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Comment by tzz | Hacker News Reader

I am not from SF and hard for me to believe that a company like Twitter cares about your look more than your technical expertise.

  I will add than Twitter had a specific atmosphere compared  
  to other so called startups. The employees seem to be hired 
  on more than skills, everyone at their office is very much 
  hipster like, beautiful looking, feeling super confident 
  and ready to kick it. Walking around Twitter sometimes 
  almost feels like walking within a TV show.

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>cares about your look more than your technical expertise.

In all fairness that's not what he said. Some companies - like google - have a very objective hiring process based almost entirely on technical skill. But many other companies include "fit" as a part of the hiring decision. I haven't interviewed at twitter but I could believe they are like that.

I've thumbed down candidates who did well on the technical part of the interview because I felt I wouldn't get along with them day to day. Not as extreme as "beautiful" people who are "ready to kick it", but more like arrogance or social awkwardness.

Thank you, that's exactly what I meant. I probably should improve that part of the article, and it could probably actually be removed. It was some sarcastic humor but in end, I never felt that visiting other companies.

You do feel sometimes technical isn't enough, but at Twitter you could definitely feel you had to look good. And you could also feel how current employees were proud to be part of the adventure. Proud as being part of the topnotch Silicon Valley companies.

Has the tech sector really come to the point where coders/geeks can't even be socially awkward anymore?

I thought coding was one profession where socially awkward geeks could make an honest living.

It's what happens when an industry becomes democratized, i.e. a reliable source of high-paying jobs.

Maybe "bad communication skills" is the more precise way of putting it. I work in a very collaborative team that frequently has to communicate with both technical and non-technical people, so being social and at least somewhat friendly is pretty important. Most tech people are a little socially awkward so getting rejected for it really says something.

I think people with poor social skills can thrive in tech, but in a more internally facing position like pure development or testing.

I'm sorry but I don't want to work with someone in a collaborative environment whom I can't openly connect with and if there is no clear line of communication between that person and me.

I also don't want to work with someone who I don't think I can get along with, and more importantly; that I feel the rest of the team can't get along with.

It affects the team and ultimately it will affect the product.

They still can. Making an honest living can mean anything from coding Rails at a trendy startup to writing SQL Server stored procedures at a Big 4 to doing mail merges in Access for an ISD in rural Kansas. However, there will always be some companies where coding alone doesn't make them a good fit, whether that's being a programmer for Twitter or the Southern Baptist Convention.

So long as you can be socially awkward together, you're probably golden.

  I will add than Twitter had a specific atmosphere compared  
  to other so called startups. The employees seem to be ...
  beautiful looking ...

brb using imagination since no pics

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