3 ms·

Honestly, this article is a bit hyperbolic. He didn't blow the interview - I was expecting an article on being totally unprepared, not able to answer a single q

Honestly, this article is a bit hyperbolic. He didn't blow the interview - I was expecting an article on being totally unprepared, not able to answer a single question. What happened was he aced the technical portion, and went too theoretical / abstract when they wanted things that were concrete / applicable. That's not blowing it - that's a lack of recent interview experience, and is something he will easily fix and correct in the next interviews. But it was refreshing to see that he received actionable feedback from the interviewers, rather than the straight "sorry we can't move forward" boilerplate that usually has to happen.

ohitsdom 11y ago
Totally agreed. > Failing so spectacularly in an interview shook me to my core. He didn't fail spectacularly, he just didn't get the job. He's lucky he got actionable feedback from a friend to improve. Most bigger companies won't give a reason for a rejection nowadays for legal reasons. I, however, have truly failed spectacularly in an interview. While it temporarily killed my confidence, it did make me a better interviewee in the long run. I learned the concepts that stumped me in the interview, and I had a little less fear in the next interview since it couldn't get worse.
- braythwayt 11y ago
  Perhaps instead of "failed spectacularly," I "snatched defeat from the jaws of victory."
  - ohitsdom 11y ago
    That seems like an incredibly accurate description about what happened to you.
braythwayt 11y ago
This was much more fundamental than just not answering questions properly. I realized that I was not thinking clearly about the difference between specifics and generalities, and not communicating properly, in all sorts of conversations, not just when I was being interviewed. For example, I was also interviewing people, having one-on-ones with reports, and so forth. I think this particular interview was a catalyst for rethinking the way I approached communication in general.

ohitsdom 11y ago

Totally agreed. > Failing so spectacularly in an interview shook me to my core. He didn't fail spectacularly, he just didn't get the job. He's lucky he got actionable feedback from a friend to improve. Most bigger companies won't give a reason for a rejection nowadays for legal reasons. I, however, have truly failed spectacularly in an interview. While it temporarily killed my confidence, it did make me a better interviewee in the long run. I learned the concepts that stumped me in the interview, and I had a little less fear in the next interview since it couldn't get worse.

braythwayt 11y ago
Perhaps instead of "failed spectacularly," I "snatched defeat from the jaws of victory."
- ohitsdom 11y ago
  That seems like an incredibly accurate description about what happened to you.

braythwayt 11y ago

This was much more fundamental than just not answering questions properly. I realized that I was not thinking clearly about the difference between specifics and generalities, and not communicating properly, in all sorts of conversations, not just when I was being interviewed. For example, I was also interviewing people, having one-on-ones with reports, and so forth. I think this particular interview was a catalyst for rethinking the way I approached communication in general.