5 ms·

I don't like the expectation that all people should approach problem solving in a particular way. Everybody is different. Personally, I like to continuously im

I don't like the expectation that all people should approach problem solving in a particular way. Everybody is different. Personally, I like to continuously implement and clarify in small tight loops. It might look something like: implement a rough structure with lots of empty functions and very basic control flow. Ask questions. Restructure. Ask more questions. Restructure again and add implementation detail. Etc etc. This way of working is tied with my thinking. It reveals the problem to me over time instead of all at once. I get a deeper understanding this way. There is an assumption by some people that my process is wrong. They would argue that I should instead break the problem down on paper, or in my head, or using test driven development, or with design documents etc etc. But this is the process that I've found works best for me. I can enforce a particular process to please interviewers (and I have). But solving the problem becomes much harder.

asdfasgasdgasdg 5y ago
Even if your typical way of solving problems is via intuition and internal processing, materializing this stage on the whiteboard probably improves your odds in a coding interview. It's not a statement about how things should be, but how things are. Even if this isn't your preferred mode of problem solving, I'm confident that any qualified candidate is capable of doing what was demonstrated in this post, and if they really want the job, they probably should.
- LurkingPenguin 5y ago
  > Even if this isn't your preferred mode of problem solving, I'm confident that any qualified candidate is capable of doing what was demonstrated in this post, and if they really want the job, they probably should. I get that Big Tech jobs are glamorized the way high-paying jobs in Big Law, High Finance, etc. have historically been glamorized, but unlike professions like law and finance, there are lots of opportunities for people with even decent development skills to make really good money today even if they don't work for Big Tech. As an example, my friend's son is making well over $120,000 annually as a freelance PHP developer with a few years of experience. He's in his late 20s, doesn't have a comp sci degree and lives in a lower cost of living city where he's probably at least in the top 5% of earners. On the flip side, I know people who are hiring for developers and they're more and more flexible, especially in regards to location and remote work, because the demand for decent developers greatly exceeds the supply. Why someone should feel compelled to pretend that they problem solve differently to ace a whiteboard in this market is beyond me.
  - asdfasgasdgasdg 5y ago
    I think the late 20s self-taught php freelancer is far less common than big tech engineers. And 120k that is still only a small fraction of what such engineers typically make at the same age. And FAANG jobs are far more secure against recession than freelancing. I don't think it's that complicated why someone would want a FAANG job even in this market. There are other routes to moderate wealth but few as easy and reliable.
    - LurkingPenguin 5y ago
      This is what I like to call a "Valley Bubble" comment. There are lots of people working in tech-related jobs at/for companies not named Facebook, Amazon, Apple or Google who earn well above average incomes. How to make this look like underachievement? Claim that these people are fewer in number than they actually are and suggest that there are hoards of 20-something FAANG engineers making $500,000/year+ such that a freelancer pulling in $120,000 is somehow a loser compared to his peers. > There are other routes to moderate wealth but few as easy and reliable. If it was as easy as showing up with a comp sci degree and a heartbeat, why is prepping for whiteboarding interviews even a thing?
      - asdfasgasdgasdg 5y ago
        You're reading a lot into my comment that's not there. I don't have any disdain for the freelancer in question, and I think it's quite an achievement to be earning $120k without training in the given field. But you said > "Why someone should feel compelled to pretend that they problem solve differently to ace a whiteboard in this market is beyond me." and I'm making observations that I feel adequately explain why someone might want to pass a whiteboard interview at a big tech company. It's completely valid to not want to do that as well, but you said that you couldn't understand why someone would want to, and I've explained why someone might. > If it was as easy as showing up with a comp sci degree and a heartbeat, why is prepping for whiteboarding interviews even a thing? I didn't say it was easy. I just said there are not other routes I'm aware of that are easier.

asdfasgasdgasdg 5y ago

Even if your typical way of solving problems is via intuition and internal processing, materializing this stage on the whiteboard probably improves your odds in a coding interview. It's not a statement about how things should be, but how things are. Even if this isn't your preferred mode of problem solving, I'm confident that any qualified candidate is capable of doing what was demonstrated in this post, and if they really want the job, they probably should.

LurkingPenguin 5y ago
> Even if this isn't your preferred mode of problem solving, I'm confident that any qualified candidate is capable of doing what was demonstrated in this post, and if they really want the job, they probably should. I get that Big Tech jobs are glamorized the way high-paying jobs in Big Law, High Finance, etc. have historically been glamorized, but unlike professions like law and finance, there are lots of opportunities for people with even decent development skills to make really good money today even if they don't work for Big Tech. As an example, my friend's son is making well over $120,000 annually as a freelance PHP developer with a few years of experience. He's in his late 20s, doesn't have a comp sci degree and lives in a lower cost of living city where he's probably at least in the top 5% of earners. On the flip side, I know people who are hiring for developers and they're more and more flexible, especially in regards to location and remote work, because the demand for decent developers greatly exceeds the supply. Why someone should feel compelled to pretend that they problem solve differently to ace a whiteboard in this market is beyond me.
- asdfasgasdgasdg 5y ago
  I think the late 20s self-taught php freelancer is far less common than big tech engineers. And 120k that is still only a small fraction of what such engineers typically make at the same age. And FAANG jobs are far more secure against recession than freelancing. I don't think it's that complicated why someone would want a FAANG job even in this market. There are other routes to moderate wealth but few as easy and reliable.
  - LurkingPenguin 5y ago
    This is what I like to call a "Valley Bubble" comment. There are lots of people working in tech-related jobs at/for companies not named Facebook, Amazon, Apple or Google who earn well above average incomes. How to make this look like underachievement? Claim that these people are fewer in number than they actually are and suggest that there are hoards of 20-something FAANG engineers making $500,000/year+ such that a freelancer pulling in $120,000 is somehow a loser compared to his peers. > There are other routes to moderate wealth but few as easy and reliable. If it was as easy as showing up with a comp sci degree and a heartbeat, why is prepping for whiteboarding interviews even a thing?
    - asdfasgasdgasdg 5y ago
      You're reading a lot into my comment that's not there. I don't have any disdain for the freelancer in question, and I think it's quite an achievement to be earning $120k without training in the given field. But you said > "Why someone should feel compelled to pretend that they problem solve differently to ace a whiteboard in this market is beyond me." and I'm making observations that I feel adequately explain why someone might want to pass a whiteboard interview at a big tech company. It's completely valid to not want to do that as well, but you said that you couldn't understand why someone would want to, and I've explained why someone might. > If it was as easy as showing up with a comp sci degree and a heartbeat, why is prepping for whiteboarding interviews even a thing? I didn't say it was easy. I just said there are not other routes I'm aware of that are easier.