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This should not be surprising. I'd say two things, which are related: 1) Profanity itself is a form of crude honestly - in any remotely genteel social setting

This should not be surprising. I'd say two things, which are related: 1) Profanity itself is a form of crude honestly - in any remotely genteel social setting - 'profanity' is usually politically costly. Would you swear in an interview? No. Ok - there are some times when 'people in power' can swear as a form of strength/power projection - but that aside ... People who 'control' their behaviour mostly to 'be polite' - will use that communication control to gain political favour in every little social interaction. Some do it aggressively. We all know this kind of person. So - the 'swearers' are just using less 'filter', and so 'what you see' is really more likely their actual thoughts - 'no filter applied'. 2) If you step outside of professional circles and hang out with 'working class types' (I don't mean to be crude with generalizations) - like guys on a construction crew - you'll find that these people swear sometimes. I'm originally from a small town, a lot of working class types there - and if there are only guys around, you'll hear some cussing. These people generally don't have 'learned filters' that most professionals would use to communicate - because there is no reason why they should have developed those filters. They're just 'honest' by nature. I've always kind of felt this way. 'Smooth communicators' are the one's you have to worry about :)

maxerickson 10y ago
People can handle a lot of context. It'd be totally unsurprising if the people you interact with professionally swear a lot more in other contexts.
jghn 10y ago
"Would you swear in an interview? No." Yes. And if someone held it against me it's unlikely to be a place I want to work.
- zer0t3ch 10y ago
  In fairness, I assume you would still try to swear less in an interview, no?
  - Diederich 10y ago
    I read the interviewer carefully, which often leads me to be comfortable with some amount of profanity. This is actually pretty much the same approach I take all the time, with everyone.
    - zer0t3ch 10y ago
      Makes sense.
- oddlyaromatic 10y ago
  Interesting. I mean, do what works for you but to me, swearing in an interview shows weird judgement. I would not put a lot of confidence in someone who makes that choice to be easy to work with, professional, and treat their coworkers with respect. I'd just think, you know, this asshole doesn't want to have a respectful relationship, and doesn't really get this situation. I swear plenty but I hold it in at work. I've never interviewed somebody who swore in the interview (a couple words wouldn't be a big deal I guess)... But I have interviewed people who gave off other signs of poor judgement. One of the things I really need in my (non-tech) industry is people I can trust to independently make good choices in many situations among different kinds of people. Surely most employers need that.
  - pm 10y ago
    Who says it's a sign of poor judgement? Profanity only indicates a lack of respect if you're intentionally insulting someone, and believe me, there are plenty of ways to insult people without swearing. If a team can't stomach a few "fucks" now and then, they probably can't tolerate an honest review of their code either. I've seen enough teams who'd rather give themselves a congratulatory circle-jerk than face the fact their code was a steaming pile of shit that was nigh on unmaintainable.
- zzalpha 10y ago
  Well, I'd hold it against you (well, unless I set the precedent by swearing first...) :) In many professional settings (e.g. when in front of a client), where you may not be familiar with the social norms of those you're interacting with, the ability to effectively code switch is critical. I see that as part of basic professional judgement. So, absolutely, with your co-workers, swear away if that's part of the culture. But in a setting with someone unfamiliar? Like, say, an interview? Sorry buddy, but there's a lot of shops where that'll count against you.
  - Retra 10y ago
    It really depends on the job. If your priorities are of a political nature, then that's a reasonable expectation. If you're hiring me for an engineering position and you can't handle some harmless swearing, then you're really not sharing in my engineering priorities. Here it's just pointless culture policing and power playing.
    - zzalpha 10y ago
      Accepting that folks you don't know might not share your values, and adjusting accordingly isn't "political". It's basic respect and professionalism. Now, from your perspective, you might think you're just testing the employer. That is, if they'll put up with your swearing in the interview, then it might be a better value fit. And that may be true. I'm simply suggesting that you may end up disqualified for positions where you might otherwise fit, not because swearing itself is deemed inappropriate, but because, in that specific setting, to the interviewer it suggests poor judgement.
      - Retra 10y ago
        No, what you're missing here is that I wouldn't swear unless I had a good reason to, and a good reason wouldn't likely turn up in an interview. I don't go around swearing in interviews for the fun of it. But if I do swear, and you think it's a major problem, then your priorities would be wrong. I do realize that judgement goes both ways. I'm not going to blame someone for being foolish, but I will blame them for hiding it when they could instead learn from it.

maxerickson 10y ago

People can handle a lot of context. It'd be totally unsurprising if the people you interact with professionally swear a lot more in other contexts.

jghn 10y ago

"Would you swear in an interview? No." Yes. And if someone held it against me it's unlikely to be a place I want to work.

zer0t3ch 10y ago
In fairness, I assume you would still try to swear less in an interview, no?
- Diederich 10y ago
  I read the interviewer carefully, which often leads me to be comfortable with some amount of profanity. This is actually pretty much the same approach I take all the time, with everyone.
  - zer0t3ch 10y ago
    Makes sense.
oddlyaromatic 10y ago
Interesting. I mean, do what works for you but to me, swearing in an interview shows weird judgement. I would not put a lot of confidence in someone who makes that choice to be easy to work with, professional, and treat their coworkers with respect. I'd just think, you know, this asshole doesn't want to have a respectful relationship, and doesn't really get this situation. I swear plenty but I hold it in at work. I've never interviewed somebody who swore in the interview (a couple words wouldn't be a big deal I guess)... But I have interviewed people who gave off other signs of poor judgement. One of the things I really need in my (non-tech) industry is people I can trust to independently make good choices in many situations among different kinds of people. Surely most employers need that.
- pm 10y ago
  Who says it's a sign of poor judgement? Profanity only indicates a lack of respect if you're intentionally insulting someone, and believe me, there are plenty of ways to insult people without swearing. If a team can't stomach a few "fucks" now and then, they probably can't tolerate an honest review of their code either. I've seen enough teams who'd rather give themselves a congratulatory circle-jerk than face the fact their code was a steaming pile of shit that was nigh on unmaintainable.
zzalpha 10y ago
Well, I'd hold it against you (well, unless I set the precedent by swearing first...) :) In many professional settings (e.g. when in front of a client), where you may not be familiar with the social norms of those you're interacting with, the ability to effectively code switch is critical. I see that as part of basic professional judgement. So, absolutely, with your co-workers, swear away if that's part of the culture. But in a setting with someone unfamiliar? Like, say, an interview? Sorry buddy, but there's a lot of shops where that'll count against you.
- Retra 10y ago
  It really depends on the job. If your priorities are of a political nature, then that's a reasonable expectation. If you're hiring me for an engineering position and you can't handle some harmless swearing, then you're really not sharing in my engineering priorities. Here it's just pointless culture policing and power playing.
  - zzalpha 10y ago
    Accepting that folks you don't know might not share your values, and adjusting accordingly isn't "political". It's basic respect and professionalism. Now, from your perspective, you might think you're just testing the employer. That is, if they'll put up with your swearing in the interview, then it might be a better value fit. And that may be true. I'm simply suggesting that you may end up disqualified for positions where you might otherwise fit, not because swearing itself is deemed inappropriate, but because, in that specific setting, to the interviewer it suggests poor judgement.
    - Retra 10y ago
      No, what you're missing here is that I wouldn't swear unless I had a good reason to, and a good reason wouldn't likely turn up in an interview. I don't go around swearing in interviews for the fun of it. But if I do swear, and you think it's a major problem, then your priorities would be wrong. I do realize that judgement goes both ways. I'm not going to blame someone for being foolish, but I will blame them for hiding it when they could instead learn from it.