Hacker News Reader

> top decile

I think you’re overestimating the hiring ability of big companies, and underestimating the people at small companies.

I think people at big companies often overestimate their own ability and often underestimate people who work at smaller companies.

I think working at a bigger company is a somewhat different skillset involving a lot more navigating bureaucracy, meeting certification standards, documenting and presenting, etc.

Smaller companies focus a lot more on "get stuff done, figure out the details later"

I think a lot of big corp employees look down at startups because it’s a huge gamble. They get paid less and have unstable careers. And so they confuse it for ability. Personally, I think those that work at startups learn to be more adaptive and gain more valuable skills outside of bureaucracy.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com