> The alternative to this is offering more money, which isn’t even guaranteed to work. This is true, but I feel misses the mark a little. The absolute best de

> The alternative to this is offering more money, which isn’t even guaranteed to work. This is true, but I feel misses the mark a little. The absolute best development job I've had in my 15 odd years of experience was my first job. It wasn't about the technology. What I was using there was completely new to me, down to the text editor and keyboard (vim + Microsoft Natural ergonomic, you should have seen me struggling to do anything learning both at once). It wasn't about the pay. The company was paying an embarrassingly low rate because they were one of two companies in town hiring developers. It wasn't because we had a fancy office or a stocked pantry or beer on tap. We had none of that. No. It was entirely because of the people I worked with. We would all play World of Warcraft after hours. We would joke around at work during the day and eat lunch together. That's it. That's the entire secret to a happy job. And you can't bottle that magic sauce up and sell it at trade shows and conferences. You can't write a book on it. Because it's situational. If you've ever worked at a place like that, then you know what I'm talking about. It has little to do with the company. In fact, the CEO was a bit of a narcissistic slimey toad. Businesses spend a fortune trying to force such an environment through cargo cult. "If we provide X, then developers will show up and work all night." So every company is a "campus" that resembles a college dorm environment. And it all falls flat and infantile. Because we are adults and see it as the pandering it is.