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No, I have irons in the fire. I won't deny that it got me down, and I know that's coming across. Thank you for the support, I really appreciate it.

foobarbazqux 13y ago
It may be worth a free half-hour conversation with a lawyer about whatever is on your record, even if you don't want to sue. Maybe they can make it go away.
jfarmer 13y ago
Ok, well, here's how I'd approach it. There are three classes of companies: those that will ding you for your past, those that don't care about your past, and those that will embrace your past. One strategy is to try to hide your past, figuring it won't hurt you with the latter two and might incrementally help you with the former. I wouldn't adopt this strategy. Instead, assuming it truly is "minor," I'd own it. Write a blog post about how your past has made it harder for you to find work. Talk about what you did, specifically, and all your feelings about it then and now. Don't name names of companies, but perhaps share some (anonymized) stories. Whatever you do, it can't sound like sour grapes. You have to be magnanimous to the last drop. You have to swallow every last bite of indignation you have. You need to say and believe things like, "If I'm honest with myself, I can understand why Company X made the decision they did even if I felt they handled it inappropriately and ultimately made the wrong decision for the wrong reason." Try to tie it into a larger story, perhaps raising questions about whether the tech world is really a meritocracy, e.g., "Silicon Valley is a Meritocracy, Unless You Broke the Law as a Kid." Maybe try to reach out to other folks who have had similar experiences, e.g., "Are you an engineer whose past makes it hard for you to find work? You're not alone." The response on this thread alone should be good enough evidence that folks would be interested in the story. This will do a few things. First, it gets you exposure. Second, it immediately gets the attention of folks in the neutral and positive camps. The former will go, "WTF? We don't care about this. How stupid of people to reject a candidate for those reasons; let's interview him." The latter will go, "Holy shit! This is our kind of guy; let's interview him!" You have nothing to lose, really, because this information is going to come out over the course of any interview no matter what. Turn it into your armor rather than resign yourself to having a sword in your belly.
- throwaway86 13y ago
  I'm toeing the water here anonymously, if it's not obvious, and have thought of that precise thing. Perhaps a mailing list or advocacy group of engineers with problematic backgrounds, and assistance to companies that don't deal with this often. This is a community of hackers in both senses of the word. Computer Tampering is a felony on the same level as manslaughter in one place I've lived. I like your thinking. I've also e-mailed you, and appreciate your advice, yet again.

foobarbazqux 13y ago

It may be worth a free half-hour conversation with a lawyer about whatever is on your record, even if you don't want to sue. Maybe they can make it go away.

jfarmer 13y ago

Ok, well, here's how I'd approach it. There are three classes of companies: those that will ding you for your past, those that don't care about your past, and those that will embrace your past. One strategy is to try to hide your past, figuring it won't hurt you with the latter two and might incrementally help you with the former. I wouldn't adopt this strategy. Instead, assuming it truly is "minor," I'd own it. Write a blog post about how your past has made it harder for you to find work. Talk about what you did, specifically, and all your feelings about it then and now. Don't name names of companies, but perhaps share some (anonymized) stories. Whatever you do, it can't sound like sour grapes. You have to be magnanimous to the last drop. You have to swallow every last bite of indignation you have. You need to say and believe things like, "If I'm honest with myself, I can understand why Company X made the decision they did even if I felt they handled it inappropriately and ultimately made the wrong decision for the wrong reason." Try to tie it into a larger story, perhaps raising questions about whether the tech world is really a meritocracy, e.g., "Silicon Valley is a Meritocracy, Unless You Broke the Law as a Kid." Maybe try to reach out to other folks who have had similar experiences, e.g., "Are you an engineer whose past makes it hard for you to find work? You're not alone." The response on this thread alone should be good enough evidence that folks would be interested in the story. This will do a few things. First, it gets you exposure. Second, it immediately gets the attention of folks in the neutral and positive camps. The former will go, "WTF? We don't care about this. How stupid of people to reject a candidate for those reasons; let's interview him." The latter will go, "Holy shit! This is our kind of guy; let's interview him!" You have nothing to lose, really, because this information is going to come out over the course of any interview no matter what. Turn it into your armor rather than resign yourself to having a sword in your belly.

throwaway86 13y ago
I'm toeing the water here anonymously, if it's not obvious, and have thought of that precise thing. Perhaps a mailing list or advocacy group of engineers with problematic backgrounds, and assistance to companies that don't deal with this often. This is a community of hackers in both senses of the word. Computer Tampering is a felony on the same level as manslaughter in one place I've lived. I like your thinking. I've also e-mailed you, and appreciate your advice, yet again.