Why even apply to a company if you don't want to use their product?
Some people here seem to think my objection was being asked to use the product. It was actually the content of the message I was asked to send that bothered me. It wasn't "explain how your experience would be useful in this role", or "explain your feelings on the technical aspects of this product". It was something closer to "show me how excited you are to work here".
I don't know why but at the time it felt like being asked to grovel. My stupid pride, I guess.
If you think answering this simple question is a hit on your pride then yeah, you were probably not a good fit.
I'm sure some others can't understand and I view it as a mistake. 2 minutes of performative "I can' wait to be a full stack engineer!" or "we're really going to change he world!" energy might have netted me some big payout? If I passed the interview? Who knows.
It's one thing to have genuine passion for working hard, doing a great job, making a great product. There is something else in being asked to make a video performance of that.
It's something like how I hate leet code. It is almost just a hoop you jump through to prove you are willing to jump through hoops. But I suppose it does provide many companies with a lot of value. And some of those companies end up exiting high. Maybe if I was less prideful I could have taken more advantage.
I find that the expectation of "excitement" from your developers is truly absurd.
Yes startups are all about building great products that users will love. But that love should be organic and authentic, not blind belief.
I suspect that this expectation is likely because most startups are actually bullshit products. Look at all the dumbass crypto startups and now the AI startups. Its become an institution that churns out crap so you need to be able to delude yourself into believing the nonsense to keep doing it repeatedly.
(Also, I still think you didn’t much like the product… :) )