Basic programming skills can even be taught to children using languages like scratch and I believe everyone can learn the basics to do many tasks like automating simple things. However things get harder. There are some people who can easily solve LC hard as competitive programmers while they're still teenagers who didn't even enter college. While you might be struggling for days with that problem and you'll probably never solve it in your life without hints. Linus implemented the Linux kernel on his own when he was very young and wrote git in a weekend. His elegant deleting a node in a linked list solution using double pointers is something you might have never even thought was possible. No matter how much leetcode and practice you have you will never be anything compared to Linus, a genius. You can write as many design docs as you like and demonstrate complexity and get promoted to L6. But you will never be anywhere near Linus unless you had that talent. The other day on hackernews I saw someone who livestreamed coding a vi like editor in a day. I don't even know how to manipulate a screen buffer. You will never be a Donald Knuth no matter how much leetcucking you do. Given all these talented people how much of excellent programming skill do you feel is innate? I've long accepted I'm low-level trash who can only do mediocre coding that is valuable to the company, but not difficult and I can only hope to study the work of these geniuses and learn from them. Seems like a joke how people think people on FAANG are so smart when with the exception of a few key people in every team they've got nothing on the real gods of programming.
Most people on blind would claim they have higher TC than every genius you mentioned
Writing short posts is though.
So many psychologists ITT
Does it really matter if I can solve all of my interview questions and still get rejected because some post-millennial douche with 2yoe (vs my 9) didn’t like me?
That's the sad part. You work at one of the greatest financial companies on the planet with C++ gods and top tier HFT experts. Meanwhile some leetcuck chooses arbitrary questions and expects you to solve in one hour. Even if you solve it is upto them.
But you are not one of those people soooo
" whether you think you can, or think you can't- you're right" -Henry Ford You say that you've accepted being low-level trash and you're mediocre at what you do. It doesn't matter how much talent you have or dont have...that kind of mindset will always hold you back from your true potential
Yes a defeatist attitude will harm you but it still won't compensate for talent.
True, and no amount of talent will compensate for a defeatist attitude, it goes both ways.
Working on core system programming projects can be quite frustrating if you don't have the necessary background. IMHO the main reason is - to debug issues you first need to know what to look for. This is learnt over years and you keep learning something new everyday. To get initiated, you can try doing a 20% project (at Google) with teams who do systems programming. This will teach you the necessary skills and you will get to know people whom you can ask questions. We have quite a few Linux maintainers at Google who might have some projects that you can work on. Sure they aren't Linus but they are still quite good. You can also look at the Akaros kernel. The maintainer works at Google. He might have some 20% options. Note: Systems people are generally quite knowledgeable. However their projects will not directly make money for the company and so promos can be a tuff.
You can be a D1 basketball player that’s better at basketball than 99.9999% of the world but you’re garbage compared to Lebron. Doesn’t mean you aren’t still a really good basketball player. Buck up there sport.
Nice analogy!
The people that got good at anything are good because they enjoyed the thing they're good at so they did it a ton. (Or they just power through something they tolerate) You're not born good at anything, I've never seen a newborn that can even make a variable, it's pathetic honestly. I am better than any child.
Nothing is entirely innate.
Anyone can learn anything
Sure just learn how to build a web browser by yourself and let me know how it went.
Motivation and free time is all it takes