3,567 karma · joined May 1, 2008
Wow I resemble that remark, down to the part about the Indian dude's house. We didn't have a few thousand dollars to spend though, we just photocopied practice tests and worked on the same test together.
> These microscopic worms... cutting harvests by up to 70%. > The new technique has boosted yields fivefold in trials with small-scale farmers in Kenya
Seems like there are factors beyond the worms in Kenya, unless they are really saying that they are getting over 150% yield after the banana tree paper is used?
Another possible reason is that it may be politically difficult for the incumbent CEO to do the hard thing, but an incoming CEO (especially if he is from the outside and therefore has not accumulated a web of obligations) can do something like lay off a fifth of the company more easily. There are turnaround CEOs that have made a career of being the doer of unpopular things.
Now, regarding social time with people I'm not doing projects with, I'm all for that, since information does not always flow freely within a company, and talking to people on adjacent projects could lead to new knowledge or collaborations, or at least be set up for such. It's also good if you become a hub of information for other teams, as that increases your value to yours and the teams you talk to. Information is power :)
Of course, as you said, you have to weigh this against other skills you can spend time on, it all depends on what you want from your career. If you desire to move up the hierarchy, soft skills such as this will grow in importance, as your work shifts from being neck-deep in technical details, to negotiations with other teams on how to achieve large initiatives. It's easier to catch someone's ear to talk about something you'd like to get done when they have a positive social impression of you.
Come to think of it, #2, being easy to work with, can be subsumed into being charismatic and social without much loss.
The hypothalamic–pituitary–gonadal axis (HPG axis) refers to the hypothalamus, pituitary gland, and gonadal glands as if these individual endocrine glands were a single entity. Because these glands often act in concert, physiologists and endocrinologists find it convenient and descriptive to speak of them as a single system.
Also, regarding unsolicited ads, it sounds like you will not send your resume to a company which does not list a position that fits you, regardless of how much you want to work for them. Which is fine, not everyone wants to take the extra effort. I have had companies create positions for me when I contacted them, even though they did not list an appropriate position originally.
> One is a response to a request, while the other is unsolicited and usually explicitly undesired. .. > If I'm searching for a product, then yes I want to see some ads for those products.
It looks like you find ads acceptable when it is relevant to your search (e.g. a search for a product), but not when it's not solicited. This would seem to imply that even if there is a company that you really want to work for, if they do not advertise a position that you would like to fill, you will not contact them hoping to find a fit. Which is fine, not everyone wants to do that. I personally have contacted companies which didn't have appropriate positions listed, and have had them create positions which fit me.
Regarding companies creating a role, would that imply that ads as a response to a search would be acceptable?
The point about it being part of the hiring process seems to be pointing out that it is a codified and accepted process. If presenting ads are a codified and accepted practice (which I could argue it already is), does that make it acceptable?
For those of you reading who are against advertising, do you advertise your abilities and skillsets to potential employers that you wish to work for by sending them resumes and requesting meetings? Or do you just put your work on the internet and hope they discover it on their own? Perhaps for big-giant-recognizable names, the second method could work (just like Microsoft doesn't have to advertise Windows, I'm sure if John Carmack tweets an interest to join some startup, the startup would ping him), but for most people, including me, we have to rely on prettifying our resumes to catch the attention of employers.