Don’t Work for Assholes • Hacker News Board

Re: Don’t Work for Assholes

#21

Post by TrevorJ » Tue, Feb 03, 2009, 4:46 PM UTC

lionhearted wrote: post #7

Nice piece, great sentiment, except the very dangerous: "Nine times out of ten, the first impression someone gives you is exactly who they are." Not true! Had a partner embezzle money from my company who seemed like a really nice guy. Most people can be charismatic and polite for even a year at a time before their true colors come out. To get a real idea about someone, you need to get to know their character. The mor…

If I believed first impressions, I wouldn't have found many of my closest friends.

Re: Don’t Work for Assholes

#22

Post by kzar » Tue, Feb 03, 2009, 4:48 PM UTC

Yea I have learned this lesson myself, it's true. I think a lot of the time it costs you more to do the work than to walk away.

Re: Don’t Work for Assholes

#23

Post by sspencer » Tue, Feb 03, 2009, 4:49 PM UTC

edw519 wrote: post #19

Competent + Nice = Best Combination Competent + Asshole = I'll put up with them Incompetent + Nice = I'll hold their hand Incompetent + Asshole = You've got to be kidding

Someone should make a "Co-Worker Punnett Square" with these options. But which traits are dominant and which are recessive? ;)

Re: Don’t Work for Assholes

#24

Post by brl » Tue, Feb 03, 2009, 5:02 PM UTC

StrawberryFrog wrote: post #9

lionhearted wrote: post #7

Nice piece, great sentiment, except the very dangerous: "Nine times out of ten, the first impression someone gives you is exactly who they are." Not true! Had a partner embezzle money from my company who seemed like a really nice guy. Most people can be charismatic and polite for even a year at a time before their true colors come out. To get a real idea about someone, you need to get to know their character. The mor…

Right. A bad first impression is a bad sign. The reverse (A good first impression) is not necessarily the case.

I think you can easily make mistakes judging people in both directions. It's just that making a false negative error (not identifying an asshole) can turn out a lot worse than a false positive (judging somebody as an asshole who really isn't) so it's prudent to be sensitive to bad first impressions.

Re: Don’t Work for Assholes

#25

Post by erik » Tue, Feb 03, 2009, 5:03 PM UTC

comatose_kid wrote: post #20

This includes managers at s/w companies as well. My department at bigCo was just re-organized, and I have a new boss. At our first one-on-one meeting, he casually mentioned that he was 'not a micro-manager'. This immediately caught my attention - when a manager says this, they invariably turn out to be micro-managers. Since then, I have had to report my status 3 times a week, and he writes detailed emails laying out…

Have you considered telling your new boss how you feel about his management style? It may be possible to improve the situation.

Re: Don’t Work for Assholes

#26

Post by pg » Tue, Feb 03, 2009, 5:35 PM UTC

More generally, don't have dealings with assholes. Don't work for them, don't hire them, don't have them as cofounders, don't take investment from them.

One of the things I always ask speakers at YC is what they know now that they didn't know when they were 25. The most common answer is probably to trust their instincts about people. When you run into a person who's bad news, there's often a little voice inside you saying "watch out." When you're young, you feel like you should ignore it, because it seems so arbitrary.

Re: Don’t Work for Assholes

#27

Post by ajju » Tue, Feb 03, 2009, 6:05 PM UTC

comatose_kid wrote: post #20

This includes managers at s/w companies as well. My department at bigCo was just re-organized, and I have a new boss. At our first one-on-one meeting, he casually mentioned that he was 'not a micro-manager'. This immediately caught my attention - when a manager says this, they invariably turn out to be micro-managers. Since then, I have had to report my status 3 times a week, and he writes detailed emails laying out…

Wow. I have to report status 3 times a day! I want to quit as soon as I can, but I always thought this frquency was the norm not the exception.Are you saying majority of the big co bosses ask you for status less than 3 times a week?

Re: Don’t Work for Assholes

#28

Post by Shamiq » Tue, Feb 03, 2009, 6:05 PM UTC

TrevorJ wrote: post #21

lionhearted wrote: post #7

Nice piece, great sentiment, except the very dangerous: "Nine times out of ten, the first impression someone gives you is exactly who they are." Not true! Had a partner embezzle money from my company who seemed like a really nice guy. Most people can be charismatic and polite for even a year at a time before their true colors come out. To get a real idea about someone, you need to get to know their character. The mor…

If I believed first impressions, I wouldn't have found many of my closest friends.

...especially since most of them don't have English as a primary language.

Re: Don’t Work for Assholes

#29

Post by anthonyrubin » Tue, Feb 03, 2009, 6:08 PM UTC

edw519 wrote: post #19

Competent + Nice = Best Combination Competent + Asshole = I'll put up with them Incompetent + Nice = I'll hold their hand Incompetent + Asshole = You've got to be kidding

What if Incompetent + Nice never becomes Competent + Nice and they hold the same position that you do?

Re: Don’t Work for Assholes

#30

Post by edw519 » Tue, Feb 03, 2009, 6:26 PM UTC

anthonyrubin wrote: post #29

edw519 wrote: post #19

Competent + Nice = Best Combination Competent + Asshole = I'll put up with them Incompetent + Nice = I'll hold their hand Incompetent + Asshole = You've got to be kidding

What if Incompetent + Nice never becomes Competent + Nice and they hold the same position that you do?

Although this model can apply to anyone, I was originally referring to clients.

If you have a client who is Incompetent + Nice and never becomes Competent + Nice, then either you need to do a better job of hand holding, or you may just have to settle for steady revenue that you have to work for. Either way, you both win.