4 ms·

Biz Stone: How I Faked My Way into Google (2013)

62 points by orky56 12y ago

aytekin 12y ago
Read the book instead. It is really, really good: http://www.amazon.com/Things-Little-Bird-Told-Me-ebook/dp/B00ECEA35C/ http://www.amazon.com/Things-Little-Bird-Told-Me-ebook/dp/B0...
tingley 12y ago
This is not an uncommon SV story archetype, but as many people have pointed out before me, it's one that highlights the concept of privilege with particular clarity. In the US, both men and white people are more aggressive at this sort of bluff than non-men and non-white people, and there are strong implications that this is because it's a much easier bluff for them.
SurfScore 12y ago
Does Google still refuse to hire people unless they have computer science degrees? In this day and age that doesn't make sense.
- thrownaway2424 12y ago
  Google hasn't ever done that.
  - SurfScore 12y ago
    The story says "Google had a reputation of hiring only people with computer science degrees." Dunno if it's true or not, I'm just curious.
    - gatehouse 12y ago
      Keep in mind this was 2003, Google had less than 2000 employees then.
    - jpatokal 12y ago
      It's never been an absolute policy, but they certainly used to prefer people with degrees; it's an easy filter when you've got a million CVs a year to parse through. HR found it was useless as a predictor of success, though, and the policy was officially dropped last year: http://www.businessinsider.com.au/google-hiring-non-graduates-2013-6 http://www.businessinsider.com.au/google-hiring-non-graduate...
    - deleted 12y ago
      [deleted]
- deleted 12y ago
  [deleted]
- tingley 12y ago
  For technical positions, this was never a requirement afaik. For at least some non-technical positions, a college degree was required, although not for any reason I ever understood.
- georgemcbay 12y ago
  "Does Google still refuse to hire people unless they have computer science degrees?" No. "In this day and age that doesn't make sense." It didn't make sense when they semi-officially had that policy either, particularly if you consider how relatively young of a company Google is (granted, "young" is subjective, I'm 40 years old). But when you're incubated in academia and turn out to be very successful, it is easy to think that your best bet is to keep one and a half feet firmly planted in that world. Of course, Google isn't/wasn't alone, lots of companies have lots of policies that don't really make any sense outside of whatever echo chamber they've created for themselves.
paul9290 12y ago
Great story, but that's a diamond in the rough of start-up stories. For me I'm living like a pauper - broke, in debt, family-less (g/f of many years wants stability before we have a kid) and well right now I'm not sure why I chose this path the past 7 years (2 start-ups). I do have a nifty/interesting resume, a lot of cool stories/experiences of my own that a day job would never provide and an idea of mine has been copied/worked on by dozens including one that now has 1.5 million users/raised $3 million (not me though). IS it all worth it? EDIT: I find myself asking this question when the rollercoaster slows down (slow times/nothing exciting happening .. heads down development). Currently, the coaster is going 10MPH, though two/three weeks ago it was going 100MPH.
- lotsofmangos 12y ago
  No. Nothing is worth it and we are all dead in the end. If you had fun though? Fun is something else and isn't really to do with worth. You could have been born in a cave and chased rabbits all day. Would that have been worth it?
  - deleted 12y ago
    [deleted]
  - reduce 12y ago
    Fun is definitely not the reason that I do startups. It's similar to when I did cross-country running for a few years. That wasn't fun at all, not even once. It was painful. I'd say that I did it just because of competitive instincts.
- deleted 12y ago
  [deleted]
- icelancer 12y ago
  Who knows. I'm right there with you, though I have 1 child and 1 more on the way I am supporting with a below-median salary in my area (not SV, but not a cheap place to live either). But here's what I do know: When I was working as a data scientist, making $150k+ with 3 days WFH and six hour days, my life looked "great" from the outside. I made a ton of money, got to work from home, and worked on a respectable product predicting tax rates. Inside, I hated everything I did and my family suffered. I strongly considered quitting and going back to waiting tables and walking away from the (often) parasitic industry that is software development, full of "bullshit jobs" as one analyst has so eloquently put it. I now work as a sports scientist and I've sold 40% of my company to hire a partner who really completes the business. We did six figures of revenue last year and we'll do seven in 2-3 years. But it's not about the money, is it? It's about the fact we get to decide our own path. And for me, that's all that I needed to become a happier person, better husband, and good father. The money can wait, I've found.
MarioSpeedwagon 12y ago
Anybody else just have the take-away of, "Man, what a colossal douche"? Really discouraging to me re: acting like a totally overconfident tool and liar more so than encouraging re: success.

62 points by orky56 12y ago

Read the book instead. It is really, really good: http://www.amazon.com/Things-Little-Bird-Told-Me-ebook/dp/B00ECEA35C/ http://www.amazon.com/Things-Little-Bird-Told-Me-ebook/dp/B0...

tingley 12y ago

This is not an uncommon SV story archetype, but as many people have pointed out before me, it's one that highlights the concept of privilege with particular clarity. In the US, both men and white people are more aggressive at this sort of bluff than non-men and non-white people, and there are strong implications that this is because it's a much easier bluff for them.

SurfScore 12y ago

Does Google still refuse to hire people unless they have computer science degrees? In this day and age that doesn't make sense.

thrownaway2424 12y ago
Google hasn't ever done that.
- SurfScore 12y ago
  The story says "Google had a reputation of hiring only people with computer science degrees." Dunno if it's true or not, I'm just curious.
  - gatehouse 12y ago
    Keep in mind this was 2003, Google had less than 2000 employees then.
  - jpatokal 12y ago
    It's never been an absolute policy, but they certainly used to prefer people with degrees; it's an easy filter when you've got a million CVs a year to parse through. HR found it was useless as a predictor of success, though, and the policy was officially dropped last year: http://www.businessinsider.com.au/google-hiring-non-graduates-2013-6 http://www.businessinsider.com.au/google-hiring-non-graduate...
  - deleted 12y ago
    [deleted]
deleted 12y ago
[deleted]
tingley 12y ago
For technical positions, this was never a requirement afaik. For at least some non-technical positions, a college degree was required, although not for any reason I ever understood.
georgemcbay 12y ago
"Does Google still refuse to hire people unless they have computer science degrees?" No. "In this day and age that doesn't make sense." It didn't make sense when they semi-officially had that policy either, particularly if you consider how relatively young of a company Google is (granted, "young" is subjective, I'm 40 years old). But when you're incubated in academia and turn out to be very successful, it is easy to think that your best bet is to keep one and a half feet firmly planted in that world. Of course, Google isn't/wasn't alone, lots of companies have lots of policies that don't really make any sense outside of whatever echo chamber they've created for themselves.

paul9290 12y ago

Great story, but that's a diamond in the rough of start-up stories. For me I'm living like a pauper - broke, in debt, family-less (g/f of many years wants stability before we have a kid) and well right now I'm not sure why I chose this path the past 7 years (2 start-ups). I do have a nifty/interesting resume, a lot of cool stories/experiences of my own that a day job would never provide and an idea of mine has been copied/worked on by dozens including one that now has 1.5 million users/raised $3 million (not me though). IS it all worth it? EDIT: I find myself asking this question when the rollercoaster slows down (slow times/nothing exciting happening .. heads down development). Currently, the coaster is going 10MPH, though two/three weeks ago it was going 100MPH.

lotsofmangos 12y ago
No. Nothing is worth it and we are all dead in the end. If you had fun though? Fun is something else and isn't really to do with worth. You could have been born in a cave and chased rabbits all day. Would that have been worth it?
- deleted 12y ago
  [deleted]
- reduce 12y ago
  Fun is definitely not the reason that I do startups. It's similar to when I did cross-country running for a few years. That wasn't fun at all, not even once. It was painful. I'd say that I did it just because of competitive instincts.
deleted 12y ago
[deleted]
icelancer 12y ago
Who knows. I'm right there with you, though I have 1 child and 1 more on the way I am supporting with a below-median salary in my area (not SV, but not a cheap place to live either). But here's what I do know: When I was working as a data scientist, making $150k+ with 3 days WFH and six hour days, my life looked "great" from the outside. I made a ton of money, got to work from home, and worked on a respectable product predicting tax rates. Inside, I hated everything I did and my family suffered. I strongly considered quitting and going back to waiting tables and walking away from the (often) parasitic industry that is software development, full of "bullshit jobs" as one analyst has so eloquently put it. I now work as a sports scientist and I've sold 40% of my company to hire a partner who really completes the business. We did six figures of revenue last year and we'll do seven in 2-3 years. But it's not about the money, is it? It's about the fact we get to decide our own path. And for me, that's all that I needed to become a happier person, better husband, and good father. The money can wait, I've found.

MarioSpeedwagon 12y ago

Anybody else just have the take-away of, "Man, what a colossal douche"? Really discouraging to me re: acting like a totally overconfident tool and liar more so than encouraging re: success.