[WrtCdEvrydy]

> can't really quantify attributes like curiosity, ability to learn and ability to listen

You can get a feel for it... ask about personal projects, then follow-up on why. The best candidates will cop to "I wanted to check out the new tech (curiosity)", "I wanted to learn the new programming language (learning)".

Listening is a little bit more difficult to quantify, but we're mostly looking at people who know how to follow the flow of a conversation (a good friend once told me it's like a battle, their side shoots a little bit, we shoot a little bit back and back and forth)

Edit: Some people don't have personal projects and that's fine, you can ask what they would like to learn or if they want to learn something. Someone who just rolls in to write some code for a paycheck is perfectly fine but if someone has a desire to learn something, it's a good trailing indicator.

[Baeocystin]

Having been on both ends of the income spectrum over the years, I am convinced that curiosity/side-project questions are simple proxies for financial stability rather than anything deeper. The only people who will have the time & energy to do such things are ones whose more prosaic needs have been met. FWIW.

[WrtCdEvrydy]

True, it can be a proxy for it but even the desire to want a personal project (it's not a side project, it's not a hussle check) implies the person sees the development field as more than just a paycheck.

Someone seeing the field as just a paycheck will often cease to want to improve themselves, take new challenges and other desired traits.

Sadly, some of these conversations do devolve into some weird eugenics-like items....