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by freework 4846 days ago
I'm the opposite. I don't want to work with people who I "get along with". I want to work with people who will tell me I'm an idiot when I do something idiotic. I want someone who puts all their effort into creating great technology, not someone who puts all their effort into being liked. I have thick skin, so it doesn't bother me to work with an abrasive person.

That, of course, only applies to programmers. On the other hand, if I'm hiring a salesman, I'd want that person to be the kind of person who puts all their effort into being a likable person. The same goes for hiring managers. Being a likable person will get you far in many positions in a business. Programming is not one of them.

1 comments

We all have thick skin at Tinfoil - we don't want to hire someone who is necessarily liked by everyone, or who won't tell us what is on his/her mind and be honest. We're incredibly transparent, and whether or not we like someone is certainly not the /only/ reason we would hire someone. Honesty and straightforwardness is a trait we value a lot.
For some reason this thread makes me think of this old HN thread:

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=2030433

'iamelgringo (who I miss!) is telling me that just because I feel like I get a good night sleep on 5 hours or whatever it is I get, doesn't mean my sleep quality isn't horrible due to apnea, and that maybe over the long term the apnea might kill me.

I think it's the same with hiring. Everyone thinks they do it well; you look around you, feel like you like everyone you work with, and then write up the process that got you there. What's dangerous is if your current success is a fluke, and the process you set up is a recipe to become insular, or a stepping-stone job for SFBA people, or (worst of all) one of those companies you can't work for if you're a mom --- and I know you personally don't want to be any of these things!

You are awesome and I'd love to work with you someday. I just hate the way you say you hire. :)