[toastercat]

I always remember this old blog post: https://aneccodeal.blogspot.com/2014/02/interviewing-for-anx...

I haven't done a whiteboarding interview for a while, but I remember them vividly. Hot flashes, sweating, stomach churning, anytime I'd be asked a question I am definitely capable of answering, my brain would shut down and refuse to start back up again. The most apt thing I could compare it to is stage fright. Even something like simply multiplying 2's would seem impossible to me in that state of mind.

Aside from seeking professional help for dealing with anxiety, I'd recommend programmers with anxiety to avoid whiteboarding interviews [1] or at the very least let it be known ahead of time that you get stage fright.

[1] https://github.com/poteto/hiring-without-whiteboards

[ryandrake]

Yea, the problem with the high-stakes, high-pressure whiteboard-hazing interview is that it is not testing a candidate's problem solving ability. It's testing their comfort level and ability to navigate high-stakes presentation/communication pressure cookers. Which may be great if you're looking for an unflappable smooth talking PM who will be doing presentations to VPs, but probably not great if you are looking for an engineer to solve your software problems while chilling out in their Aeron chair.

That's my big problem (both as an interviewer and as an interviewee) with the current "best practices" in tech interviews. We're evaluating the wrong thing. This is how smooth talking, charismatic phonies breeze through and we find out in 6 months they can't code. Unfortunately by then, they've often gotten themselves promoted to Director.

[fragmede]

thus, take-home interview questions, but unfortunately those can be gamed too. The real one is referrals - someone you know's actually worked with them before and has good things to say, but the idea of a programmer's guild does not jive for some.

[cloverich]

One of my favorite bombs is I was asked a "real" coding question, basically a function that returns some config or another function. Anyways they somewhat lead you into a simple if statement, or a switch in my case, and then dump more examples until you come up with using a map instead. Which is something I didn't do in the interview, and most definitely (implicitly) failed. It wasn't until I was back on my side project, happily solving the same problem but using a map of course (i dont generally use switch statements in my actual code). Oh, duh lol, that's what they were asking me. They probably think I don't know how to program.

That was a turning point for me, because as far as questions go it was very fair. And yet, it had the same effect. 20 interviews later I was acing far more difficult questions, being rather polished (and ahem, interview questions aren't generally very unique). So I guess I interviews at that place too early. Maybe its useful? IDK. For me personally, it seems like really good people have a track record of shipping good stuff (or doing other good things in life), and can generally explain what it is and how it works. They usually have former colleagues you can talk to as well. Some of them even have side projects you can look at. But ah when the interview mill is in full steam, its hard to individualize to the candidate. We have a feature factory sir, and what we need are some good cogs. That's how you maximize the value you achieve from a developer after all!

[racional]

I'd recommend programmers with anxiety to avoid whiteboarding interviews [1] or at the very least let it be known ahead of time that you get stage fright.

Unfortunately acknowledging that you are in any substantive way human is a huge turnoff to these companies.

And approaching them with the suggestion that the interview process should have at least some resemblance to a 2-way street will be seen as a huge red flag, and a sure giveaway as to what an incorrigibly self-entitled primadonna you must be for even brokering that suggestion, as well.