Companies often look for different qualities in engineers, which can lead to confusion. It's crucial to clarify the specific skills and traits desired for the role being filled.

For early-stage startups, it's crucial to decide what type of engineer you need based on what is holding your company back, whether it's productivity or security issues.

Most companies think they are trying to hire good engineers, but their definitions of a good engineer vary significantly, leading to noise in the hiring process.

When hiring, be very specific about what you need for a role, as it's crucial to distinguish between what you need and what you want.

Diversity in hiring should be prioritized from the start to prevent a homogeneous culture that can hinder growth and innovation. As the company grows, early employees may want to take on roles like VP of Engineering, but you need to proactively discuss their career paths to retain them and maintain company culture.

You need to build a top engineering culture to attract the best talent, which is crucial for success.

Hiring should prioritize passion for the mission and the ability to connect with the company's goals over traditional qualifications.

The obsession with hiring as many smart engineers as possible, regardless of the company's needs, became a common practice among startups, reflecting a superficial understanding of what truly drives success.

The most important cultural decisions are made when hiring, as the culture becomes the people around you.