Ask HN: Do You Prepare for Job Interviews? If So, How?

I leetcode until my eyes bleed and I can't think anymore. I forget almost everything I know about building software and instead focus on memorizing tricks and optimizations and processes for solving leetcode algorithm questions. In my last interview, in an automated screener, they had 7 leetcode easy+mediums in 10 minutes each, with zero partial credit, only final tests passing. That's what companies want now, so that's what I have to deliver - I don't have a fucking choice.

I look over system designs, try to understand what the core aspect is. For the most part I tend to pass those without as much of a problem.

Nothing works best, but doing this has gotten me further than actually practicing and writing code. I have 8 YoE, took a career break on short term disability for burnout/early childhood horrors that I needed to deal with. Its 2 years later, I'm able to code again and am picking up things much faster than ever, but I'm about to lose my apartment and move into a friends basement because a career break is, apparently, career suicide right now, and even contract companies won't even interview me because of the career break. I was getting cold recruited by FAANG before. I just want the opportunity to work so I can have stable housing, and I'm doing everything I can. It gets harder and harder to practice. I consider whether my career was a sham all along often. I don't really care that this is venting, there's nobody to talk to about it.

yes, I prep. For me the biggest thing was writing code quickly. I went from taking ten to fifteen minutes for solving the easier leetcode problems to five minutes.

The confidence to bang out code that fast means I have more time to think. I definitely can't memorize questions, so it's much easier for me to just practice the problem solving aspect along with the very very fast coding aspect.

For system design, I did no prep other than mock interviews to just verify I was on track. Prepping for system design by reading about systems other people have designed to me just comes off as shallow.

I also did lots of practice/mock interviews to just get used to explaining things as I coded. That was very helpful. Sometimes the questions are easy but they are looking for thoughtful people, not just memorizers.