Comment by joshstrange | Hacker News Reader

Comment by joshstrange | Hacker News Reader

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On zoom it’s very easy to tell when someone is reading from a script/note/etc vs actually thinking/talking. That’s the quickest way for me to immediately pass on an interviewee.

It’s fine if I’ve asked you if you have any questions for me about the company/job but if I ask you about your experience or your thoughts on a topic and you starting reading then we’re done.

I already don’t like it when people parrot my company’s marketing site back at me. Saying “I see on your site you say X” is fine but trying to work it in naturally (as if it was their idea) feels forced and borderline deceptive/manipulative. It’s like they are expecting me to say “On wow, we think the same way! How cool that you came to the same conclusion/idea/etc” and not “oh, I see you read our website and are parroting it back”.

It’s the same way that some interviewees with about-face on something they just said when they realize they stepped in it. “I don’t like X language”, “we use X language here…”, “I mean I like X language a lot and can’t wait to write more of it!”. Don’t just tell me what you think I want to hear.

I wish everyone else would use this product as to eliminate themselves from interviews while I just talk.

Years back I even realized that I was far over-preparing for interviews because I like to be prepared. So I had a canned response to basically every question that was going to be asked. Not surprisingly, I didn't get any of those jobs.

Who would have guessed that hiring managers aren't looking to hire robots with zero personality and that an interview is not a trivia game show that the hiring manager is just adding up points from "correct" answers to see who wins and nothing else.

There are sometimes “wrong” answers in an interview but I try not to ask questions that have a “right” answer.

For example: “Describe a production issue you dealt with and how you approached it”. It doesn’t matter what the issue was, how you fixed it, etc. I want to see that you _have_ dealt with a prod issue and also talk through how you solved it or how you debugged the problem.

In an interview I’m trying gauge how you think, how you will interact with me/the team, how you approach problems. If you can talk and explain your reasoning you are already ahead of the pack. The worst thing you can do is freeze up. Give me a stream of consciousness over freezing up any day of the week.

I often ask questions like “What do you think about X tech?” just to get you talking about it, not because I want you to say “I love it” or “I hate it”.

You're spot on – those moments when someone is clearly reading from a script, parroting marketing material, or backpedaling on their opinions are incredibly telling, whether they're using AI help or otherwise. Ultimately, you want to hire someone who is a good fit for the company culture and the role – and that requires authenticity, critical thinking, and a genuine desire to be part of the team.

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