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I wanna work at Instagram

iwannaworkatinstagram.com

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Re: I wanna work at Instagram

#181

Post by jjm »

zecho wrote: post #89
btucker wrote: post #54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well all power to you! But should you be put in such a position some day, I suggest being open to learning from some of the great leaders in history. Not to say you want to hire an army of groupie lightweights, but passion is not a quality to undervalue.

Exactly. If this woman was to be hired, she'd probably take in everything shown to her. Honestly, if there's a position open for someone that passionate but a bit rough around the edges, find a junior role to put them in within a team she can really learn from. Depending greatly on the short and long term situations, I'd rather hire someone enthusiastic and wait a few months for them to get up to speed than hire some…

My thoughts exactly.

Sure you could bitch and moan about her portfolio, the grammar used, etc... But this still stands out and her passion is there. These kinds of people soak up whatever you give them.

Plus it takes balls to do something like this, and that's a good trait.

Re: I wanna work at Instagram

#183

Post by jamesgeck0 »

xpaulbettsx wrote: post #134
Tycho wrote: post #65

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The design is surprisingly awful? What? I can only assume you're talking about the graphics and layout (unless we talk about 'attitude design' now or something). I thought that part of the site was excellent (original and pretty), although I didn't care for the content admittedly (except the word 'vehement' cracked me up, and 'LOL - I'm Funny').

I think it shows off her design skills and her lack of ability to write good copy, but I would've put the portfolio bit far higher up. - "here's my 1-paragraph spiel about me, here's what I've done , and at the end, put all the cutesy bits"

A link to her portfolio is always stuck at the top right corner of page, even as you scroll.

Re: I wanna work at Instagram

#186

Post by patio11 »

mrshoe wrote: post #111

To write an effective resume you need to keep the audience in mind. The hiring manager will base about 95% of the decision on the answer to one question: What have you built? Answers to questions such as "What are your skills?", "What is your philosophy?", and "What is your passion?" mostly just get in the way and waste the reader's time. A flashy appeal for a job like this one might get the attention of Instagram, b…

The hiring manager will base about 95% of the decision on the answer to one question: What have you built?

I think this is approximately as true as "Customers make purchasing decisions approximately 95% based on product quality and 5% on those trivial details like marketing."

By all means, build stuff. But after having achieved some level of building stuff, the returns are far greater in attractively marketing the stuff you have build versus continuing to build more stuff, on a ROI per-hour-invested basis.

I mean, clearly she can build stuff, right? There's a portfolio. It has stuff in it. Achievement Unlocked: Stuff Got Built. That portfolio could have one extra 100x100 thumbnail that no decisionmaker is going to click on anyway, or, this site could exist. Do you think the thumbnail will matter more than this site existing? That strongly does not match my experience with how people approach decisions in the real world.

P.S. Takeaway for all engineers in the room: if you have three projects on Github and don't have one of these sites built yet, you will have far better returns on time building a site like this than you will doing another OSS project, and you will have still better returns doing actual networking rather than hoping someone on the Internet will stumble across your hidden potential and give you a shot.

Re: I wanna work at Instagram

#187

Post by sportsTAKES »

Mystalic wrote: post #30

Anything that makes you stand above the crowd of job seekers and get noticed is (almost) always a smart move. Do you think Instagram is thinking "no, this girl is clearly an idiot?" No, they're clearly going to notice her and give her consideration that she wouldn't otherwise get. They're probably thinking "nice initiative" even if they've seen this type of application before. I think a few of you are being too cynic…

I agree with Mystalic and I commend the effort and the really cool site she built. I hope she gets the job -

As a side, I hope hiring companies realize that many of their applicants are die-hard fans and advocates...

I have applied to two companies before that I was fiercely loyal to going into the process. After the process I was completely turned off to both of them. One offered me a job and one did not - I didn't take the job from the one that did.

The application and interview process was so bad with both of them it left me completely disenchanted. I have not used products from either company since those experiences - I completely lost my taste for their respective brands.

Conversely, I had another very positive experience with a different company that I was equally loyal to. The application and interview process was excellent. I didn't end up getting the job but I walked away with even greater respect for the company.

Bottom line for me...You can learn just about everything you need to know about a company through the application process.

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