4 Common Mistakes In Coding Interviews

[@moshiurrahmanmoshi]

To save time of you guys, 4 common mistakes he trying to tell: 1. Over-communication 2. Listing out a bunch of DS, Algorithms with explaining why they could solve it 3. Not buying AlgoExpert/ Jumping out to the coding without any thought about how they are going to code 4. Not confirming with the interviewer what the problem statement is.

[@bhubanjitsahu8775]

Edit point 2

[@juusechec]

DS = Data structures

[@deeepdish]

Why watch a video if you want to save time. You are the digesting the rest of information lmfao

[@finalbox4416]

If Clement was a McDonalds recruiter, I think he would still run every candidate through a coding interview.

[@Manno.allseasons]

😂 true

[@hangoutwithabhi]

😂😂

[@whitebelt4148]

Can you reverse the order in which the plates lie on the table?

[@clem]

// true 😎

[@finalbox4416]

@@clem btw clement, i sent you a DM on Twitter, with an offer to edit videos for you. I also made a sample project. You might want to check it out :)

[@JoLap42]

Coding interviews = seeing how good you are at memorizing Leetcode solutions. It's sad that this is what the industry has become.

[@aoeu256]

In real code being quick in your solutions, being able to make your program easily maintainable, and looking up libraries and solutions with google are more important than memorizing leetcode solutions

[@mbirk2011]

Exactly!! It’s not an interview it’s a memory test!!

[@randomfandom53]

💯

[@basslin3r]

I just came off a pre-interview meeting (basically with the recruiter) and the recruiter said at least 50 times "communicate everything" "explain your thoughts" which sounds the opposite to what you're saying.. however I think what you mean is to communicate effectivly. This guy made a good point he said that they want to get an insight in to your thinking and problem solving process. I think there is probably a middle ground between rambling and not saying anything.

[@wavez4224]

The dude in the video isn't really saying to not communicate, he's really just saying to make sure you actually understand what you are trying to say before communicating it. A lot of times when we first see the problem it'll just be a bunch of loose ideas in your head and you'll need those 60 seconds to establish the connection between those ideas and then you can explain it, if you just start telling them all the loose ideas then it doesn't really show much about your capabilities because its not helpful unless you explain why they are important

[@chair_smesh]

This is great. I feel like I always have to read the question out loud over and over again when pair programming in Bootcamp. It would be nice to take a minute to silently process the question

[@LuisMorales-yx8di]

Need more stuff like this

[@KaroCodes]

For years I thought over-communication in case of engineers is impossible so I always advised everyone to *communicate more*. Then I joined a team of extroverted engineers... OVER-COMMUNICATION. DOES. EXIST. 😫

[@Neolisk]

Extroverted engineers? Really?

[@clem]

😂

[@yomer355]

@@Neolisk I mean obviously they do exist (somewhere), but a whole team of those, that's mindblowing

[@marielsofiagutierrezzapien7929]

It becomes the epitome of THIS COULD HAVE BEEN AN EMAIL

[@ashvideoer]

@@Neolisk They're probably rare but they exist somewhere, i guess lol

[@sea0920]

None of these even matter. If the interviewer doesn't like you for any reason, you will be rejected no matter what. They will not even tell you why you failed. They can come up with any reason. You talked too much/too less, didn't say confidently, asked unimportant questions, didn't have good attitude, whatever. You will realize it once you become good at coding questions and interviewer reject you regardless.

[@clydedsouza5843]

Algo Girl - "So you wanna be a software engineer at Google?" Me - *No! Because I am a freelancer!*

[@delin7441]

Hey Clyde, I had a question: can a newbie start out as a freelance developer? Or is it only possible for someone a bit senior?

[@theepicgamer1196]

@@delin7441 I have heard multiple people recommend freelancing as soon as possible to get work experience on your resume. They can be free or paid, and they can be for friends, nearby businesses, strangers, clients on freelance websites, etc.

[@delin7441]

@@theepicgamer1196 I got it...thanks for the reply!😁

[@clydedsouza5843]

@@delin7441 If you get a job especially as a newbie, I suggest you do that first since it will give you experience and will help you in freelancing in the long run when you decide to start it. Because freelancing is a very difficult path, one that requires patience and lots of commitment and you won't get results immediately. However, if you don't get a job, then you should do it as a last option. And trust me, I am a freelancer.

[@delin7441]

@@clydedsouza5843 I get it...thanks for your advice.😁 Btw, may I know this: are you a senior developer, who happened to venture into freelancing?

[@PandaZelda]

Yikes I just applied for a coding bootcamp and am new to this world - definitely noticed myself making the over communication mistake during my interview haha 😂 these are great tips to keep in mind

[@sjamr10]

JIT, I have a coding interview on Monday and was actually thinking about overcommunicating because I thought it was good lol.

[@clem]

Find that balance! Best of luck!

[@sjamr10]

@@clem Thank you!

[@aleaf355]

@@sjamr10 How did it go?

[@sjamr10]

​@@aleaf355 I think I fared well but they decided to not move forward in the process... I wasn't very interested in the company anyways so not such a big deal...

[@alexeykorovko6704]

a lot of people say that the mistake is to be too silent, but actually over-communication is not better at all. I'd seen this video and cached myself on this. I I think when you talk too much, the interviewer gets confused and doesn't understand what's really happening

[@mcog9597]

If this came out 3 days earlier I'd have aced my coding interview... Mistake number 3 got me on a an easy coding problem.

[@zinsy23]

I would say this is applicable with troubleshooting in general! Mistake #4 is what I screw up the most! It takes me a while to realize I'm actually solving the wrong problem or looking at the wrong thing in the first place! This is one of my main weaknesses I'm working on at the moment.I'm trying to recognize that early on and see if there's a quick way to prove/disprove the conclusion I've jumped to for what I'm solving. Doing that either leads me right to the solution or on the right path to finding it!

[@MdWahidurRahmanOvi]

Thank you for not mentioning or bragging about ex google employee or ex FANG employee. As always great content and thank you again.

[@vasujain1970]

Hey clement, appreciate such videos, continue putting such content!

[@LilyEvans1996]

Starting to go through interviews now and it’s so scary! Especially for big tech companies

[@teshou4474]

Yep, same

[@xshad3x348]

ONLY for big companies. 99.9% of the times, nobody will ask you about algorithms.

[@LilyEvans1996]

@@xshad3x348 I am trying for big tech. There’s one particular one I want so badly!

[@LilyEvans1996]

@@xshad3x348 I have interviewed with smaller companies too for junior positions and I’ve been asked about arrays, hashmaps, and trees. Easy questions from Leetcode I’d say. But hard if you’re unfamiliar with traversing through them.

[@rickraydubs]

@@xshad3x348 this is misinformation, tons of small companies are asking for DSA

[@gaurakhandelwal9796]

Hi Clement, awesome content like this really helps people like us, very insightful. Would remember these points, last time one of these mistakes dropped me out.

[@jakariasami]

During an on-sight interview, do they allow you to use a code editor (i.e. VS code)?

[@harispapadopoulos4295]

Sometimes they do, sometimes they don’t, depending on the company

[@supreethr8847]

No

[@kamakshikumar3947]

I think in google they let you use Google Docs for writing the code

[@TechwithLaughter]

@@kamakshikumar3947 yeah Google docs

[@hil449]

@@kamakshikumar3947 are you serious? Lmao

[@nirajraut9408]

How to copy a solution from "Our solutions" from AlgoExpert? Tried many methods till now but none worked.

[@crazychase443]

Wow Clement, I don't remember giving you the OK to make a documentary video about me!

[@alexguillen2493]

The vernacular you're looking for is "effective communication"

[@markyjordan]

FYI, for those wondering, regarding the approach of converting an array to a BST mentioned at 4:02 to allow for logarithmic searches, this would only be an interesting optimization technique if the input array was sorted, because if it is unsorted, the time complexity of the conversion operation would be O(n log n), which as we know isn't an improvement on the O(n) linear search.

[@aoeu256]

Jumping in to code could work using constraint, test code, and top down coding in a high level chatgpt based language. It however does not work when your coding in a low level language….

[@flippygat3]

When I decide on my solution I have been talking through every line of code that I write. Is this an example of over communicating?

[@clem]

No, I would say that’s good! Especially when you’re verifying that your code works as it’s supposed to!

[@flippygat3]

@@clem Appreciate the feedback! AlgoExpert has been a life saver. Not hired yet but a big improvement in interviews from a short period of using it.

[@shoshanmaor]

This is also applicable in the day to day work and not only during interviews :)

[@LilyEvans1996]

These videos make me more comfortable through :)

[@shindesiddhesh843]

Sir i have seen a lot of videos of u But would you like to tell us like how you build that three projects from your resume for how many hours did you worked coz u said u completed the projects in 3 weeks plz if possible

[@HorizonHuntxr]

I smelled that Algoexpert plug coming a mile away 😂

[@JackMarchetti29]

Guilty of all 4 in my one coding interview at Facebook a few years ago. Practicing actual interview settings will solve all 4 (usually).

[@realnapster1522]

How do you practice?

[@JackMarchetti29]

@@realnapster1522 for my interview with Amazon, I had to give a presentation. I recorded myself giving the actual presentation (45 minutes) multiple times. And anticipated questions and answered them, while also ensuring I finished the presentation on time. If you're able to find sample interview questions, record yourself answering them, outloud. Ideally on video. Watch them. Repeat.

[@lavanya_m01]

"So, you wanna be a software engineer at Google ? Pick a question, read the prompt, blah blah"🤣🤣🤣 It comes before every video except yours LOL

[@carlosalarcon2737]

Taking your comments I understand is a good idea to create like a map of your possible solution..an schema a higher level of the solution. Thanks for your tips

[@kaushalsorte9870]

Is that the Half Dome from Glacier Point from Yosemite National Park in the background?

[@3lysium1]

Really good video, thanks

[@zackalsiday4800]

Hey clement thank you so much for these amazing videos. I was hoping to get advice about a software engineering boot camp called app academy which I will attend soon. And how should a boot camp engineer graduate continue his career and education while hired.

[@mbirk2011]

You guys make interviewing candidates so much harder than they need to be. 1. Does this candidate have a degree and certificates showing their area of knowledge 2. Does this candidate come off as someone capable of solving day to day challenges. 20 minutes tops. I never understood why testing a candidates memory mattered so much.

[@rishatishbulatov556]

wow, you are so expressive, are you going to give that example, a bit inadequate, is it useful?

[@TheKansi2]

Now thinking about it, I did the "Over-communication" thing so much in my first interview...

[@truephysx2356]

Thank you, this was very useful.

[@ezequielvangeance2952]

i'm 17 and im starting my senior year soon, I started to learn python 2 weeks ago and I sit on the computer 2 hours everyday on PyCharm. Please can you help me or give me advice, I like it but it's so frustrating and I can't even remember all of the syntax!

[@grabbenskarve3518]

It does not matter how much time you spend but instead how effective you are. 2h every day without brakes is 1.5 - 1h wasted depending on your personality (and because you get frustrated that might be the case). I am also 17 and can right now program in c++ and python so I know that it is possible.

[@ezequielvangeance2952]

@@grabbenskarve3518 any tips you could give me.

[@grabbenskarve3518]

What do you need help with? Syntax, problame solving, best practices...

[@ezequielvangeance2952]

@@grabbenskarve3518 Syntax, the general logic and being more motivated. Also the benefits of coding?

[@ezequielvangeance2952]

@@grabbenskarve3518 It brings 6 figures no?

[@charlesopuoro5295]

Thanks a whole lot Clement.

[@nishantsur9361]

I am so eager to see this video now but I am stuck in online class😔

[@mihaidumitrascu7211]

Hello, curious about the big monitor behind you, what model is it?

[@poulomi3366]

Clement, you are too cute at the same time so genuine.. your are grounded and i respect that about you a lot

[@jakub6956]

Hi will you upload second part of Google EM interview:)?

[@clem]

It's already uploaded! It's the previous video on my channel.

[@youcefouadjer855]

Clément you are my hero

[@michaelkilbane9148]

On the first point, isn't the whole idea to get an idea of the candidates thought process?

[@DaggerMan11]

Yes, but there's a difference between good communication and bad communication. I think a lot of interviewees think bad communication is just not talking, so they try to create a constant wall of noise even if the noise isn't coherent. So when you're communicating, it's just a matter of staying focused and showing the interviewer that you have a plan of attack.

[@danfu6280]

Alright, so since I haven't seen similar comment and also because the author of the video does not value your time, here are time codes, the "mistakes" and short summary: 0:06 - **Overcommunication**. In short: don't rumble over your thoughts/code/problem, take a pause, process and deliver valuable and clear idea/information to the other party involved in an interview 2:03 - Don't throw stuff at a problem without explaining why/how it is related to the problem. Kinda the same as the first one just with technical terminology 4:45 - This content is blocked by adblocker. (seriously skip it, he self-promotes. And also presents it as a joke) 5:13 - Going directly to the coding without proper planning of what/how you will code . First come up with a structure/approach, have a prototype, then start coding 7:40 - Not confirming what the problem statement is. Make sure you have a correct idea of expected result (input-output, final set/order/structure of data etc) Personal opinion as a programmer with 6+ years of experience: skip this video. Except the last point (I see this happening in real development too often) everything else is just a common sense and any good-enough specialist should understand it already. This video could be helpful to a trainee or a junior level programmer who is just starting out.

[@meme_engineering4521]

i have an interview in 33 minutes, watching this now

[@wewonbro1620]

Do coding interviews give you examples?

[@rickraydubs]

5:14, me all day 🤣, okay I'm better than I used to be.

[@fhbonetti]

Hey Clement! You do have a lot of content for Software Engineer interviews. How about positions that are not so technical? I have an interview for Technical Solutions Manager.(i am a TVC, Googlers i know told me the position is level 3). There will be a coding interview, as i was told by recruiter. However, they didn't mention about system design interviews. Are those two interviews done for all positions that have some technical requirements? Are the levels of interviews the same? Am i expected to code as well as a software engineer? Thank you!

[@Mani_OnFire]

Clement, can you suggest me the best programming language to become software engineer

[@Neolisk]

Python. As a non-python developer myself. 5 times less code on a coding interview and it also pays 50% above market.

[@AvantGrade]

So, to sum up: Shut up and listen first and then confirm the problem and then start with the paper design before actually coding.

[@arunrajak.b8987]

looking awesome @Clement Mihailescu

[@Neolisk]

30-60 seconds to think? What if I need 10+ minutes to even start coding? As you explained, I don't want to start coding a solution that won't work. Now if the problem statement is fairly complex, I don't want to convey 9 out of 10 solutions that would make me look bad in the end.

[@TokyoXtreme]

Usually you would talk out your idea and maybe list the steps out in plain English on the whiteboard, before writing out the code itself. I guess coding too early happens to be mistake #3.

[@Neolisk]

@@TokyoXtreme I am mildly dyslexic. It is difficult for me to talk about something if I don't completely understand it. I guess it's difficult to talk even if I do understand something well, because finding the right words for the right person to convince them is tough (for me). If I try to understand only at high level and start talking, I might have already missed some important details. Proper interviews should account for individual traits. They don't.

[@greyrabbit2157]

Thank you!

[@Agent_Ax]

Everything have change Except Clement saying What's Up Everybody How's It Goin' Have Never Changed

[@atomicwombat00]

Made the 4th mistake a few days ago. Whoooooops

[@miname.1802]

make a demo video of your Google interview....short film

[@soubarnobanerjee8257]

Wow that screen in the background is huge!!!

[@natancieplinski4377]

Video 1 of asking Clement for a desk setup video update in the comments

[@diegoho5058]

Hello, do you have an advice to improve critical thinking, specially during solving a coding problem? I just started programming and i feel like I could solve the problems in a better and efficient way. Hope you answer! 🙏🏻👍🏻

[@markemerson98]

yep point 1: been told I talk too much

[@johnhamsa5267]

bro im really desperate to learn Python. im trying so much. I like the way you explain things. Please start posting tutorials na. smashing the like, subscribe and bell button for you!! tutorials please!!

[@mefrefgiweuhef4808]

Love the beard bro

[@shahirabdullah5438]

"So you wanna be a software engineer at Google ? "

[@none0n]

High quality content

[@xshad3x348]

I don't get why you guys don't tell the people that 99.9% of the times they will never have an interview like this and is only about google / facebook / apple employees ego? for example a web developer will almost never use complex algorithms in the daily job but focus on solving other kind of issues. At least specify that is only for big companies and not the other 99.9% of the market. 20 years of experience, nobody asked me once about algorithms.

[@chandankumarxiib2644]

A time would come when the coding channels would get the viewership in millions ... Coz people would get the emeging value of computing in the adavnced world...

[@navjotsingh2457]

Ty

[@williamcoleman2128]

These interviews are so stupid. Nearly all SWE job roles and responsibilities don’t require any of this knowledge. This kind of “problem solving” is rarely ever necessary in practical applications.

[@hatemsaadallah8532]

This video is published on April 25th while it's still 24th lol

[@suryadevarakarthik1814]

Hey 🙋Clement

[@someporter]

love you man

[@immortaldev1489]

*casually plugs website*

[@pillilaxmilaxmi9357]

Bro please make a video on top 10 IT job in google and what coding languages or frameworks we should learn to get that IT job Please make a video on this bro please

[@joaquimmenezes7396]

Hey clem

[@triularity]

"You'll thank me later" --Adrian Monk

[@TechWithSabri]

Clement why you don't have a logo ( as a millionaire ) 😂 😂

[@antovimalan6723]

Beard - New style?

[@AurelianoShowsTheWorld]

I see 7 fingers on the thumbnail

[@LuisMorales-yx8di]

Buy algoexpert

[@jpg6113]

Howdy 🤠

[@chrisogonas]

👍👍👍

[@Helixur]

Waste of time. All I did was stare dude mouth and teeth you make good money it seems get invisalign sir

[@harispapadopoulos4295]

5th bonus mistake: You didn’t use algo expert

[@Agent_Ax]

LOL

[@David-_-149]

second comment

[@flake2078]

nice

[@zahash1045]

Weird beard