Comment by bheadmaster | Hacker News Reader

Comment by bheadmaster | Hacker News Reader

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> I'm curious what this means to you

In short, it means that doing things better (e.g. making a piece of software faster) for the sake of things being done better is praised, not tolerated, as is the case in the many "let's just ship it, we'll fix it later" software companies.

> when I see people from inside Twitter correct him on Twitter, with specific technical statements describing what's going on—and then he fires them

As far as I remember, the guy just said something along the lines "as the person who actually works on this, it's not 1000 RPCs.", to which Elon asked for a specific number, the guy replied with vague answers like "it only does like 50 RPCs all of which are async, but the software is full of bloat and various features slowing them down" which sounded nothing like "specific technical statements" to me. But I can't find the Tweet thread right now, so I won't stand by this opinion completely.

Regardless - even assuming the guy is 100% in the right - I don't think that publicly going against your boss in such a passive-aggressive way, at the same time portraying him as "the guy that doesn't know what he's talking about", is a right way of handling false information. Maybe another engineer told him 1000s of RPCs are being made, or he just made a hyperbole for the sake of explanation. Benefit of doubt, and all that.

Being rude will get you fired, no matter how right you are, that's kind of a given.

How can you characterize Twitter's current modus operandi under Musk as anything but "let's just ship it, we'll fix it later"? They're on iteration 5 or 6 of the checkmarks within the last week.

I have no reliable information about the current modus operandi under Musk, nor about modus operandi of any of his companies. I just have a vague feeling derived from the random information about his companies and employees I've read over the years.

It's very possible that it's just smoke and mirrors, but if I were given an offer, I'd at least try it for a while. If it's true, I gain a lot - if it's false, I gain a useful reference in my CV.

you give him benefit of the doubt, a bit too much.

Frankly, if I were evaluating a job candidate and I saw that they joined Twitter after Elon, I’d see it as huge red flag.

Frankly, if someone judges people for working somewhere, regardless of the circumstances, I would see that as a huge red flag.

working somewhere, briefly. not too much of a red flag

working somewhere a while and thriving in that environment? But I get it, ethics can easily fly out the window when you choose, especially when there's alot of money in play to bribe your feelings.

If you're impying recruiters would see someone thriving in Twitter under Elon as a bad thing, you're either deeply deluded and have no idea how recruitment works, projecting your own subjective feelings onto the whole industry, or a paid shill hired to badmouth Elon on the internet.

Let me clarify my original comment. It's not just about the company name on your résumé. It's about what your stint there says about you. If I sensed that a candidate saw the environment that Elon is creating at Twitter as a positive thing? Huge red flag. And if someone joined after seeing how Elon wants to run things, I'm gonna assume they're into it. I don't want that productivity-destroying toxicity anywhere near me or my team.

With regard to how recruitment works, I've never been on a team where a recruiter got final say over whether someone is hired. As an engineer, I've had a lot of say in that decision many times. As for whether those feelings are projected, well… just look at which way the sentiment is going in this thread. Would you really want to take that gamble?

I'll work wherever I want, thank you for your input. If you consider a person "toxic" for suceeding in whatever environment you dislike personally, perhaps it is you who is toxic.

If you want to work for Elon, go for it! I’m not trying to dissuade you. But don’t be surprised when people infer from that what type of work environment you value.

Not disagreeing with your vague intuitions but just the point you made about shipping incomplete features and fixing them on the fly. You don't need reliable insider information to know that's what they're doing—you just need to download the Twitter app and watch the verified/official checks changing right in front of you.

This is another point. People who have been at twitter have known what works and what does not. Elon comes out of nowhere, thinks he knows better, and has people actually spend countless hours extra on these stupid ideas. And then spend extra, extra hours to reverse and try something else.

Ridiculous IMO.

When the guy says stupid stuff, it would be "RUDE" to not correct him. But in his opinion, he thinks it is "rude" to correct him.

He is on a power trip.

I second everything you said about fostering a competitive no bs environment. Reminds me of Jeff Bezos. But Musk's behavior is toxic. Treating people outside the firm (like customers getting into accidents with self drive and losing their life, or journalists critiquing his cars) with disrespect and annihilation is one thing. But treating your own people who you rely on to get stuff done, is entirely another. If the head is garbage, the body is too.

Musk is garbage, and when unbridled, we can see it in its full ugliness.

I'm talking specifically about publicly tweeting a passive-aggressive rebuttal whose only purpose is to imply "this guy has no idea what he's talking about", not about correcting people in general. Try doing that when your boss says something "stupid" and see how that goes for you.

I have enough leverage in any conversation, that bosses don't have much choice other than to entertain the idea. I use this "leverage" to build further reputation as the person who only talks in the benefit of others.

But Elon has this "my way or highway" blinded racehorse mentality. He overruns people if he doesn't get his way.

> I have enough leverage in any conversation, that bosses don't have much choice other than to entertain the idea

So you're saying you can be passive-aggressive all you want and your bosses can't fire you?

Well, good for you. You've reached Dr. House status. Enjoy it while it lasts.

Thank you. Funny you mention Dr. House. I never understood his appeal until now.

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