4 ms·

You probably would not get hired.

by dmor 14y ago

kevin_morrill 14y ago
Actually, people that think about this for a while are the ones I like the most. The people that race right in without thinking about it tend to perform the worst. One of the very best candidates I saw actually just wrote their outline on the whiteboard from the start. When I asked them a distracting question they paused a second, looked at the whiteboard, and said "Wait a minute, this will stop us from finishing in 5 minutes. Would you like me to answer this or finish?"
jamesbritt 14y ago
You probably would not get hired. Probably not. But what does that say about this particular technique? There's the ability to explain something, and there's the ability to perform under sudden pressure. I would give candidates some period of time (say, 10 minutes, if they needed that long) to select a topic first.
- king_magic 14y ago
  Well, at the same time, I wouldn't be able to do my job if I didn't have the ability to perform under sudden pressure.
  - vacri 14y ago
    There are different kinds of pressure. I went to lunch with a coworker who was very good at dealing with the pressure of running the shipping pipeline. Someone started having a seizure in front of us. I stepped in and dealt with it (ex-neuro) while she was paralysed and unable to do anything but watch in horror.
- mgkimsal 14y ago
  I'm not sure going in to a job interview is 'sudden pressure'. You've often had days or weeks in preparation for that 30-60 minute meeting.
  - freehunter 14y ago
    But it's not a common question, and wildly uncommon questions in an interview can cause even great minds to seize. Interviewing for a tech support job years ago was the most difficult interview I'd ever been in, because the manager didn't stick to the script, so to speak. He threw out random questions, completely unrelated to the job, in a rapid fire manner. Just to see if he could throw you off, to see if he could get you to seize. What is your favorite book? I like the Hitchhiker's Gu-What was the last song playing on your drive over here? It was Lola by The Ki-What color shirt are you wearing, without looking down? You can prepare for an interview. And the interviewer can prepare to surprise you. The sudden pressure is when you're asked an important question that you had no knowledge was going to be asked.
- ctdonath 14y ago
  You've scheduled a half-hour with a candidate (or explain why longer), and you're going to sit in silence for 10 minutes just so s/he can pick a starting point for a 5 minute monolog on any topic? Given the option to talk about anything, I'd be concerned if the candidate couldn't pick something in 10 seconds. Summary of last book read, semantic difference between method calls in C++ vs Objective-C, sewing, recreational ballistics, sociopolitical solutions to poverty, ... something? I could spend the allotted 5 minutes just reviewing topics I could go on for 5 minutes about.
  - nialo 14y ago
    Having a thing that you can talk for 5 minutes about and being able to actually _pick just one thing_ under sudden pressure are very different things. I understand the time pressure issues, but understand that you are also testing this other skill of being able to respond with that questions.
  - nerfhammer 14y ago
    What would you be concerned about? Giving a spontaneous monologue to someone judging you is something many people actually find quite intimidating, even though some others may find it quite natural. It's something they teach in toastmasters or improv classes.
    - ctdonath 14y ago
      It's part of social success (and business, from development to sales, is a social activity). There WILL be times when a moment will occur where you must take a barely-formed thought and run with it, taking someone else from zero to competence, in mere minutes; to not do so is to miss a valuable opportunity. Be it making an unexpected sales pitch, explaining a non-obvious technical solution that just occurred to you during a design meeting, discussing last night's political debate, or describing your hobby to an attractive new acquaintance, success often depends on succinct explanations without preparation. The point of the exercise isn't the content per se, it's the demonstration of ability to present concepts (any concept) clearly, and perhaps convincingly, on short notice. Yes, it can be intimidating. Yes, it's an unplanned speech to a judgmental audience; such is the real world. There's a reason it's taught as a tool for success. I had to figure it out on my own. Survival and success can depend on it. Heck, here I am taking 5 minutes, unexpectedly, trying to explain to you - a judgmental audience - regarding a random topic. If you get my point (convincing notwithstanding) then I pass the test. If a candidate can't do likewise on the topic of his choice, I can't expect as much when the topic is not.
- mason55 14y ago
  > I would give candidates some period of time (say, 10 minutes, if they needed that long) to select a topic first. It appears you would not be hired because of your lack of reading comprehension. The article clearly states that you have as much time as you want to gather your thoughts and it's a bad sign if a candidate starts right away.
  - bduerst 14y ago
    The article is down, is it not? Edit: NVM, the website is back up.
    - jamesbritt 14y ago
      It was down when I was posting, and I went off a shortened version of the question as summarized in another comment. People late to the discussion may want to consider reading more comments before sniping at earlier posts.

You probably would not get hired.

by dmor 14y ago

You probably would not get hired.

Actually, people that think about this for a while are the ones I like the most. The people that race right in without thinking about it tend to perform the worst. One of the very best candidates I saw actually just wrote their outline on the whiteboard from the start. When I asked them a distracting question they paused a second, looked at the whiteboard, and said "Wait a minute, this will stop us from finishing in 5 minutes. Would you like me to answer this or finish?"

jamesbritt 14y ago

You probably would not get hired. Probably not. But what does that say about this particular technique? There's the ability to explain something, and there's the ability to perform under sudden pressure. I would give candidates some period of time (say, 10 minutes, if they needed that long) to select a topic first.

king_magic 14y ago
Well, at the same time, I wouldn't be able to do my job if I didn't have the ability to perform under sudden pressure.
- vacri 14y ago
  There are different kinds of pressure. I went to lunch with a coworker who was very good at dealing with the pressure of running the shipping pipeline. Someone started having a seizure in front of us. I stepped in and dealt with it (ex-neuro) while she was paralysed and unable to do anything but watch in horror.
mgkimsal 14y ago
I'm not sure going in to a job interview is 'sudden pressure'. You've often had days or weeks in preparation for that 30-60 minute meeting.
- freehunter 14y ago
  But it's not a common question, and wildly uncommon questions in an interview can cause even great minds to seize. Interviewing for a tech support job years ago was the most difficult interview I'd ever been in, because the manager didn't stick to the script, so to speak. He threw out random questions, completely unrelated to the job, in a rapid fire manner. Just to see if he could throw you off, to see if he could get you to seize. What is your favorite book? I like the Hitchhiker's Gu-What was the last song playing on your drive over here? It was Lola by The Ki-What color shirt are you wearing, without looking down? You can prepare for an interview. And the interviewer can prepare to surprise you. The sudden pressure is when you're asked an important question that you had no knowledge was going to be asked.
ctdonath 14y ago
You've scheduled a half-hour with a candidate (or explain why longer), and you're going to sit in silence for 10 minutes just so s/he can pick a starting point for a 5 minute monolog on any topic? Given the option to talk about anything, I'd be concerned if the candidate couldn't pick something in 10 seconds. Summary of last book read, semantic difference between method calls in C++ vs Objective-C, sewing, recreational ballistics, sociopolitical solutions to poverty, ... something? I could spend the allotted 5 minutes just reviewing topics I could go on for 5 minutes about.
- nialo 14y ago
  Having a thing that you can talk for 5 minutes about and being able to actually _pick just one thing_ under sudden pressure are very different things. I understand the time pressure issues, but understand that you are also testing this other skill of being able to respond with that questions.
- nerfhammer 14y ago
  What would you be concerned about? Giving a spontaneous monologue to someone judging you is something many people actually find quite intimidating, even though some others may find it quite natural. It's something they teach in toastmasters or improv classes.
  - ctdonath 14y ago
    It's part of social success (and business, from development to sales, is a social activity). There WILL be times when a moment will occur where you must take a barely-formed thought and run with it, taking someone else from zero to competence, in mere minutes; to not do so is to miss a valuable opportunity. Be it making an unexpected sales pitch, explaining a non-obvious technical solution that just occurred to you during a design meeting, discussing last night's political debate, or describing your hobby to an attractive new acquaintance, success often depends on succinct explanations without preparation. The point of the exercise isn't the content per se, it's the demonstration of ability to present concepts (any concept) clearly, and perhaps convincingly, on short notice. Yes, it can be intimidating. Yes, it's an unplanned speech to a judgmental audience; such is the real world. There's a reason it's taught as a tool for success. I had to figure it out on my own. Survival and success can depend on it. Heck, here I am taking 5 minutes, unexpectedly, trying to explain to you - a judgmental audience - regarding a random topic. If you get my point (convincing notwithstanding) then I pass the test. If a candidate can't do likewise on the topic of his choice, I can't expect as much when the topic is not.
mason55 14y ago
> I would give candidates some period of time (say, 10 minutes, if they needed that long) to select a topic first. It appears you would not be hired because of your lack of reading comprehension. The article clearly states that you have as much time as you want to gather your thoughts and it's a bad sign if a candidate starts right away.
- bduerst 14y ago
  The article is down, is it not? Edit: NVM, the website is back up.
  - jamesbritt 14y ago
    It was down when I was posting, and I went off a shortened version of the question as summarized in another comment. People late to the discussion may want to consider reading more comments before sniping at earlier posts.