for the first time in my life I'm in a mentoring position and it is fucking exhausting. we have two interns now, and idk what the hell is the boy's deal. can't seem to do simple tasks, doesn't google anything, stares the ceiling if we're not monitoring.
the girl idk yet. she seems more active and engaged at least, but i have a lot of teaching to do and i don't really have the time for that. i hope that one can at least float by herself, cause I'm pretty sure the other one is drowning

Mentoring isn't always easy. But it's fulfilling to see a junior grow with time. It starts with spoon feeding them and they end up making important decisions at further stage of their employment.

I never realized how low the bar for interns was until I saw heard stories from co-workers who mentored them

@YADU since we're assuming a blank slate at worst, the minimum we hope for is energy and willingness, which is what the seniors lack with time. if they can't give us that, it really feels like a lost cause

@darksideofyay I've heard lots of stories of interns who actively avoided doing any work or trying to learn.

@YADU well, i get it if it's unpaid or cheap labor, but they get pretty much the same per hour as me, minus the benefits. it's a comfortable salary and it's a disputed spot. i really expect some effort

@darksideofyay interns at my job make good money and are competitive to get, I have no idea why you'd go through the effort of getting one and then waste it

Do you know what inspires them or gets them excited about code (if they do at all 🫠)?

You might be able to use that knowledge to your advantage. It might be a way of phrasing they're not engaging with.

Tough place to be - especially if you're asked to do your existing work as well.
Do you pair with them?

@MammaNeedHummus so, right now, it's really weird. we have two rooms and the boy is in the other one now with some of my colleagues, so i can't watch him too closely anymore. the girl will sit between me and my senior, so she can watch both of us. my friend in the other room is spoon feeding a lot I think, it might be a better approach for him.

he actually might be interested in doing dashboards more than actual coding. he seems more excited about that stuff and more willing to do work in that vein. he's too young, and we think he doesn't know what to do of life yet.