Thread by @QuinnyPig

So it's time for me to thread my thoughts on @techgirl1908's truly excellent observation on shitposting as a career limiter.

https://twitter.com/techgirl1908/status/1399530026027126795

As she later states, there's a lack of understanding around what "shitposting" means. It's not "calling out injustice" or "being shitty to individuals." Do the former, avoid the latter. If you disagree on this point we're done here.

To me, shitposting is about making fun of giant companies in a constructive manner. It's about engaging people with humor to make a broader point. If people feel crappy because of a shitpost, it's something else entirely.

The fact that I have to explicitly say this is emblematic of Angie's point. After all the time I've spent shitposting, folks often have a fundamental misunderstanding about exactly what it is that I'm doing.

There are usually multiple levels to the jokes I make. I'm drawing on entirely too long working with these technologies to make them. There's humor and camaraderie in shared suffering.

I'm not a role model—just the opposite. What I do is perilous. I ward against that by being quick to re-examine my position when called out. Doubling down on being wrong is disastrous.

Make no mistake: being even slightly edgy in the early career days makes it harder to get hired. Being me makes it borderline impossible. I own half of the @DuckbillGroup, which is why I feel safe enough to be me.

As @scalzi once said, the failure mode of “clever” is “asshole.” Tread carefully.

None of this is to say (nor has @techgirl1908 said) that abuse should be tolerated, or somehow not called out. That’s not what this is, and saying otherwise is a willful misunderstanding of the point.

When this is your Twitter feed, you’re making it extremely hard to hire you. That’s not shitposting, it’s being generally unpleasant and assuming the mantle not of “thought leadership” but rather “business risk.”

https://twitter.com/techgirl1908/status/1399883402711547906

I’ve had a bunch of folks in my DMs over the years telling me I missed the mark; many were junior folks themselves. I take the feedback incredibly seriously.

https://twitter.com/quinnypig/status/1400165772450668544