> I am not applying because working here is the most important thing to me, I am applying because there was an opening I might be qualified for and I was looking for a job.

Yep, I'm actually too scared to state the real reasons why I'm applying. I think HR will filter out my appplication when I write "your opening sounded somewhat interesting and I want to know more about the tasks I have to do when I work here".

Instead I just drop some additional keywords and bullshit into the obligatory "Why do you want to work here?" field. This approached worked so far.

I sometimes wonder whether HR people that do that are so smart that they realize bullshiting is an important ability that must be selected for, or so stupid that they actually fall for the answers they get.

> so stupid that they actually fall for the answers they get.

This, mostly.

Never put HR on your engineering interview loops.

I actually recorded the statistics for our HR people on the loop to prove that they were random relative to the engineering assessments so I could get them kicked off the loop.

Especially with something entry-level. You aren't going to be working on anything interesting and it's a damn miracle if you actually get to be intellectually stimulated. How many people get any type of dream job straight out of college?

You are there to get "experience" and pad your resume so you can move up to something actually challenging and interesting.

That's called drinking the koolaid and it's very effective. Especially for establishing a career path. Once you "make it", you can loosen up.

If you're only applying for a paycheck and not a career then I agree. You should just keep doing what you're doing.

Yes a good dose of self-loathing in order to get a job seems like a very healthy thing to do. It's called 'drinking the koolaid' because it's suicidal.

Companies would be in a better situation if they realized that they were just a paycheck to their employees and not a damn lifestyle. That would cut into profits though, they'd have to give raises and improve compensation to keep people.

Companies aren't looking for decent employees, they want cheerleaders and morons that are blindly working for shit compensation 'because it's an awesome place' instead of employees that think for themselves and want to be compensated properly.

People who are there "just for the paycheck" tend to be mediocre performers, whereas people who are actually passionate about it tend to do a good job.

People who are there just for the paycheck are going to make up the majority of employees all over the world.

Perhaps you should consider a career path that to you is more than a paycheck. There are zillions of options.

That's a pretty ridiculous attitude. Just hire yourself -- clearly your opinion is the only opinion that matters and moving money from someone else's pocket into your own is ultimately all about about your feels.

Where's the hustle?

Where's the passion? Love and work don't have to be two separate entities.