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I so dislike the ball-gargling exercise of "why do you want to work here?" It's often a "well, I need a job, you're hiring, and what you guys are doing looks a
by Aloha 8y ago
I so dislike the ball-gargling exercise of "why do you want to work here?"
It's often a "well, I need a job, you're hiring, and what you guys are doing looks at least marginally interesting to me" - I ought not need to find whatever product/service/market they're doing/in inspiring - I should just want to do it for the pay offered.
- NotAnEconomist 8y agoI just try to imagine it in other contexts. "Well, your construction firm is well-established and routinely delivers projects on time and under budget, but for this job, we need to know that you believe in our mission -- that deeply impacts your ability to frame walls and pour concrete!" Why can't I just be a professional tradesman?
- Aloha 8y agoIt becomes more absurd the further you get away from employment too
- hopler 8y agoDisgusting language like this doesn't belong on HN.
- ickyforce 8y agoI've noticed that I was interpreting the question incorrectly. In the past I thought it was "why did you chose this company over all others?". But if you think of it as "what aspects of our company do you find interesting?" it becomes a quite regular question which I can easily answer honestly.
- pleasecalllater 8y ago"Because I have a weird hobby: I like to live in a flat, I like eating food a couple of times a day, I like to give some food to my kids." ... so the reality is that I need to lie at the interview to get the job, this is so sad.
- jodrellblank 8y agoIt's "why should I hire you, over anyone else?" Given two candidates for a Phd, which do you accept: - the one who needs a Phd because that earns more money (duh!) - the one who has been obsessed with X for years, did research into X, has burning questions and wants to dedicate some years to answering them, and found your place to have the researchers who publish the most relevant, interesting and insightful papers over the last few years. I ought not need to find whatever product/service/market they're doing/in inspiring - I should just want to do it for the pay offered. You don't need to find it interesting. But if another candidate will do it for the pay offered, /and also/ likes the product and has a clear plan for their life, expect them to get the job instead of you. And, expect you'd do better if you /did/ find a job offering where you were also interested and motivated.
- ScottFree 8y agoAll of that is true, but all of that is easily deduced from other parts of the interview. Why ask a question when you know 2/3rds or more of your candidates are going to lie? So much of the modern interview process is essentially filtering for highly skilled liars.
- kradroy 8y agoThis is one of the trick questions they can ask to eliminate idiots. It's basically a creative writing exercise. I have a pretty Sartrean view on work. I play at being my occupation. The career/job doesn't define my existence. Deep down I could care less what I do, but I like to put on a good show.