5 ms·

Not to be mean spirited, but it sounds like you either need to learn how to close or you are going for positions you really aren't a good fit for. I've gotten

Not to be mean spirited, but it sounds like you either need to learn how to close or you are going for positions you really aren't a good fit for. I've gotten every job I've ever interviewed for that I really wanted. In the end, it's about perception and desire. If you don't go in acting like you deserve the job and can be an asset to the company, you are not likely to get an offer. You also have to be able to sell yourself as the perfect fit. Trust me, no one is, but if you believe you can become it, it will show and they will believe it too. That's when the offers come in. Go through your skill sets, really step back and evaluate if it's up to date enough for these newer positions you are going for. Also, if you go into an interview with the attitude that you hate your current job, it will show. You need to make peace with whatever your current job is, find something positive about it, and reflect on that. This will help you to be positive in your interviews and talk well about your current company, which employers want to hear.

venture_lol 10y ago
Excellent advice. You are there to offer your services -- not to ask for a job! Go in with a humble I-will-kill-it attitude
deleted 10y ago
[deleted]
catshirt 10y ago
if OP could only pick one piece of advice from this thread it should be this one. my 2 cents: 1. being able to demonstrate excitement is a huge bonus. i've interviewed a decent number of people. on average 0 were excited about any of the companies. maybe a third were what i could consider genuinely excited or passionate about the technology or the position. 2. taking a few minutes to ask what problems they have struggled with, or what they're working on now, gives you a "serendipitous" platform to sell yourself: take that opportunity to work with them and prove yourself.
alex- 10y ago
> I've gotten every job I've ever interviewed for I once said this to a friend. He then suggested maybe I wasn't being as ambitious as I could be in the roles I was seeking. Gave me some food for thought.
- catshirt 10y ago
  woah... woah. don't cut off that sentence. > I've gotten every job I've ever interviewed for that I really wanted. the point is not that "i get every job i interviewed for because i'm that good" -- i think the point is "i get every job i really want because the enthusiasm fuels the interview". i can say with certainty it has nothing to do with a lack of ambition. enthusiasm is the only thing i can attribute to offers i've received for positions i wouldn't consider myself qualified for. :)
  - posterboy 10y ago
    > the point is not that "i get every job i interviewed for because i'm that good" I'm not reading that in the quoted comment. But still > "i get every job i really want because the enthusiasm fuels the interview". why lead with that, to display confidence? Very well, interesting though that confidence is the argument to be made and so the presentation of the response has to agree with the argument. But that still lacks some sympathy and isn't constructive, when it's addressed at the lack of confidence (which admittedly seem obvious from posting about the issue on HN). > nothing to do with a lack of ambition. enthusiasm is the only thing Interesting, I'm not aware of the difference. I'd say ambition subsumes enthusiasm.
    - catshirt 10y ago
      > Interesting, I'm not aware of the difference. I'd say ambition subsumes enthusiasm. i can understand where your coming from: there is probably truth to the idea that... in general, if you are ambitious you will be enthusiastic or vice versa. but: 1. they are not mutually exclusive. to apply for a job you are underqualified for and disinterested in would be both ambitious and unenthusiastic. in practice this might not really happen but... 2. for the purpose of the interview, any enthusiasm is useless if you don't have the charisma to project it. ambition is more of a factor for you to internalize. it is relative to your own experience. enthusiasm is different. it's more important to externalize. i care if i'm ambitious, the interviewer cares if i'm enthusiastic. i don't want to hire someone who doesn't love the job- and if they love it i don't care if they're overqualified (lacking ambition). > why lead with that, to display confidence? in my experience, this again is more of an internal thing. it's not that externalizing confidence is valuable (probably more of a liability, really). it's that confidence manifests itself in other ways that are inspiring or attractive. for instance, i am pretty humble and sometimes nervous; i hate selling myself. but when i'm genuinely excited for a position, it's easier to suppress the instinct not to brag. > that still lacks some sympathy and isn't constructive ... your mindset needs to be "i'm really excited to apply for this job because it's totally awesome and i can kick it's ass" -- not "i'm applying for this job because i really hate my current job". the right type of confidence and enthusiasm will only come from the former. i realize this argument is kind of... philosophical?, just trying my best to generalize what's lead to any success i've come by :)
santoshalper 10y ago
> Not to be mean spirited In the history of human interaction, has anyone said that and not then followed it up with something arrogant and dickish? > I've gotten every job I've ever interviewed for that I really wanted Of course you have. And the jobs you didn't get you later decided you must not have really wanted enough. I wonder how you would have felt about those jobs if you had gotten them. We get it, you're a super impressive person. You can stop trying so hard to impress us now.
- a_t48 10y ago
  He may also be in an industry or an area where given a certain bar of quality and a friend at whatever company you are applying to, you get in. From my viewpoint, it's super common in engineering.
  - bigmanwalter 10y ago
    He's also probably also a well off, straight, white male.
    - jimmywanger 10y ago
      Based on what? Racist misconceptions about how hiring processes work?
      - lazyasciiart 10y ago
        Why can't it be based on HN demographics?
        jimmywanger 10y ago
        Which demographics? The one that has never been measured or published? (Except for age, which is not mentioned) Or the one that exists in the stereotypes and imaginations of people futilely trying to find discrimination where there is none?
    - 10y ago
Lapsa 10y ago
"You also have to be able to sell yourself as the perfect fit." - i hate this one most. I don't give a rat's ass about marketing - I'm a developer and not a salesman. 9 of 10 companies are doing this.
- sokoloff 10y ago
  Some company is trying to determine if you are worth spending $1MM on over the next 5 years. Some humans are trying to figure out if you will be good to work with and make the company stronger. Ignore marketing yourself in the interview process all you like, but you're doing that at your own peril.
Lapsa 10y ago
"You also have to be able to sell yourself as the perfect fit." - i hate this one most. I don't give a rat's ass about marketing - I'm a developer and not a salesman. 9 of 10 companies are doing this.
posterboy 10y ago
> I've gotten every job I've ever interviewed for that I really wanted Thanks for your account of anecdotal evidence. The thread needs more observation bias. edit: I think you are onto something in terms of motivation (vs professional care), don't get my sarcasm wrong, I simply doubt you ever applied to jobs you really really didn't want. Call that survivorship bias or whatever.

venture_lol 10y ago

Excellent advice. You are there to offer your services -- not to ask for a job! Go in with a humble I-will-kill-it attitude

deleted 10y ago

[deleted]

catshirt 10y ago

if OP could only pick one piece of advice from this thread it should be this one. my 2 cents: 1. being able to demonstrate excitement is a huge bonus. i've interviewed a decent number of people. on average 0 were excited about any of the companies. maybe a third were what i could consider genuinely excited or passionate about the technology or the position. 2. taking a few minutes to ask what problems they have struggled with, or what they're working on now, gives you a "serendipitous" platform to sell yourself: take that opportunity to work with them and prove yourself.

alex- 10y ago

> I've gotten every job I've ever interviewed for I once said this to a friend. He then suggested maybe I wasn't being as ambitious as I could be in the roles I was seeking. Gave me some food for thought.

catshirt 10y ago
woah... woah. don't cut off that sentence. > I've gotten every job I've ever interviewed for that I really wanted. the point is not that "i get every job i interviewed for because i'm that good" -- i think the point is "i get every job i really want because the enthusiasm fuels the interview". i can say with certainty it has nothing to do with a lack of ambition. enthusiasm is the only thing i can attribute to offers i've received for positions i wouldn't consider myself qualified for. :)
- posterboy 10y ago
  > the point is not that "i get every job i interviewed for because i'm that good" I'm not reading that in the quoted comment. But still > "i get every job i really want because the enthusiasm fuels the interview". why lead with that, to display confidence? Very well, interesting though that confidence is the argument to be made and so the presentation of the response has to agree with the argument. But that still lacks some sympathy and isn't constructive, when it's addressed at the lack of confidence (which admittedly seem obvious from posting about the issue on HN). > nothing to do with a lack of ambition. enthusiasm is the only thing Interesting, I'm not aware of the difference. I'd say ambition subsumes enthusiasm.
  - catshirt 10y ago
    > Interesting, I'm not aware of the difference. I'd say ambition subsumes enthusiasm. i can understand where your coming from: there is probably truth to the idea that... in general, if you are ambitious you will be enthusiastic or vice versa. but: 1. they are not mutually exclusive. to apply for a job you are underqualified for and disinterested in would be both ambitious and unenthusiastic. in practice this might not really happen but... 2. for the purpose of the interview, any enthusiasm is useless if you don't have the charisma to project it. ambition is more of a factor for you to internalize. it is relative to your own experience. enthusiasm is different. it's more important to externalize. i care if i'm ambitious, the interviewer cares if i'm enthusiastic. i don't want to hire someone who doesn't love the job- and if they love it i don't care if they're overqualified (lacking ambition). > why lead with that, to display confidence? in my experience, this again is more of an internal thing. it's not that externalizing confidence is valuable (probably more of a liability, really). it's that confidence manifests itself in other ways that are inspiring or attractive. for instance, i am pretty humble and sometimes nervous; i hate selling myself. but when i'm genuinely excited for a position, it's easier to suppress the instinct not to brag. > that still lacks some sympathy and isn't constructive ... your mindset needs to be "i'm really excited to apply for this job because it's totally awesome and i can kick it's ass" -- not "i'm applying for this job because i really hate my current job". the right type of confidence and enthusiasm will only come from the former. i realize this argument is kind of... philosophical?, just trying my best to generalize what's lead to any success i've come by :)

santoshalper 10y ago

> Not to be mean spirited In the history of human interaction, has anyone said that and not then followed it up with something arrogant and dickish? > I've gotten every job I've ever interviewed for that I really wanted Of course you have. And the jobs you didn't get you later decided you must not have really wanted enough. I wonder how you would have felt about those jobs if you had gotten them. We get it, you're a super impressive person. You can stop trying so hard to impress us now.

a_t48 10y ago
He may also be in an industry or an area where given a certain bar of quality and a friend at whatever company you are applying to, you get in. From my viewpoint, it's super common in engineering.
- bigmanwalter 10y ago
  He's also probably also a well off, straight, white male.
  - jimmywanger 10y ago
    Based on what? Racist misconceptions about how hiring processes work?
    - lazyasciiart 10y ago
      Why can't it be based on HN demographics?
      - jimmywanger 10y ago
        Which demographics? The one that has never been measured or published? (Except for age, which is not mentioned) Or the one that exists in the stereotypes and imaginations of people futilely trying to find discrimination where there is none?
  - 10y ago

Lapsa 10y ago

"You also have to be able to sell yourself as the perfect fit." - i hate this one most. I don't give a rat's ass about marketing - I'm a developer and not a salesman. 9 of 10 companies are doing this.

sokoloff 10y ago
Some company is trying to determine if you are worth spending $1MM on over the next 5 years. Some humans are trying to figure out if you will be good to work with and make the company stronger. Ignore marketing yourself in the interview process all you like, but you're doing that at your own peril.

Lapsa 10y ago

posterboy 10y ago

> I've gotten every job I've ever interviewed for that I really wanted Thanks for your account of anecdotal evidence. The thread needs more observation bias. edit: I think you are onto something in terms of motivation (vs professional care), don't get my sarcasm wrong, I simply doubt you ever applied to jobs you really really didn't want. Call that survivorship bias or whatever.