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I once gave a person with a PhD and published papers in graph theory a question that could be straightforwardly solved using simple graph algorithms. This pers

• Yoric 2y ago
  Could have been me at some point in my career. One time, I interviewed while on burnout (general startup stress + workplace bullying). The position was a perfect match, but I was so exhausted that I couldn't write a simple loop. I was rejected. After a forced health break, I applied at Mozilla, got hired, shipped code and specs that are currently used on most devices on this planet and at least one in orbit. So, yeah, I'm not a big fan of judging people from their performance in an interview.
  • Paul-Craft 2y ago
    I believe it. But, we also have no good way to distinguish between "guy who is so burnt out he can't write a for loop" and "guy who couldn't write a for loop under ideal circumstances." Even if we did, hiring someone that burnt out just doesn't seem like a great idea. You were a fundamentally different candidate after your forced health break. What do you think the odds are that, had you actually been hired while burnt out, that you could have succeeded at the job at Mozilla? Without the time off, I'm guessing those odds are low. I realize people have to make a living. Believe me, I do. And I don't think people ought to be as heavily penalized for needing to take extended amounts of time off work as they are. But, I also don't see what a company in a capitalist economy can do about it while still remaining competitive.