So... I worked with over 50 engineers prepping for their first SF/Silicon Valley tech interviews. And I worked at Groupon, interviewed at a bunch of YC companies (including one where I took a job).
In my experience pretty much nobody is taking Ben Horowitz's advice from The Hard Thing About Hard Things—hire based on strength instead of a perceived lack of weakness. Instead everyone seems to be looking for candidates who fill out all the boxes and have zero thumbs down in interviews. That coupled with extreme risk aversion means long interview cycles, and huge amounts of wasted time for some of the most talented employees and founders on the planet.
In my experience pretty much nobody is taking Ben Horowitz's advice from The Hard Thing About Hard Things—hire based on strength instead of a perceived lack of weakness. Instead everyone seems to be looking for candidates who fill out all the boxes and have zero thumbs down in interviews. That coupled with extreme risk aversion means long interview cycles, and huge amounts of wasted time for some of the most talented employees and founders on the planet.