How To Prep For Tech Interviews While Working Full-Time

Take the TIRA for free to find out how your SWE skills stack up and where you're interview-ready so you can focus your interview prep and land a role faster ➡️ fm.dev/a-life-engineered-TIRA
📈Transform your tech career with my free weekly newsletter - newsletter.alifeengineered.co...
💥 Continue the conversation on my Discord server with like-minded viewers. The advice section is *chef's kiss* - / discord
💥 My KZbin content will always be free of charge but if you'd like to support the channel, I'd be honored if you supported me on Patreon - / alifeengineered
🚀 If you want to get promoted fast, I'd love to work with you personally: speedruntopromotion.com
BOOKS THAT CHANGED MY LIFE
So Good They Can't Ignore You - geni.us/SoGood This book transformed my life when I read it for the first time nearly 10 years ago. It's still guides the way I think about self-development today.
Deep Work - geni.us/ALE-DeepWork The most important currency you have is your undivided attention. This book shows you exactly how to spend this currency in a manner that will lead to head-turning accomplishment.
SYSTEM DESIGN
Designing Data-Intensive Applications geni.us/DataIntensive
Currently the best reference for contemporary for system design.
System Design Interview (Volume 2) geni.us/SystemDesignIntervie and geni.us/SystemDesignInterview - For interviews, the best references are System Design Interview and System Design Interview Volume 2 by Alex Xu.
I get a kick-back for the affiliate links above. The opinions expressed in this video are my own. I do not speak for Amazon.

[@ALifeEngineered]

Take the TIRA for free to find out how your SWE skills stack up and where you're interview-ready so you can focus your interview prep and land a role faster ➡ fm.dev/a-life-engineered-TIRA 📈Transform your tech career with my free weekly newsletter - newsletter.alifeengineered.co... 💥 Continue the conversation on my Discord server with like-minded viewers. The advice section is *chef's kiss* - / discord 💥 My KZbin content will always be free of charge but if you'd like to support the channel, I'd be honored if you supported me on Patreon - / alifeengineered 🚀 If you want to get promoted fast, I'd love to work with you personally: speedruntopromotion.com

[@Pingsmingu]

I am trying to join your newsletter but it’s giving me a server error

[@shoooozzzz]

$2,500 Monthly Membership or 27% APR for a loan Steve, you're pushing predatory lending and out of touch pricing models. Please vet your sponsors, because they reflect on you as a product.

[@igor.medeiros]

@@Pingsmingu there's a typo on the newsletter link. Just add a "m" in the end.

[@prezmoten]

@@shoooozzzz I thougth of exactly the same think when I saw the pricing. I'll move out of my apartment and take a loan just to be able prepare with formation from a cardboard box

[@the_real_cookiez]

Long time follower here: Love the work you do. Just a bit of advice, you can be choosy with your sponsors to continue your image of wholesome tech prep person. Trust me, I know the pressure to make income, but you already have grown an account organically in record time. You can make a decent income from YT shorts with your subscribers and view count. There's no reason to sacrifice your long term vision for short term gain. You'll be fine. You have a wife and other revenues of income. And with your career, you should have a substantial safety net. Give yourself time.

[@shoooozzzz]

You mean taking a loan at a 27% interest rate for the sponsored course isn't a good idea?

[@the_real_cookiez]

@@shoooozzzz Straight up disgusting move by Steve. "Why shouldn't he get paid for FREE content" some of his NPC supporters are saying. It's not like he's in desperate need for money; more opportunities will come, just greedy. Sad to see.

[@humanecoder5106]

Anyone else notice that formation costs $2500 per month?!

[@travisnotime5767]

Yah. $2500 for information you can find for free if you put in the work.

[@bigbigdog]

Wow, I didn't even click on the the links but thanks for the heads up.

[@ssarefintanweer6191]

2500/month!? Crazy!

[@johnallentech]

Lol did not even take a week before the sponsors went to shite

[@shakirahsanromeo7863]

Even 2500 per year wouldn’t make sense

[@Thinhnv]

Stay away from drama-filled comments (do I?) - here's a takeaway from the video: - Focus on identifying and targeting your weakest areas. + Be intentional about preparing for things you tend to overlook. + Avoid being overly thorough during interview preparation. - Find overlap between your work tasks and interview preparation. - Plan backward from your interview day (right-to-left planning). Action plan: - Allocate 3 months for interview preparation. - Spend 5 days pinpointing where to direct your attention. - Break down preparation into manageable tasks. - Set clear and achievable milestones. - Anticipate and prepare for potential conflicts that could disrupt your plan.

[@RM-xr8lq]

sad to see this guy turning into a sellout, these tech youtubers cant seem to help themselves... this one doesn't even have the excuse of needing a sponsorship from snake oil like formation

[@barelylate]

why is formation snake oil? and do you have a good alternative? I googled formation but got code signal as a sponsored ad before it

[@sriramananthakrishnan138]

Steve, I really enjoy your videos and you were one of the few folks on KZbin who didn't peddle a course or some scammy site. This is new and I was a bit taken aback, mainly because I found your emphasis on navigating your career and soft skill alignment more useful as there are many other youtubers like neetcode for example from whom I can get lc prep from. This video felt like a sponsored message rather than a simple transaction of my attention for your time.

[@Pingsmingu]

Exact exact situation your videos are like me thinking out loud keep up the great work

[@Neonb88]

We really loved you, man. We trusted you, too. It's not too late to turn it back around

[@the_real_cookiez]

Dude is gonna be TechLead 2.0. Disgusting.

[@mr.mystiks9968]

Formation is complete trash. Paying for an interview prep course that’s ok a monthly subscription makes sense. But paying a bunch of FAANG engineers to give you common sense interview feedback for $2500 a month or paying $7K-14K for lifetime access is just comedic. Honestly Steve, you should just stick to career growth content. You stuck around at Amazon for over 20 years. No job hops, no crazy interview loops where you got crazy offers to talk about.

[@the_real_cookiez]

Not surprised. The tech prep interview industry is a multi-tens million dollar industry and growing. Scammy and predatory industry. You can 100% do all of it for free. No need for AI backed streamlining buzzwords bs. And agreed. Just stick to content creation and he just needs to do a little bit of vetting before accepting sponsors. He already managed exponential growth on a YT channel that thousands of other content creators need years and years to accomplish; and most never do.

[@Neonb88]

He's used to having millions in disposable income Where do you expect this business model is coming from? It's less of a scam than Tony Robbins' course sales, at least.

[@panamacityboi]

I disagree. He may not have job hopped, but he's done plenty of interviews as an interviewer. Isn't that a perspective you want to hear?

[@dmeador1]

​@@Neonb88what a weird implication. He is trying to replace his income from a job he quit and so it means it's ok to push insanely overpriced snake oil that he hasn't actually used? Maybe he could find one of the many other sponsors that are legit and not tank his viewership. I just found him a few months ago and was excited on his somewhat unique insight but now have unsubscribed after this.

[@bk1507]

@@panamacityboi He has already made these kinds of videos. He has run out of content so have to turn to sponsored stuff like this.

[@ddosan4108]

Perfect timing. Couldn’t remember why I was learning Ancient Greek !!!

[@ACOFMENCOM]

Thank you for this series of videos.It makes real sense.We often try to remember the wheel ourselves and never take a few moments just to listen to somebody who's got something good to say and can save us a lot of time and effort

[@IPatricio]

Great timing

[@cloudwithraj]

Great video with actionable tips Steve! Also, from Dijkstra's Algorithm to secret of life - everything roots back to the ancient Greek wisdom 🙏

[@JohnVandivier]

bro is the only one advanced in linked lists

[@coiL10]

Exactly the situation I’m in, thanks Steve!

[@yr1520]

This is the modern day equivalent of snake oil.

[@Ross-ng4xl]

explain

[@yr1520]

As someone who has cleared FAANG interviews before I can tell you this whole video is an ad for a product that is over priced and of limited value. You don't need a FAANG interviewer, you can easily find discords with other people prepping for interviews too and prepare with them for free. The interview process is the way it is becausd it can't be bought. You can buy courses but you can't buy skill.

[@charliec2627]

Your intro was on point in what I am feeling right now, except for the pay, the pay is good in my current job but I also want a higher pay.

[@SticPRO3]

Hey thanks for the great content. I have a question, when you said plan from right to left and not over index in coding, does this only apply if you make it to onsite stage. Before getting to onsite stage you’re mostly evaluated on coding/problem solving so isn’t it better to over index a bit on coding initially until we get to the onsite stage before balancing out preparation.

[@Xeoncross]

A lot of extra work can save you a little planning. Planning isn't fun, neither is trying to pick a date / set a goal. This same advice is given for investing, paying off debt, getting married, and most other important things. The call out to avoid working on your biggest weakness is good. Long term improvement on weakness is good, but in the short term you can't sacrifice the whole package like that.

[@JonathanLoganClark]

Spot on.

[@SuperMacGuy]

Working RTL sounds great. If you can even plan. If you’re just laid off and need something asap, what is best? Some ppl aren’t even getting past ATS systems to have a real interview, no planning can combat that. Patient planning, and being ready. Some ppl don’t have the luxury of time like that.

[@miasibala]

this! been actively recruiting for two months. applied to 35 jobs, interviewed at 8 companies avg 1-2 interviews a week. some jobs did not align with my career goals and some companies didn't see me as a fit. would love to land something by early Q2 2024. @alifeengineered

[@offBeatRock777]

Hey uncle Steve. This is timely

[@lycan2494]

cringe

[@SuccessfulMiddleclassGuy]

I would request you to add moments in your video, so I can skip the content if I’m not worried about that portion😊

[@rishavpaul6182]

@steve - most interview prep platforms are garbage and you should not endorse them. You can make money by providing 1:1 or 1:many career advice because that’s what you did at Amazon and that’s what you said you love doing.

[@JReuben111]

Every year set asside a month for revising data structures and algorithms ML interviews are tricky - because there are so many subfield specialities. If you learn 2000 techniques it becomes a blur

[@gerryramosftw]

shout out neetcode!

[@LukeAvedon]

There is no link to your formation offer in the description.

[@henrytran9517]

Hi Steve, awesome content

[@bananabrann]

I understand the need to take sponsorships, however I'm super disappointed to see in-line style sponsorship on this content. Steve's content is soured by in-line ads, especially the endorsed ones ("I use this product" -type ads). I feel like the sponsorship in the beginning or at the end would have been much more appropriate, not even considering how unrelatable the product is in the first place

[@sr.junior4670]

This sounds like very good advice, the main problem for me is that I cant get any interviews to begin with. I don't think I'm going about applying wrong, I'm applying to roles I fit the experiance level for, tailoring my resume, and applying with referrals, but i still just get rejections.

[@TonyDaDons]

honestly the market is just trash right now, if you're in the US

[@mangos1346]

was the previous video about way to promotion deleted?

[@geraldtong4414]

Got AI Sora already, still go for Tech interview.

[@olumideomololu9793]

Is there a version of this for someone who studied CS or is self-taught but has had to work in non-technical roles due to circumstances such as the recent economic climate?

[@olumideomololu9793]

Maintaining a portfolio and freelancing can be an added stressor.

[@odiadavid6957]

Where and how does leetcode intersect with my daily tickets on Jira??😅

[@thefourbytes]

I am a Lead Data Scientist and wish to move out of data science and get back into Software Engineering. I have 10 years of experience (with 3 years in software engineering, and 7 years in Data Science). Should I even try to breakout or stay in data science? Is it too late for me to think about SWE?

[@realnapster1522]

Why though?

[@9714]

I’m in software engineering and was thinking of moving to Data Science to diversify my work experience. Why do you want to move back to Engineering?

[@thefourbytes]

​@@9714 Because there is more creativity to it. You will be shocked that data science in real world is not as flashy as you might be thinking right now.

[@alexzandermanning6094]

Let me fix that intro for you . “ So you have a decent job. You’re performing well. However you feel that you are capable of more , and the 5% raise you got this year doesn’t cover inflation…”

[@jessinra2947]

Steve, you might want to improve the audio quality :)

[@DevDynamicSwift]

I personally felt hurt when you said learn javascript and frameworks but the code and the tool is Swift and xcode from 2:55 to 2:57. Please dont hurt the friendly iOS Community. We exist.

[@jackfinkel9434]

I think the tip about focusing on items at work that are related to interviewing, while well intentioned, is out of touch. Out of all the tips to give, it has such low potential for leverage. You have three main interviews to prepare for. Coding questions have very little to do with how you code at work, since it is mostly algorithms rather than software engineering problems. System design is different in interviews because you are probably working on one kind of product with one kind of design. Yet theres tons of different system designs out there you should study for an interview, and the criteria you will be judged upon are likely to be different anyways. Focusing too much on applying your lessons learned from the job to an interview might be like using a hammer to screw in a screw. Lastly the behavioral. Ive never had a performance review where the criteria for success was the same as that in an interview. Plus it is a vastly different audience with different priorities than your company. So how is it really practicing? To me its like doing well in high school then taking the SAT. Sure if you do well in high school, it will probably help, but the criteria for success is so different in the SAT that you cannot leverage your skillset for success. You just need to study the SAT

[@Neonb88]

You could find a lower paying and/or lower stress job, man. You broke our hearts with this You’re still the tech KZbinr we all respect the most, perhaps outside of Rahul Pandey. You could go back and sustain your lifestyle with some easier software day job Wait did you also just lie about the fact that you’re still at Amazon? We all felt for you when you quit

[@farkhodazizov4199]

Even with 4+ years of experience as a Linux system administrator, I can't get to the interview. My resume is honestly "good". No buzz words straight facts with numbers and all that good stuff bachelor's degree etc. BUT still not inviting me for an interview for over a month now. I was just looking for better company with better pay and room to grow. All I'm saying is about the Job market guys. The market dictates how fast or slow you get a job. But eventually, you will get a job I promise))

[@prezmoten]

Cant wait for your $35 coconut water energy drink to help me prepare with my $2500 subscription!

[@favoring-quiet-goatskin]

Your videos are gems Steve… just please go buy some chapstick before the next one 😂❤

[@JBarker66]

Joining interview loops at your company helps a lot too

[@sbstorage95]

This is your best video thus far Steve

[@pushpendrasingh1819]

For suggesting this website or your sponsor, I am unsubscribing you. You also changed like everyone else

[@Neonb88]

Answer: cut out TONS of the more useless activities you end up cluttering your day with/ getting distracted by

[@dafivers4127]

Why he always bringing up dog shit ads

[@lycan2494]

dudes a sellout.

[@sbstorage95]

Why? Because he has a sponsor for this free video that was chalk full of FREE valuable insights and advice? You think that people should devote themselves to endeavours where they aren’t compensated, and that Steve doesn’t have a right to income to sustain himself? Get a grip!

[@johnallentech]

Steve’s a good dude I am sure but I don’t like how much the channel has changed already.

[@the_real_cookiez]

@@johnallentech Yea :( I mean given $1M+/yr household income to now ~$250k/year income is a big change, but even so, he should be solid for years to come, with extra fun money for the kids. Should be more than enough time for his social media stuff to pop off even more, but ya now, money > everything.

[@adi96adi]

He's got yt subs and wants to get the bag tf else would you do? Get ad money? 🤣🤣🤣

[@johnallentech]

I’d probably think… I can make 1 mill this year and have no channel afterwards or I can milk this for the next 10 years getting 300k a year Mad up numbers obviously. Just a little sad my favourite channels gone like this

[@maximtheconqueror]

Sellout

[@olgashiryaeva9440]

I used to be Steve’s admirer, but now it feels like Steve is a sellout at this point. Formation doesn’t work for everyone (look it up, you’ll see tons of bad reviews), and costs a decent amount of money. Thanks, but no thanks. Your advice is garbage

[@dan-cj1rr]

fk this field, i'm out

[@7oeseven793]

What’s your background?

[@jrme4216]

Half ur vid is an add. Its not information its sponsored content dont u hav any shame?

[@moonbeam254]

Hey steve, dont worry about the low performers in the comments. They dont even know your audience isnt them. Good s#%t in this video.

[@SP-go6lj]

You're the low performer if you think spending $2500 on interview prep (which isn't rocket science, has a predefined path and is free online) is justifiable.

[@painfullyhuman]

oh my god the overreactions to a sponsor are hilarious. do me a favor and dont listen to the rest of the video please. stop applying while youre at it for me