←back to thread

263 points mooreds | 1 comments | | HN request time: 0s | source
Show context
neilv ◴[] No.45422503[source]
> Look for passion and curiosity. You want the ones who light up when talking about their projects. They should show real excitement about the problems they've solved. These conversations should be energizing for both of you!

Interview prep tells candidates to fake "passion" and (now) "curiosity".

(The prep materials don't say to fake it, but they will phrase it implying that that's the truth, and that it's something that interviewers look for. The prep might give examples of when to be sure to "convey your passion", such as when discussing a project you worked on.)

The net result is that interview prep materials, and companies that select for that, end up selecting for people who will go through the motions of appearances. Which is OK if you are a stodgy huge company sitting on its laurels, that wants everyone to be a compliant worker drone, more than they want excellence. Not OK if you're a startup that really needs to execute with more than worker-drone capabilities.

Maybe an interviewer seeking genuine "passion" and "curiosity" would be better off giving points to someone who seems to have skills but didn't seem to have done interview prep, since they must have gotten that far by being genuine and non-drone?

replies(1): >>45422509 #
1. adchurch ◴[] No.45422509[source]
If you keep asking questions eventually you hit something they don't actually know. How long it takes to get there + what they say when they get there is what makes this interesting imo!