If you pay peanuts, you get monkeys | Hacker News Reader

If you pay peanuts, you get monkeys

2 pointspuente1 comment

Hi there!

Where do I find “good” programmers in the Valley? Is there a newspaper, a forum, blog, cafeteria, event, etc get in contact with good programmers?

I will hopefully move soon to the Valley to found a company. I’m a programmer myself, but I will need some help. 1 or 2 good programmers that I can trust will do. They will obviously get a portion of the company! Motivation is everything, and unfortunately salary won’t be high at the beginning.

The problem is that I live abroad and I don’t know too much people there. I know a lot of “good” programmers but they all live abroad. I guess they won’t be able to come to the US due to the green card!

So how do I get in touch with “good” programmers in the Valley?

Thanks in advanced!

1. Skills are subjective to whomever is interviewing and just because they got the coding chops does not mean they're a good fit for you or your company. This is something you must do in person. Online chats can only take you so far. People here have a hard enough time finding solid coders in person, if you think you'll luck out by finding someone you can work well after a few online chats, you're walking a thin line.

2. The best source for recruiting people are face to face interactions and personal recommendations from people you actually know. Outside of this, you're taking a wild stab in the dark.

3. I don't see any solid value proposition that you're providing that any other given person seeking a cofounder hasn't already provided aka low wage + equity. What's new?! Worse, you're not even a US Citizen and the Startup VISA movement hasn't actually happened so in order for you to get your green card status, you may need to come here to work on a sponsorship first. That leaves a lot of iffy rooms for anyone wanting to jump on board.

I'm sure I left out a bunch of other stuff I could be ranting about but if you want to find talented people, get your butt overhere and do it in person.

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