pay more if that provides them a guaranteed minimum value. - Consistency: Most time, they don't want to experiment new stuff but to taste again the good ol’ flavor they love. - Recognition: They think the things they buy and the brands they use define who they are and values they have.
main goal is to check if your values and motivations are aligned with your employer. - Don’t prepare an interview. Prepare yourself to be interviewed: Instead of preparing questions in advance, memorizing "proper" answers, work on your verbal and body communication to expose your thoughts with highest accuracy possible. - 2-way Evaluation: Don’t forget you are evaluating too.
language rather than the main used by the employer, so they will focus on implementation rather than language tricks. - Words over bits: Don’t deliver just code but also an explanation about why you did what you did. - Data over assumptions: Don’t hesitate to ask what they expect: code written in stone, dirty hacks, branching, a running example… Whatever. - If in doubt: Overdress.
discard an offer because it has no salary range but get the elephant out of the room as soon as possible. - Compare with the market not with your peers: Understand the business and base your request on data and given value. - Salary ≠ Money: contract, perks, equity, bonus, taxes… - Highest Salary ≠ Best Job: Remember, you have a Career Strategy. Don’t You? ;)