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Ask HN: How did Soham Parekh get so many jobs?

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Re: Ask HN: How did Soham Parekh get so many jobs?

#401
post #384

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Last time I was in New York City I could not for the life of me find a paper copy of the New York Times to read. Newsstands appear to just be selling candy and drinks.

You can get the New York Times and other newspapers in airports still. I do still buy a newspaper before a flight sometimes, but I actually shouldn't because flights have WiFi now. Irrational and nostalgic.

Yes - I know you can get them in airports (lounges often give them out for free) - I just thought it a little bizarre that I couldn't find a copy of the New York Times in midtown Manhattan!

Re: Ask HN: How did Soham Parekh get so many jobs?

#402

Honestly, it’s the way I’m planning to go. Not 4 simultaneous full time jobs, but 2 (or one fulltime job and 2 contractor part time jobs). Reason: it’s easier to pass the interview for less demanding jobs (not faang, not second level faang), they are less demanding in the day to day (no “exceeds expectations”, “meets expectations”, “under expectations”, just simply “good job Joe!” and “shit happens Joe”), they are us…

Could you give me an example of these non demanding jobs? Just so I get sense of the type of company you mean.

Re: Ask HN: How did Soham Parekh get so many jobs?

#403

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've never seen that perspective. Work has always been a distraction from my hobbies. _Always_. Sometimes they're related, but often they're not. Though... Your stance lines up with people who work well into their retirement years while not needing the income? I'd struggle to give two weeks notice if I suddenly had enough money to live on for the rest of my life.

I like work because work provides value for other people. I don't like hobbies because hobbies provide value only to myself, and I am already worth enough as I am. What's there not to get?

I get it; I just hadn't seen anyone say it before.

Re: Ask HN: How did Soham Parekh get so many jobs?

#404

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've never seen that perspective. Work has always been a distraction from my hobbies. _Always_. Sometimes they're related, but often they're not. Though... Your stance lines up with people who work well into their retirement years while not needing the income? I'd struggle to give two weeks notice if I suddenly had enough money to live on for the rest of my life.

I like work because work provides value for other people. I don't like hobbies because hobbies provide value only to myself, and I am already worth enough as I am. What's there not to get?

IE your hobby is work.

Re: Ask HN: How did Soham Parekh get so many jobs?

#405
post #270
post #76

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Is it so hard to believe that someone can be a great candidate in an interview when you're getting 100% of their attention and then be horrible at their job when you're getting 20% of it because they're juggling 5 jobs?

he had no proof he can code, no projects, no github, only hired because he gave them a lowball offer, it was lowball because he was scamming

Where did you hear this? People on X said the exact opposite.

Re: Ask HN: How did Soham Parekh get so many jobs?

#407

We hired Soham. I can tell you it's because he's actually a very skilled engineer. He will blow the interviews completely out of the water. Easily top 1% or top 0.1% of candidates -- other startups will tell you this as well. The problem is when the job (or work-trial in our case) actually starts, it's just excuses upon excuses as to why he's missing a meeting, or why the PR was pushed late. The excuses become more r…

Do companies not call references or former places of employment anymore? I am surprised he kept the scam so long when these jobs could've just called his previous work who'd tell them a story like you said.

Re: Ask HN: How did Soham Parekh get so many jobs?

#408

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's a hell of a gambling addiction when he's making about 10 times what I am. You'd think you'd stop if you were just flushing that money down the toilet and not winning anything from the gambling

About twenty years ago there was a story in Melbourne, of a young foreign student at the casino. He withdrew $1,000 from the ATM from his home back in Asia. Was duly given the cash. He noticed though, that looking at online banking, his balance hadn't changed. Odd, but maybe it was a vagary of international transactions (and again, 20+ years ago). Nope. So he took out another $1,000. And another. Every time, got the…

How powerful is a casino if "they got the financial institutions"?

Re: Ask HN: How did Soham Parekh get so many jobs?

#409

We hired Soham. I can tell you it's because he's actually a very skilled engineer. He will blow the interviews completely out of the water. Easily top 1% or top 0.1% of candidates -- other startups will tell you this as well. The problem is when the job (or work-trial in our case) actually starts, it's just excuses upon excuses as to why he's missing a meeting, or why the PR was pushed late. The excuses become more r…

> I can tell you it's because he's actually a very skilled engineer. > Easily top 1% or top 0.1% of candidates -- other startups will tell you this as well. People who regularly don't show up for work are by definition not "top 1% or top 0.1% of candidates" - in fact quite the opposite. That'll get you fired from PetSmart, let alone some bullshit $250k/yr software job. I think startups' freewheeling management and hi…

A disinterested Richard Feynman is a better physicist than a very interested highschooler. Skill and value extraction are not the same thing.

Re: Ask HN: How did Soham Parekh get so many jobs?

#410

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Where is the line between team and cult? Cults are a subset of teams.

Why do you need to draw a line? Can there be good cults and bad teams? Both have implicit contracts, and a contract requires consideration on both sides. The parties define the value of the consideration, so you can have a junior cult member who feels they are getting good value for what they pay, or a SW dev at an insurance company who feels they don't. I also don't see much difference in your ability to affect your…

The whole idea of a cult is negative.

Its like saying why cant there be good shark attacks on surfers.

Defining traits of cults are that they try to brainwash you, destroy your identity and replace it with one the cult approves of.

This can happen to various degrees of severity.

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