Yeah I'm getting a lot of pressure to be a "team player" lately. I've told them over and over I'm not capable of that and that has never been a problem before. But we have a hipster new VP who is really pushy and wants to generalise everything.
You might be a 100x rockstar developer. You might even be the best software engineer in the world.
But the vast majority of good software is built by teams of people. It doesn't matter how good you are if you can't play nice with others.
I'd rather have a team of "merely" good engineers than one "rockstar" creating a toxic work culture. Fuck that noise.
This generally means the person might not leave their cubicle much or give feedback frequent enough, but this doesn't mean they are not motivated to help others or share knowledge. One can approach and ask a question and get tons of help immediately.
How I know? That's me. I look like a cave dweller from a distance, but I'm not. The only difference I have is human interaction sometimes drains me a lot, so I just concentrate and work, yet everybody get their help immediately if they need them.
Also, no, I don't bite or belittle people. On the contrary.
Assuming the worst in others is bad. If I worked with you, I'd be looking for somewhere else the moment I found out how you think about me.
Remember. People don't leave bad jobs, but bad managers.
Yes if you put a someone who can't work on a team on a team and expect team work then that will not work. But that's obvious, so then don't do that. Expecting a homogeneous workforce isn't realistic or optimal.
Hard disagree.
Some of the best, most successful, and most impactful projects I've ever been on had no "rockstars" at all.
People who refer to themselves as rockstars is a huge red flag.
The guy saying that he has been accused of "not being a team player" isn't literally quoting his management here. He's summarizing that his immediate supervisors don't like him because he's unwilling to enter in some patronage like relationship with them.
The fact that you gave the benefit of the doubt to some faceless employer here instead of an actual person recounting his experiences is really sad and maybe ought to be reason for you to rethink your biases to jump to the conclusion that this guy is a toxic loner. Sounds like you're projecting hard here from some other experience.
And I didn't say I'm not capable of being part of a team. Just that I need to have my own responsibilities within a team. I can't deal with micromanagement or excessive coordination like 'standups' every day.
I can relate and empathize. And also provide this suggestion based on my own similar experience: if you can't provide evidence (e.g. doctor's diagnosis) that you are "special" or "not capable of that", then they don't have to care and will take steps to force you out. I wish you all the best.