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Boss asks if I think this is the right job for me?

3 points by jtd00123 ↗ HN
So a little background. I started my first 'programming job' close to one month ago. A lot of my onboarding so far is just learning with very little work that provides value to the company. So three days ago I choke on a minor but simple mistake, which ended up being an easy 40 second fix. It was a based on networking, which I am just learning. My boss ends up not being pleased. I mentioned to him later that I was just a little stressed (due to personal issues which I didn't disclosed)

Two days later, he pulls me aside. He basically says that with a masters that he figured that some of the nonprogramming concepts would come easier (we are a hardware startup and I do a lot of things nonprogamming related; hardware, PLC, electronics, etc), but my degree was mainly software focused. He was very kind about everything, but then asked "you have to decide if this is the right job for you", and said that this job will require a lot of self-study. I had a moment of honesty with him, close to tears that this point, explaining why some of the hardware is not an instantaneous learn.

Near the end of it, the conversation was just general mentorship stuff, basically saying to not be so nervous, and ended it with "everyone here likes you and wants you to succeed".

How screwed am I? This is my first tech job and I don't know how often these conversations come up, but usually I think that you have to decide if this job is for you is a kiss of death. Or maybe I'm just overreacting and he was trying to engage my commitment to the company?

5 comments

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gamechangr
You're over reacting.

He sees a couple issues and wants to make sure you're worth the risk of investing his/their time.

If you show that you're humble, interested, and willing to take on some personal time learning - you will be just fine.

dmourati
Can you read and rewrite the second paragraph please? I am having a hard time understanding especially sentences 2 and 4.
smt88
As you go through this, keep in mind that you're not 100% responsible for how much you need to learn to do this job.

It sounds like whoever hired you saw your Masters degree and made an assumption. Their feeling of surprise that you're not a hardware expert is not your fault, it's theirs. It's idiotic of them not to ask whether you have specific skills you'd need for the job.

Your boss is likely feeling as though someone made a mistake, but don't assume that person is you, and don't assume they're going to take it out on you. A lot of companies in this position will try pretty hard to make the new hire fit.

CyberFonic
You will be fine.

There are two key comments: (1) "require a lot of self-study"; and (2) everyone here likes you and wants you to succeed".

In my experience when you choose to work in high tech, your learning never stops. So self-study is essential to stay up to date. In your masters degree is simply the foundations upon which you will build your personal technical prowess.

I have had at least 3 jobs where I had to learn at high speed on my own time to come up to speed on areas that I didn't have prior experience. One of them was WAN, LAN, internet networking and all the protocols. Another was to become an Oracle and then DB2 DBA. Then there were times I had to quickly learn new business practices in order to understand what wasn't properly documented in the requirements.

If you don't like the idea of ongoing self-study, then the question of you working in the right industry (not just your current job) for you is relevant.