Understanding the Problem

When presented with a question, resist the urge to jump straight into coding. Take a moment to breathe and thoroughly read the question—perhaps even twice.

“It is unwise to attempt to answer a question you do not fully grasp.”

• George Polya, "How to Solve It"

Next, jot down responses to these crucial inquiries:

• Can I rephrase the problem in my own terms?
• What inputs are necessary for this problem? This is an opportunity to clarify edge cases with the interviewer.
• What outputs should the solution generate?
• Can the outputs be derived from the inputs? Do I have sufficient information to solve the problem?
• How should I label the key data elements (variable declarations) involved?

Exploring Concrete Examples

Developing examples can enhance your understanding of the problem. They serve as sanity checks to ensure your solution functions correctly. Examples can also clarify the nature of the inputs and outputs, revealing potential edge cases.

Consider the following problem statement:

"Write a function charCount that takes a string and returns the count of each character in that string."

Example cases might include:

charCount("aaa"); // Output -> {a: 3}

charCount("hello"); // Output -> {h: 1, e: 1, l: 2, o: 1}

// Check for empty inputs

charCount(""); // Output -> { }

// Check for invalid inputs

charCount(1234); // Output -> { }

// Check for invalid inputs

charCount(false); // Output -> { }

Breaking It Down

This critical step is often overlooked. Keeping the interviewer engaged throughout your problem-solving process is essential.

Communicate your thoughts clearly:

"Does this make sense?" or "Am I heading in the right direction?"

Instead of writing the actual code, focus on outlining the steps in pseudo-code. This practice encourages you to consider the logic before diving into syntax, which can help identify any lingering misunderstandings.

Solving or Simplifying

By the time you reach this stage, you should have a clear pseudo-code outline ready. Now, it's time to implement the actual code.

If you find yourself stuck, don’t panic. Break the problem into smaller, more manageable parts. Look for a simpler problem you can solve first, providing a psychological boost that can help you tackle the larger problem at hand.

To simplify, consider these steps:

• Identify the primary challenge.
• Temporarily set aside that challenge.
• Create a straightforward solution.
• Gradually reintroduce the complexities.

Looking Back and Refactoring

This final step distinguishes a strong candidate from an average one. During refactoring, reflect on the following questions:

• Can I verify the results?
• Is there an alternative way to derive the outcome?
• Is my solution easily comprehensible?
• Can I apply the same methodology to other problems?
• How can I enhance the solution's performance?
• Are there other refactoring techniques I can explore?
• How have others approached this problem?

Best of luck with your upcoming interviews!

For further insights, consider watching the following videos that provide additional guidance:

The first video, "ANYONE can Crack Coding Interviews by Doing THIS," offers valuable strategies for interview preparation.

The second video, "How to prepare for technical interviews (in 20 hours)," provides a condensed approach to mastering technical interviews.

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I’m Aditya, a Senior Software Engineer - II (Frontend) passionate about web development, health, and personal finance.