You and me both. I just went through the Triplebyte process after my last contract wrapped up. Passed their exam and interview and went on-site at multiple companies. In the end it was a total waste of time and very stressful. I would go so far as to say that if you have been successful with startups and equity that it would be a net negative for you because the 5 peers you will be interviewing with will feel threatened as well. Rinky-dink organizations really don’t want very good people, they want people they feel comfortable with. Luckily I have a network which allows me to bypass all this.
I don’t think hiring managers really want to hire the best programmers. They want people they feel comfortable managing, someone who isn’t going to be challenging them. There is no risk in leaving roles open, in fact it contributes to their job security as long as there is VC money to burn. That is why the coding challenges are so popular, it communicates “here, do what I say.”
I just turned 40 and have done a complete 180 from extroversion to introversion in the last two years so don’t see this as a bad thing. Was checking up on the psychology of it and checks out as totally normal. Extroversion in youth was selected for to provide mating opportunities, but wears off as we age.
Also, startup hiring usually means joining an already close knit team. If you have to interview with 5 people, have a fifty-fifty chance with each and anyone can veto your hire that gives you a 3% chance of getting an offer. Competency will get your foot in the door, but ultimately it comes down to the social psychology of social comparison and propinquity.
If you are a senior/staff with some success at previous startups, you are likely to get vetoed by developers who see you as a threat in the promotions tournament.
I asked an HR rep about this and she told me there is a massive influx of new grads demanding very high salaries. You and I might be from a generation where a CS degree was not an obvious choice and the supply was not as high for organizations. Unfortunately years of experience don’t count for much in this industry, especially with how fast technologies change.