on moving fast with autonomy, with a genuine mission. Plus “looking for grit” really means “looking for someone to work long hours (typically without good odds of realizing fair equity)”… super unethical to even attempt to be selecting for people with trauatic and toxic Pasts. If they wanted to select candidates for…
This whole thing read like a sociopath selecting for people they can exploit.
Maybe it's a combination of both