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I have two microwave-ready answers for this kind of question. 1: "I am always learning. I am not afraid to try a new technique or even an entirely new framewor

I have two microwave-ready answers for this kind of question. 1: "I am always learning. I am not afraid to try a new technique or even an entirely new framework and programming language. All I need is time to learn and trust that I will arrive to the level of competence required of me. I may not know everything now, but I will not stop learning. Even if I know everything I need to do my job today, I will continue to learn how to do my job tomorrow." Simple and truthful, although the second answer relates more to me as a person. 2: "I am not a math person. I can do math, but my brain is wired for language. That is why I became a programmer: I can speak to the machine just as I can speak to a customer. By hiring me, you are hiring a liaison between the technical people, the non-technical people, and the technology itself. I can understand non-technical people's technical needs and communicate my technical solutions better than most programmers. I can work with people as well as I can work with machines, and that is why I am a very effective developer." The second answer got me the job I have now.

thinkloop 10y ago
> I am not a math person. I can do math, but my brain is wired for language. Not a good time to introduce not's in my opinion. It might work (as it did for you), but it's high risk.
- rm_-rf_slash 10y ago
  Like I said the second answer applies to me personally. I often say this to convey my honesty and to plainly state that I have a minor weakness that is compensated by a superior strength. If the job requires a math person to sit and code and not talk to non-technical people, then I am the wrong person for that job and both parties are better off if they hire someone else.
  - thinkloop 10y ago
    "My brain is wired for language..." Omitting the first part keeps the message and sounds cleaner to me, without risking the person thinking "not good at math? like basic logic?" (rather than the cal 3 you had in mind or whatever). It's rarely beneficial to use up time highlighting anything you're bad at, rather than better emphasizing what you are good at.

thinkloop 10y ago

> I am not a math person. I can do math, but my brain is wired for language. Not a good time to introduce not's in my opinion. It might work (as it did for you), but it's high risk.

rm_-rf_slash 10y ago
Like I said the second answer applies to me personally. I often say this to convey my honesty and to plainly state that I have a minor weakness that is compensated by a superior strength. If the job requires a math person to sit and code and not talk to non-technical people, then I am the wrong person for that job and both parties are better off if they hire someone else.
- thinkloop 10y ago
  "My brain is wired for language..." Omitting the first part keeps the message and sounds cleaner to me, without risking the person thinking "not good at math? like basic logic?" (rather than the cal 3 you had in mind or whatever). It's rarely beneficial to use up time highlighting anything you're bad at, rather than better emphasizing what you are good at.