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Comment by jstanley | Hacker News Reader

It's not quite the same as a trick question (which I agree you should avoid). He's not looking for the interviewee to say "I don't know" to any particular question. The correct answer is a perfectly acceptable answer too. The unacceptable answer is to make up bullshit, which is precisely what he's trying to filter out.

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Except that some interviewers say that when they hear "I don't know" it's a sign that the interviewee gives up easily and extrapolates that they will give up easily when they encounter problems while working. The point is that as an interviewee you're supposed to "know" an unfair amount of knowledge and have incredible spontaneous algorithmic skills to boot (the interviewer picks 1 question and has the answer while the interviewee anticipates and is expected to competently answer the set of all possible questions). What ends up happening is everyone crams for interviews by rote memorizing common system design and coding questions. From the interviewee's side it's a "damned if you do, damned if you don't" scenario when OP asks his trick question. This is similar to hazing where initiates are unsure of the correct way to conduct themselves because they are being judged by some vague, perhaps intentionally withheld ideal, standard, or cultural archetype. I'd imagine disenfranchised groups would disproportionately 'fail' this question, as they are already insecure of their belonging in tech culture

In the process you are pushing the candidate to the breaking point and eliminating any confidence they may have had in their abilities. They will end up demoralized and most likely fail the following interviews if they're the nervous sort. If they're smart, they'll bid you goodbye and you end up with a black eye reputation.

Any interview (of mine) is a conversation - they're not something you pass or fail - it's just a way for a potential employer and employee to get to know one another so they can make better decisions. Nobody won, lost, passed or failed. The interview is just there to provide more information to determine if the potential employer and employee would fit well together.

If I were in an interview that was presented as a zero sum game I would walk out too.

> Nobody won, lost, passed or failed

I mean, like, yeah they did. They either got the job or they did not.

The interview is there to provide more information about a possible relationship. Winning an interview is like winning a date (assuming you want a relationship with the other person.).

A special kind of dating where money are involved.

If I were the interviewee and discovered it was a poor fit, I’d consider the lack of an offer or the opportunity to refuse one a win

Granted, this is tech, so finding a paying job isn't too terrible. But with a lot of other industries [0] it takes a long time and a lot of effort to get employment. I'd say for most US workers, even in today's market, not getting the job is a loss.

[0] which is not really super relevant to this discussion, I know.

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