Start Here
You can use this repo in two modes:
- Job search mode (4–12 weeks): you already know the basics and want to maximize interview performance.
- Career transition mode (8–24+ weeks): you’re switching lanes (e.g., DS → DE, Backend → MLE) or returning after a gap.
What “good” looks like across companies
Different company archetypes value different signals:
- FAANG / high-growth consumer: speed + scale tradeoffs, ambiguity handling, crisp communication, strong coding.
- Enterprise software: correctness, maintainability, incremental delivery, compatibility, compliance, stakeholder management.
- Automotive / industrial: safety mindset, verification culture, long-lived systems, careful risk management, reliability.
Same skills show up everywhere; the weighting changes.
3-step setup
- Pick a lane (role + level + company archetype)
- Baseline yourself
- Do one timed coding interview (45–60 min)
- Do one “design a service” prompt (45–60 min)
- Do one behavioral story (15 min)
- Score yourself using 00-START-HERE/02-Interview-Loop-At-A-Glance.md
- Pick a cadence you can sustain
- 60–90 min/day beats 6 hours on Sunday.
The golden rule
Interview prep fails when you optimize for feeling prepared (reading) instead of being prepared (practice under constraints).
Practice should resemble the interview:
- timeboxed
- verbalized thinking
- written tradeoffs
- explicit assumptions
- post-mortem after each session
A concrete 7-day kickoff plan
This plan is meant to create momentum and reveal the biggest gaps.
Day 1: Choose lane + set scope
- Define target roles/levels and company archetypes.
- Write a one-paragraph “why me” narrative (role fit, projects, domain).
- Pick your core stack (language + infra/cloud).
Day 2: Resume + recruiter pass
- Rewrite resume for readability (one screen = one story).
- Remove ambiguity: add numbers, ownership, and impact.
- Build a 30-second pitch and a 2-minute deeper version.
Day 3: Coding baseline
- 2 problems: one easy/medium, one medium.
- Focus on: correctness, constraints, and clean explanation.
Day 4: System design baseline
- Design a small service (URL shortener / rate limiter / notifications).
- Write requirements and then draw the simplest viable design.
Day 5: Behavioral baseline
- Draft 6 stories: conflict, failure, leadership, ambiguity, deep dive, impact.
- Convert each into: context → actions → results → learnings.
Day 6: Iterate + tighten
- Re-do one coding problem you failed without looking at the answer.
- Re-do the same system design prompt with a stronger structure.
Day 7: Mock loop
- 45 min coding + 45 min design + 15 min behavioral.
- Write a post-mortem: top 3 gaps + top 3 strengths.
Common failure modes (and fixes)
Failure: “I know the topic” but can’t solve under time.
- Fix: timeboxed reps + post-mortems + spaced repetition.
Failure: jumping to architecture without requirements.
- Fix: enforce a template: requirements → constraints → SLOs → design.
Failure: over-indexing on fancy tools.
- Fix: choose boring defaults first; add complexity only for a reason.
Failure: behavioral answers feel generic.
- Fix: use specific numbers, tradeoffs, and your decision criteria.