8

I'm not able to solve puzzle questions. I am trying to get a grip on them. :( I have system design interviews next week and I'm doing this.

Comments
  • 4
    If you keep trying to solve a variety of problems, eventually you'll be able to detect patterns quicker. You just need to persevere. If you feel stuck after a significant amount of time, seek help.
    Bottom line is this: don't stop trying to solve problems until it's time for your test (maybe even after).
    Focus on finding the solution (and not worry about not getting the solution yourself, you can do this when you have a looot of time).
    Intellectual momentum does help. It's not a perfect solution, mind you, but it helps. But do take short breaks lol.

    Martin Gardner's books are good.
  • 2
    Pick some easy ones on leetcode and then just practice. Give yourself some realistic time constraints - then divide your time up into time to think about a solution, time to code, and time to refactor and improve it (if you have some time left.)

    If you can't solve it in those constraints to start with then don't worry - just keep going until you get a solution, then work on improving your time.
  • 2
    @AlmondSauce Luckily for the interview I don't need to LeetCode as they only ask project related or system design questions. The thing is, I don't feel that I solve the problems the right way. They don't click. I started solving some puzzle questions like 25 horses race, turned out I couldn't solve it or could understand the solution but I came up with the use case where I thought the solution didn't work.
    That's why I thought let's warm up my brain with some more puzzles like these but I need to see the state design questions too. It's just my mind wants to be in a state before starting. I think I should not care about it, but it feels so right.
  • 2
    @true-dev001 while I cannot help you since I am not a developer or a programmer, I am sure here to support you and cheer for you in every way possible.

    You got this dude. You can do this. We trust you :)

    Also, you are awesome.
  • 2
    @Floydimus Thanks man :) not a dude though.
  • 0
    @true-dev001 dude or dudette, some are gender neutral words.
  • 1
    Do not worry about the puzzles. Getting the right solution is Not The Point.
    It is much more important to see how you approach the problem, how you solve, how you handle problems, and hurdles, and how you handle the changes along the way. And how you ask for more information from the interviewer.

    Yes - you can practice on leetcode, but how that teachs you to code... lets just say, do not bring that crap to a code review.
  • 2
    @true-dev001 There's often no one "right" solution - and the first solution you think of isn't necessarily the easiest, or best. Sometimes it pays to spend a bit less time coding and a bit more time thinking of ways you could solve it 👍
Add Comment