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This is a really important point. Many of the best programmers I've worked with are extremely conscientious people, and I think interview anxiety goes naturally

This is a really important point. Many of the best programmers I've worked with are extremely conscientious people, and I think interview anxiety goes naturally with that. When I'm interviewing people, I work very hard to put them at their ease and discount interview anxiety when I see it. Too many interview processes are tuned for confidence, not actual skill.

jader201 5y ago
Thanks for being empathetic. Not everyone is lucky enough to have empathetic interviewers, and it makes it a really tough experience for them.
- wpietri 5y ago
  For sure. The upside, though, is that an unempathetic interviewer is a hint that it's not a good place to work at. So if I ever walk out of an interview feeling it was awful or unfair, in some sense it's a blessing. Better to know in the interview than after you're hired.
roland35 5y ago
That's a great approach. I try to do the same thing, maybe try to get them to laugh with a witty joke or light comment to lower the stress level. I don't think it helps anybody to put candidates through stress.
- wpietri 5y ago
  For sure. I'm also explicit that the goal of the process is to see them at their best. So they should ask for accommodations. Split it into two parts? Sure! Specific time or day? Sure! Video off or on? Whatever suits you. If they want to look something up, they can look it up. I also try to give them open-ended questions so they can steer toward their strengths. And their strengths are what I care about. Everybody has weaknesses, so finding them in an interview is uninteresting to me unless it's something truly fatal. I want to see them shine, as a) that gives me an idea of their capacity for growth, and b) that's what I'm going to play to when pointing them at work.
pdimitar 5y ago
Thank you for existing and for being what you are.
e-clinton 5y ago
Agree with this. The way I start every interview is attempting to disarm the other person and making them feel at ease. I kick back and try and make the conversation as casual and amicable as possible, even if I notice that they aren’t a good fit along the way.
Jensson 5y ago
> extremely conscientious people, and I think interview anxiety goes naturally with that. No, conscientiousness doesn't correlate that much with neuroticism. You can care about the results without getting cripplingly anxious, the anxiety isn't a good thing.
- wpietri 5y ago
  I agree one can care without getting "cripplingly anxious". But you're ignoring how being anxious can definitely make you conscientious, something very helpful in work where fussbudgetry is half the job. If you have evidence that software developers and sysadmins are no more anxious that the average person, I'd be interested to see it. But my experience is definitely different.

jader201 5y ago

Thanks for being empathetic. Not everyone is lucky enough to have empathetic interviewers, and it makes it a really tough experience for them.

wpietri 5y ago
For sure. The upside, though, is that an unempathetic interviewer is a hint that it's not a good place to work at. So if I ever walk out of an interview feeling it was awful or unfair, in some sense it's a blessing. Better to know in the interview than after you're hired.

roland35 5y ago

That's a great approach. I try to do the same thing, maybe try to get them to laugh with a witty joke or light comment to lower the stress level. I don't think it helps anybody to put candidates through stress.

wpietri 5y ago
For sure. I'm also explicit that the goal of the process is to see them at their best. So they should ask for accommodations. Split it into two parts? Sure! Specific time or day? Sure! Video off or on? Whatever suits you. If they want to look something up, they can look it up. I also try to give them open-ended questions so they can steer toward their strengths. And their strengths are what I care about. Everybody has weaknesses, so finding them in an interview is uninteresting to me unless it's something truly fatal. I want to see them shine, as a) that gives me an idea of their capacity for growth, and b) that's what I'm going to play to when pointing them at work.

pdimitar 5y ago

Thank you for existing and for being what you are.

e-clinton 5y ago

Agree with this. The way I start every interview is attempting to disarm the other person and making them feel at ease. I kick back and try and make the conversation as casual and amicable as possible, even if I notice that they aren’t a good fit along the way.

Jensson 5y ago

> extremely conscientious people, and I think interview anxiety goes naturally with that. No, conscientiousness doesn't correlate that much with neuroticism. You can care about the results without getting cripplingly anxious, the anxiety isn't a good thing.

wpietri 5y ago
I agree one can care without getting "cripplingly anxious". But you're ignoring how being anxious can definitely make you conscientious, something very helpful in work where fussbudgetry is half the job. If you have evidence that software developers and sysadmins are no more anxious that the average person, I'd be interested to see it. But my experience is definitely different.