60 seconds
The 60-second GitHub pass
What I actually open. What makes me leave.
I give a profile about a minute. That is how long a hiring manager will buy. Your GitHub is not a second CV or a sticker board. It is a review path: role, best work, a demo I can click, commits I believe. Do not make me hunt.
First minute
The review path
Before you rewrite anything, decide what I should do after I land. If the first screen does not answer these, more content is more work for me.
| I need in 60s | You show |
|---|---|
| Who is this? | Photo, name, one sentence for the role — not a stack dump. |
| What do I open first? | One pin. Product, not week 4 of a course. |
| Can I run the UI? | Live demo. README with install and the main flow. |
| Are they still shipping? | Commits in 90 days I would put in front of a team. |
| How do I reach them? | Portfolio, LinkedIn, or email in the profile — one click, not a hunt. |
In order
I look at five things
I almost never open src/ if these fail. Use them on your own profile tonight.
01
Photo and name
Need
Looks like a person I could put in front of a team. One line that says what I would hire you to do.
I leave
Logo avatar. Blank name. Bio that lists every library you have ever typed.
02
The pin (one is enough)
Need
One product you'd defend. I can tell what it is without opening src/.
I leave
Six tutorial clones. Nothing pinned. The newest repo because it is newest.
03
README
Need
What it is. How to run it. A decision you made. A live URL. What you'd do next.
I leave
Gimmick profile README. Copied starter. Snake animation. No run command.
04
Last 90 days
Need
A few real commits. Fixes, not 'update readme' on a dead toy.
I leave
Last commit 14 months ago. Silence dressed up as 'open to work'.
05
Demo
Need
A URL I can click. The main flow, not a folder of localhost screenshots.
I leave
Broken link. 'Coming soon'. PNG of the happy path on a 27-inch monitor.
You can be a strong engineer and still look expensive to figure out. Do not be expensive to figure out.
8–12 lines
A README that routes me
The profile README is an index, not a sticker board. The pinned repo README is how I decide whether to clone. Keep badges and snakes out of the top. I need a path: what it is, how to run, the call you made.
# What it is
One sentence. The user problem and the finished flow.
## Demo
Live: https://…
Screenshot of the main path — not localhost.
## Run
pnpm install
pnpm dev
## Decision
The hard call I made and why.
## Next
What I'd do with another week. Known limit.The decision line is where you stop looking copied. Why validate on blur. What you did after the API failed. Why the table collapses. That is the interview.
Proof, not recency
Pin what you'd defend
GitHub will let you pin six. Do not use six. One product is enough if I can run it. Three complete beats six half-finished. Newest is not the same as strongest.
| Pin this | It proves | Not this |
|---|---|---|
| One product flow | You shipped something a user can finish. | A landing page with a nicer font. |
| Form-heavy screen | Validation, errors, empty states, keyboard. | A login clone with no failure path. |
| API-backed view | Loading, empty, error, retry — not one happy fetch. | A chart screenshot with no data story. |
Behavior, not tools
I don't hire a stack dump
“React, Tailwind, Firebase” tells me nothing. I learn from what the app handles when it is ugly.
| They claim | I stay | I leave |
|---|---|---|
| I know React | A flow with derived state, errors, and something I'd argue about. | Todo with no edge states. |
| I build responsive UIs | The same flow on a narrow viewport, with the tradeoff named. | Desktop-only screenshots. |
| I care about accessibility | Keyboard path, names, and a contrast or focus fix you'd defend. | A badge. No labels. No focus. |
| I work with APIs | Loading, empty, error, retry. I can see what happens when it fails. | One fetch in one component. |
What makes me close the tab
- 40 repos, none pinned
- Gimmick profile README
- Last commit 14 months ago
- No description, no demo
- Broken live link still in the pin
Logged out
The 60-second test
Open your profile in a private window. If any of these fail, I rarely open the code. Fix the first broken link in the chain before you add another repo.
- 1What role is this person targeting?
- 2Which repo should I open first?
- 3Does that repo have a live demo and a README I can run?
- 4Have they shipped in 90 days?
- 5Can I contact them without hunting?
One hour
Fix tonight (in this order)
Do these on the profile I would actually open. Not 40 repos. If you cannot name which line you are fixing, you are scrolling, not prepping.
- 1
Name the role
Bio or profile README: one sentence for the job you want. Cut the library parade.
- 2
Pin one
Unpin everything except the piece you'd defend. One is enough.
- 3
Rewrite that README
8–12 lines: what it is, how to run, the hard decision, live URL, what you'd do next.
- 4
Ship a live URL
If it 404s, take the link down until it doesn't. Localhost screenshots do not count.
- 5
One honest commit
This week. Then archive todo-app / final-v3 off the top of the page.
Want the rest of the first minute? The Shortlist Scorecard covers CV, GitHub, portfolio, LinkedIn, and the screen.