When interest rates are zero and we are doing like 3 interviews a week because of everything that is open, then yes, candidates generally get selected on this bare minimum.
Now, after layoffs, and the fact that Amazon doesn't hire entry level engineers anymore, the bar is much higher'
We say grind out Leetcode, because if someone can't do a Leetcode medium (or hard) like finding a cycle in a linked list in a few minutes, it diminishes their chances of getting into FAANG. It might be the bare minimum nowadays, but if they can't do even that, it is where they should start.
We're not telling people to grind Leetcode because we think Leetcode is great, we're telling people to grind Leetcode because this is usually one of the steps you need to do to get in.
From my personal experience, those people even during the pandemic hiring craze weren't making it in. Because once I start asking you questions about your experience, things quickly fall apart if you don't understand software dev
I dunno how other companies work, but when it came to Amazon, if you were struggling with a coding problem, and I gave you a hint on the solution, and you ran with it, usually that wasn't a big concern if you could talk about your experience (even during basic college projects), where you showed evidence of being able to deferentially think about things, not just follow patterns that you have been taught.
I do agree that you should know how to do Leetcode and spend time practicing, but grinding them out isn't what I would recommend. The vast majority of Leetcode medium problems are some form of pointer manipulation, linked list (single, trees, or n way like Trie structure), and some O Log N search, which usually involves a sorted data set. The key to learn is how to map a problem into those things, and how to operate on them, not how to solve a specific set of problems.
Its the same reason why ECE/EE people usually have no issue getting coding jobs at FAANG, because they are so used to low level memory operations and optimizations on how to do stuff that they can easily recognize the patterns.
If you can take the heat, public shaming always works and also makes other people aware. If you want to remain anonymous, moving on is probably the best option.
What happened to you is called brewdogging, named after a similar public shaming:
Ignore all the gaslighters telling you maybe the company didn't steal your idea and some fantasy happened where they thought about it themselves. They didn't, the CTO definitely stole it.
If it was me and I had proof I would send an invoice and then sue if not paid. If I didn't have proof I would just write about it and share everywhere and prepare to fight. When I was younger and more naive I also accepted it and moved on. That's also an option.
Whatever you do, be very very careful from now on. Job interviews and hiring changed, it's all about power and self-preservation now. The people doing the hiring will rob and destroy you if it makes them look good to their bosses.
Invoicing or bleating on social media is great advice if you want to (i) make some lawyers slightly richer, most of them at your own expense and/or (ii) spend the rest of your life wondering why you don't seem to be getting job interviews...
Following the suggestion of somebody who thinks that people who follow their suggestions should be invoiced for an arbitrary amount or publicly shamed would seem like a bad idea regardless ;)
This reads like satire and his email to developers is very similar to spam.
I really liked this part:
I demand the best work from you. I expect the best from you. You will be challenged. You will grow. And your skills will sharpen. If you like to settle on being average and do average work, this is not your project.
The dev was probably the CTO for several years. When Dane stepped down from the CEO position he asked Rajesh if he wanted to take over.
Dane used this process over ten times. Paperless Pipeline is probably the most successful example and semi-documented.
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I think if you offer an appealing opportunity, you don't have to offer the most money. There are many other things you can offer (as outlined in that PDF).
Recently I almost took a project for 40% of my normal rate. Fortunately things worked out and I negotiated 80% of my rate, even though I should probably increase my rate.
It's $150k in 2024 dollars assuming 40 hours/week, which I would consider pretty decent for a minimum - a bit above median depending on who you ask.
The document itself I agree has some parts which are a bit over-the-top but that's probably the case for all hiring advice. When you list the qualities of the perfect candidate out on paper it's guaranteed to look ridiculous.
The best candidates are probably the ones already employed, maybe even employed in a cushy 9-5 company making $400K. As an employer, you need to think about what are you offering that's so much better than what they already have in their hand, that would make them willing to walk away from a sure thing and take a risk by joining your company. You gotta give them what they're already making plus a risk premium.
You don't have to pay that risk premium to someone currently unemployed, but what are the odds that you find your senior Founding Engineer from that pool?
