Accidental interview prep

I'm the last person you want to ask about interviewing.

You see, I've been independently self-supporting as a software engineer for over a decade. I haven't needed to interview for a job in years. Maybe I'll never need to again.

So I was surprised to get this email from a reader of Powerful Python:

"I just wanted to let you know what an excellent book this is. I'm a self taught developer and after having done badly at some interviews, I decided to buy your book. It covers so many of the interview questions I'd got wrong previously...

I keep going back to your book to learn Python. I've actually recommended it as an interview guide to some of my friends."

(That's from Fahad Qazi, in London, UK.)

This message delighted me...

But it got me scratching my chiseled, handsome, bald head.

Because when I wrote this book, I didn't give a moment's consideration to interviews at all. I just thought about what's important when you're a software engineer, using Python to implement real-world, complex software.

But apparently, that's turned it into a great interview guide.

Maybe there's a lesson in this. If you've ever read a book about passing a software-development interview, you may have found it packed with shallow coding tricks, cover to cover. I'm not saying all of them are like this, some of them certainly are.

And shallow tricks will get you through the phone screen...

But maybe not the whiteboard session with their local wizard.

Just something to think about, if you're considering moving into a new job someday.

And if you are, now's a good time to read Powerful Python.