6 ms·

I am not able to figure out if this article is parody or in a serious tone.

perl4ever 5y ago
"It was surprising how honest some (very smart) people would be on this. E.g. "I am average compared to other engineers". For an early stage startup, average is not enough." Well, they want better than average liars. Could go either way.
aerosmile 5y ago
People have definitely found ways to turn PG into a monster, so I am prepared for anything... but Elad Gil? That would be a first, so super excited to hear which parts rubbed you the wrong way. If possible, try to keep the context in mind (early stage startup: 5 people with less than 12 months worth of runway).
- probably_wrong 5y ago
  I didn't think it was satire, but I'm at the point of my career where I wouldn't want to work for a company like this. If I'm expected to make a 3-days homework exercise plus a half day live coding session, and then I'm expected to jump at their every whim too (respond email when it's convenient for them, honesty seen as a weakness, expected to be proactive but not too much or you become argumentative), I'd rather look somewhere else. This reads more like "how to screen for people who will blindly follow your orders". And sure, if you have a small startup maybe you do want people like that. But as a developer I don't think this guide has my best interests in mind.
  - aerosmile 5y ago
    You're absolutely right that there are many types of people and stages of careers where an early-stage startup is not a good fit.
zebraflask 5y ago
Me, neither, although I have run across people who think this way. What this is, in my view, if it is taken too seriously, is the perfect recipe for instigating employee burnout in short order.
jpm_sd 5y ago
I think it's semi-serious trolling.
Decker87 5y ago
It's in a serious tone but focused on early startup hiring. I've experienced early-stage startup life, and the article makes sense to me.
systemvoltage 5y ago
I feel like HN has become a mecca of FAANG workers, laissez-faire engineering that complain about this and that, look down on startups as slavery, hardwork is considered right-wing ideology and perspiration is toxic. I wonder if HN has become a parody, have you considered that?
- lr4444lr 5y ago
  There are just so many more Big Tech workers than us scrappy startup people reading and writing here than in the early HN days, and frankly, we have much more to do that keeps us too busy to post on HN as much as they probably have. Yeah, I said it.
  - systemvoltage 5y ago
    Look, I fully support lots of vacation, staying happy, diversity, avoiding burnout - all the things big tech workers rally for. But HN offers zero optimism about solving hard problems, joy of discovery and innovation, struggling through challenges and facing them head on, cooperating with others, leadership and straightforwardness, etc. It's become a cesspool of big tech agony, mixed with social drama, activism and shunning down people that are looking for inspiration. Used to be not like that and it is affecting people like you and many new brilliant people that see no hope but to get a cozy gig at FAANG, check the stock market everyday.
    - potta_coffee 5y ago
      Anecdotally, I used to get sucked into HN for hours because the discussions were good. Now I scan and many days don't find a single decent discussion. Lots of Rust vs Go and politics under the guise of technology. Then again, maybe this is reflecting our society, which is being eaten alive and conglomerated.
      - exdsq 5y ago
        Don't forget the occasional wave of Julia!

"It was surprising how honest some (very smart) people would be on this. E.g. "I am average compared to other engineers". For an early stage startup, average is not enough." Well, they want better than average liars. Could go either way.

aerosmile 5y ago

People have definitely found ways to turn PG into a monster, so I am prepared for anything... but Elad Gil? That would be a first, so super excited to hear which parts rubbed you the wrong way. If possible, try to keep the context in mind (early stage startup: 5 people with less than 12 months worth of runway).

probably_wrong 5y ago
I didn't think it was satire, but I'm at the point of my career where I wouldn't want to work for a company like this. If I'm expected to make a 3-days homework exercise plus a half day live coding session, and then I'm expected to jump at their every whim too (respond email when it's convenient for them, honesty seen as a weakness, expected to be proactive but not too much or you become argumentative), I'd rather look somewhere else. This reads more like "how to screen for people who will blindly follow your orders". And sure, if you have a small startup maybe you do want people like that. But as a developer I don't think this guide has my best interests in mind.
- aerosmile 5y ago
  You're absolutely right that there are many types of people and stages of careers where an early-stage startup is not a good fit.

zebraflask 5y ago

Me, neither, although I have run across people who think this way. What this is, in my view, if it is taken too seriously, is the perfect recipe for instigating employee burnout in short order.

jpm_sd 5y ago

I think it's semi-serious trolling.

Decker87 5y ago

It's in a serious tone but focused on early startup hiring. I've experienced early-stage startup life, and the article makes sense to me.

systemvoltage 5y ago

I feel like HN has become a mecca of FAANG workers, laissez-faire engineering that complain about this and that, look down on startups as slavery, hardwork is considered right-wing ideology and perspiration is toxic. I wonder if HN has become a parody, have you considered that?

lr4444lr 5y ago
There are just so many more Big Tech workers than us scrappy startup people reading and writing here than in the early HN days, and frankly, we have much more to do that keeps us too busy to post on HN as much as they probably have. Yeah, I said it.
- systemvoltage 5y ago
  Look, I fully support lots of vacation, staying happy, diversity, avoiding burnout - all the things big tech workers rally for. But HN offers zero optimism about solving hard problems, joy of discovery and innovation, struggling through challenges and facing them head on, cooperating with others, leadership and straightforwardness, etc. It's become a cesspool of big tech agony, mixed with social drama, activism and shunning down people that are looking for inspiration. Used to be not like that and it is affecting people like you and many new brilliant people that see no hope but to get a cozy gig at FAANG, check the stock market everyday.
  - potta_coffee 5y ago
    Anecdotally, I used to get sucked into HN for hours because the discussions were good. Now I scan and many days don't find a single decent discussion. Lots of Rust vs Go and politics under the guise of technology. Then again, maybe this is reflecting our society, which is being eaten alive and conglomerated.
    - exdsq 5y ago
      Don't forget the occasional wave of Julia!