Job tip: Think twice before proclaiming yourself a “Ninja”
In case you were wondering, no, that's not me in the picture.
Call me old-school, but I find the whole “web ninja” moniker ridiculous. I guess when someone calls himself a ninja, he’s trying to imply that he has mastered a wide array of skills that he uses when he wages war against websites. Wonderful imagery. Honestly – moving.
But I just can’t take people that refer to themselves as ninjas seriously, sorry.
I recently had to wade through a pile of resumes to fill a couple web designer jobs at Concordia University and ran across a handful of applicants who referred to themselves as “web ninjas”. Now I’m fully aware, there are some companies out there that have staff members with titles such as “Web ninja“,etc. That’s fine, I get it. These companies are avant-garde, cutting edge, and hip. Got it. Coo’. But when an individual writes “I’m a CSS ninja” in his cover letter – it makes me pause and wonder, “Can I take this guy seriously?”, then right after, it puts me into, “Let’s-see-how-good-this-ninja-really-is-mode”. Seriously, if you’re trying to apply to a position where someone like me is looking over your portfolio, the last thing you want is to make the employer ultra-hyper-uber picky. In my books, if you’re calling yourself a ninja, you better be perfect buddy. Some of you may be asking where my sense of humor went? Well, after you sift through a few hundred CVs, and just as many terrible portfolios from other “ninjas”, you lose a bit of your cheerfulness. Which leads me to my big three of applying to web designer jobs:
- Consider the company you are applying to.
Some companies are more relaxed than others. Always research the company you are applying to. Look up their client list and recent portfolio. You’ll get a feel of whether they’re open to black belts or not. - Be ready to back it up.
Know that when you use titles like “ninja” and “guru” you are raising the bar to which you will be evaluated against and be ready to demonstrate your prowess. - Don’t overstate your skills.
Never, under any circumstances, misrepresent your level of knowledge of something. I’ve interviewed applicants who essentially called themselves God’s gift to CSS who couldn’t execute a simple clear fix. Know, that most employers remember names and will never call you in again if you waste their time.
What do you think of designers who call themselves, “ninjas”?
With all that said, I’m not always right. This guy actually got the job he was trying out for.
Really? People refer to themselves as ninjas and gurus on CVs? You know that might actually fly in 10 years when the young people of today take over the world and write all their documents in chat/text speak. But I can assure you if I got handed a CV with ninja in it, I’d stick it in the pile of CVs that refer to their applicants as pirates and cowboys.
My husband used to tell me stories of the CVs he’d get at his previous job. The fact that people use their gaming avatar names (well, it was a game testing facility, so I can see why they would assume that was ok, but still. Really?) and then not leave ANY contact information. It boggles my mind. Are we just old curmudgeons now? Is this a generation gap thing?
Maybe it IS a generational thing. Maybe there are job titles we grew up with that our parents roll their eyes at.
Or maybe it’s applicants just using terminology that some design houses use. It’s a practice I’ve always questioned. Should I trust hundreds of thousands of dollars to a company that doesn’t take itself seriously? I mean there is good fun, and light-heartedness but how far should that go?
No we’re not crudgeons, cat… We’re just last of dying breed of honest, hardworking professionals who believe in maintaining that level of work and bar of quality… Oh guess that kind of makes us crumudgeons… Oh well… As for the people who refer to themselves as ‘ninjas’ please wiki ninjas a note the part which refers to subtlety… GGKKTHX@Rommil Santiago
Curmudgeons… perhaps. I’m someone to listen to new ideas with skepticism at first, sleep on it, and embrace them in the morning. For instance, it took me a few months before I truly embraced Twitter.
But there is something to be said about being taken seriously. That is something our entire field lacks. If we can’t take ourselves seriously, why should others? And definitely, subtlety and modesty goes a long way towards that.
It can’t be that much of a generational thing – we’re not that old! I don’t get the emo hair or the faux-hawks, and ok, that’s probably because I’m old. But I’m only going to be 33 this month! I shouldn’t be grumbling about “the young people today!” At least, I don’t recall my parents or grandparents doing that before the age of 50 or so. At the same time, I don’t think it’s all that appropriate to show up to work in your pyjamas and text message all day. Gaming companies aside, I am speaking of offices as well. Some of the students we hire as casuals in our department at the University are just… lazy and disrespectful. It’s sad.
Ok, I didn’t mean to turn the comments into an old fogey rant. Oops. Sorry, Rommil!
No no – rant away, that’s what comment sections are for! I write to start conversations and debate, so no worries.