What should engineers be best at to get a job at a top tech company? originally appeared on Quora, the place to gain and share knowledge, empowering people to learn from others and better understand the world. You can follow Quora on Twitter, Facebook, and Google Plus.

Can I be honest? I hate this question. It’s a great question, but I hate it. I hate it because it’s about getting a job and not excelling at a job and, unfortunately (IMO), those aren’t as related as they should be, particularly in tech.

I had a conversation just a few weeks ago with someone in my organization who is thinking about their next move. Sidebar: I don’t want this person to leave but I’m glad they’re talking through it with me (I recommend everyone be open with their management about how they want to grow, even if that means leaving). Anyway, what came up in this conversation was that this engineer, who I know for a fact does great, high-quality work solving real challenges every single day, is concerned about passing tech interviews and feels a need to go back and prep with interview puzzles and college course algorithms. To me, this feels reductive and just makes me a little sad.

So, maybe this isn’t the best advice because no matter what I say, we’ve all found ourselves doing logic puzzles at a whiteboard. Still, I think the best thing you can do to get a job in tech is be really, really well qualified for that job. And mostly, that means being really good at the job you have currently. Build your real world experience, absorb everything you can from the codebase you work in and from the teammates around you. Think critically about balancing the breadth and depth of your skill set. Be curious, be humble, and ask questions. Network and make connections with other people who are working through similar problems. And learn how to craft a narrative about the impact you’ve had in your roles, a skill you can work on long before you ever need it in a job interview.

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