Alexandr Wang is 23 years old and he became tech lead at Quora 7 years ago (?!). I assume the guy has been pulling 90 hour workweeks since age of 12 or something. Just wait for your first RSI my young friend, and then we will talk again ;) I'm really curious how he feels like about holidays, I assume people in Europe cant't give a shit having 4-6 weeks of holidays yearly, right?
His linkedin says Tech Lead from 2014-2016. But it doesn't mean he was tech lead from the start. He could've become tech lead on his last 3 months at the company.
One useful piece of advice that I have received is that there are tradeoffs in giving shit at work. This article mentions downsides of not giving a shit, but doesn't mention downsides of giving too much shit, that is, getting too emotionally attached to the work you are doing. Especially in big companies projects get cancelled or requirements change or managers assign work that doesn't even make sense, and if you are…
This article has an exploitative undertone in the hiring process.
The “what will you do to work here vibe” might work for inexperienced fresh grads but is something others will avoid like the plague. It seems like there no employee leverage at scale.
The attitude of startup CEOs in my area is that you should be crazy about their company, and work for 45+ hours a week for a salary that's marginally higher than what you would make on a 9-5 retail job. Sorry, I don't give a shit about your SaaS.
I agree with the gist of hiring people that care about their craft, but asking them to care about the company is harder. That really requires some sort of reciprocal "company cares about you" , and that's hard to guarantee. Especially when you're hiring the generation that saw their parents lose out on the things like pensions vs 401k, layoffs as regular events, etc.
Too many times you give your all and when there is a bump you get flushed down the toilet, it’s not trust inspiring. Luckily I did found companies who cared, but it’s a minority. The best advice I can give is : make your company human. Give and take, be there for eachother, care. Sounds simple, but in my experience not many companies tick these boxes.
Agreed. Even if the company seems to care, they are one leadership change, product pivot, industry downturn, etc...away from that changing.
Yikes. I would never work for that person after reading that article. “I started a company and I’m totally wild about it. It is my life. If it is not your life too then you don’t belong here.” Founders are supposed to be obsessed with their company. (Though I question that too.) But demanding everyone else at the company be just as obsessed is doomed to hire children and sycophants and drive off professionals who hav…
I got this vibe too. Now I know to stay away from this Scale guys if I'm looking for work one day. Work/life balance is just as important as taking pride in your work. Any mentally healthy individual knows that.
“Giving a shit” seems to be entirely focused on whether they are putting in hours. I notice that nowhere in the 6 questions is there anything that would assess what was achieved. So if I went to Scale, sat around for 12 hours and spent 7 on Hacker News, I would achieve as much as the Google employee but somehow be differentiated according to Scale.
If that Google employee spends the same proportion of their time on Hacker News as you then you’re definitely achieving more.
Agree with your point though, giving a shit is not about how many hours your work, it’s about how much you care.
I agree with the gist of hiring people that care about their craft, but asking them to care about the company is harder. That really requires some sort of reciprocal "company cares about you" , and that's hard to guarantee. Especially when you're hiring the generation that saw their parents lose out on the things like pensions vs 401k, layoffs as regular events, etc.
I wish this passionate-about-the-company, corporate BS that is under the guise of new age feel good advice, fad goes away. The number of founders I have met who show the attitude that they are trying to change the world and I should be grateful to have a chance to work for them is astonishing. There is nothing wrong with having a business that doesn't change people's lives in a fundamental way. But don't sell me BS that your another social media app is going to change the world in a good way, while you, being a founder, take all the winnings and I, being an ordinary employee, have to overwork without proper compensation and feel good about it.
Yikes. I would never work for that person after reading that article. “I started a company and I’m totally wild about it. It is my life. If it is not your life too then you don’t belong here.” Founders are supposed to be obsessed with their company. (Though I question that too.) But demanding everyone else at the company be just as obsessed is doomed to hire children and sycophants and drive off professionals who hav…
Also not good for the business. It means you attract people who pretend to care about it. So, people who can tell a good story, not those who will talk honestly to you.