Things you should never say when interviewing for a developer role

Being a developer these days is both good and bad. There are a lot of jobs available out there but there is a lot of competition too. If a company is known for looking after their developers well, a lot of developers naturally want to work for that company. So as a developer, you want to make sure you not only have the right skills, you also make a really good impression at every interview. And this includes not saying things that are arrogant, ignorant or inconsiderate.

In my role as an engineering manager, a hiring manager and an interviewer for more than 100 developers in the past few years, these are the things that I have witnessed developers say in their interviews which make them less favorable, even if their resume looks good and they did well at technical test(s). I’m sharing them with you here so you can avoid saying them and ace your next face-to-face interview.

Never say, “That is a stupid framework/technology/language — why would anyone still use it today.”

There is always a reason why certain things were done in the way they were, especially in technology. Technology moves fast and things change very quickly. There is legacy code that hangs around for a long time especially in large organisations. You can voice out your opinion in a diplomatic way, but don’t be…