What To Do If You're Stuck In A Coding Interview

Ever been stuck in a coding interview? Here are 2 coding interview tips to deal with this situation.
AlgoExpert: www.algoexpert.io/clem
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My LinkedIn: / clementmihailescu
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Prepping for coding interviews or systems design interviews? Practice with hundreds of video explanations of popular interview questions and a full-fledged coding workspace on AlgoExpert - www.algoexpert.io - and use the promo code "clem" for a discount on the platform!

[@robinsaxena9547]

Imagine people applying the first tip in an onsite interview..that would be interesting

[@jackytaly]

“sorr- eh I’m-eh oo brea-ahh up” “Sir you’re sitting right in front of me....”

[@losingmyfaith5323]

You can simulate heart attack

[@Gazzar19]

Definitely a great way to get hospitalized

[@farhanaditya2647]

😂

[@asdfgsf9660]

Just cough violently and add phlegm for effect. The interviewer will ask you to call it a day.

[@devguyahnaf]

6:32 while True: print("no ")

[@LegendarySkyHero]

if (hint): break

[@clem]

if isFunnyComment(comment): heartComment(comment)

[@devguyahnaf]

@@clem NameError: name 'heartComment' is not defined

[@joelvarghese3370]

@@clem replyToComment(comment)

[@devguyahnaf]

@ensayofr Clement's girlfriend

[@Luka-fs4jk]

1:45 Reiterate your thought process throughout the interview 5:48 Ask for a hint

[@Cpt.Casual]

When I give interviews I always appreciate someone asking questions, walking through their approach, and asking for a hint. I would much rather you ask for a hint and move forward than see you fumble over yourself. We time box the whiteboard sections to 30 mins so if you spend 10 of that going in a loop that's a tight crunch to finish your solution. By explaining your thought process it makes it easier for us to see where you're getting hung up and what sort of hint may nudge you in the right direction. It can also be difficult to find a whiteboard exercise that resonates with the kind of work you will be doing, so sometimes the whiteboard is more of an exercise in how you break down problems and less about how many algorithms you have memorized. Talk it out with the person giving your interview, it really helps the process.

[@clem]

Exactly! Sounds like a great interviewer right here ☝️

[@mr.ajinkyasalvi]

I really got stuck during my interview. I used the gentle way for asking the hint. After explaining my approaches, I said that "I am not able to reach the solution using the two approaches I considered." and the interviewer just replied, "Okay!".

[@anushibinj]

@@mr.ajinkyasalvi 😢

[@jamjam3448]

Thanks

[@Jdb63]

This is invaluable stuff Clement. Really appreciate the work you do to help us

[@rwbazillion]

This was actually motivating because this is an area I need to be better at, and you mention techniques and procedures to problem solving which is awesome.

[@KennyTalksCode]

Great tips! Big agree on the first tip of reiterating the problem. I recently made a vid on this too, but I think it’s also valuable to come up with a few more examples if you’re really stuck because it could help you start to see certain patterns that weren’t obvious when there was only a single example. Whatever you do, do NOT dive head first into coding. Second tip is smart, and you’re right that there are many subtle ways to... extract assistance from the interviewers haha I also recommend reading about the BUD technique in CTCI for a very tangible process for coming up with better solutions when you’re stuck. Of course, as you mention at 0:26, there’s also no replacement to having adequate practice beforehand.

[@yashnegi9473]

I subscribed for it today and I am very happy and satisfied with Algo Expert. God Bless You..

[@zamfiratosamir8426]

I went trough the Amazon on site interviews. The first one was okish and in the last 3 I felt that I performed at my best. I was stuck for a moment during the first interview, but the interviewer will try to help you. What you should do is keep calm, ask questions, try to come up with an easier version of the same problem and solve it, suppose that the language you are implementing your solution on has some functionalities that my help you. With that I felt that I was able to make my first interview from average to a more than decent one and with very good performance in the next ones to get the offer :D!

[@178fahimahmed7]

Many of the time the problem has some valid and tricky info that we overlook it. So, it's very much helpful to "walk through" the whole thought process again again, this is a very good piece of advice. Thanks a lot ❤❤❤❤❤

[@Evilshrimp02]

Thank you man, I have an interview this Thursday and I'm nerves. Thank you for the advice.

[@inuke4fun832]

Just purchased Algo Expert I am extremely exited to get started and would just want to thank you for all the content and help you 100% deserve and worked for all the success you have defo a big inspiration

[@deeproy7292]

bro you give me confidence. Best way is to drain my ego and try with full effort

[@rajkhoiwal4901]

This was much needed thanks !!

[@tarikkaya3180]

Yoo havent seen you fir a while congrats on 200k Last time I have seen you was you was looking down my like button and creeping me out

[@Grr1967]

One of the most important videos ever!

[@daark3113]

Clement, again with the good content

[@icewizard3664]

Nice video there my friend Clement. Normally, I did not get stuck on an interview but like on an exam that I just took. Even though this was mainly meant for interviews, it reminded me of useful tactics that I can use to answer exams better in the future.

[@insofcury]

that's a really nice piece of advice..Thank you

[@avinzhat7705]

Hey clement! Nice video. I had a very awesome idea that you could implement in algo expert to make it stand out even more. People who buy the product should get one mock interview at the end to assess the knowledge they acquired. Or maybe they could pay a little more for this feature.

[@clem]

Something like this might be coming soon 😉

[@Mikairuu]

@@clem 🙏🏻🙏🏻

[@briankarcher8338]

Talking it out really is the best approach. Even if you know the answer you should talk it out. It helps them to get into your head and show how much you know, alternate approaches you considered, etc. Better for them to realize you got 90% of the problem figured out than 0%. If you got 90% of it yourself and need assistance on the last 10%, that's fine. Even if you can't solve it after the hint it's better to walk out at 90% than 0%. Another benefit of talking through the problem as you do it is sometimes they'll notice something as you code it or are describing it and the interviewer will bring it to your attention before you go down the wrong path too far. You won't even ask for the hint, they'll just be kind enough to give it to you. Like in your example, if they notice that you're sorting the values and complaining about time complexity they may just say "Oh, the array is already sorted".

[@evergreen7781]

Very insightful one... Thanks for breaking the ice Clement...

[@datta3268]

Wow!, such valuable data with just a single video. Thanks man :)

[@joelvarghese3370]

Another quality video from Clement.

[@Hufsa]

I didn't expect to subscribe to a channel because the humor of the author really rocks! 😂😜

[@shreshthsirola9006]

I can definitely say that these tips work as I have used them and they worked for me in the past. Ps: not the internet issue one ;)

[@josephwong2832]

Solid Advice Clem!!! thanks

[@sohamsen7892]

1:13 That's a cheeky piece of advice.😂You would be in a spot of bother if you don't watch the entire video.

[@clem]

👀

[@subodh1584]

@@clem Maybe add an annotation or some clear indication in case sarcasm goes undetected. :)

[@idjevm]

hahahhahahaha You owe me a job Clement, I was about to have my interview and I only watched like about 80 seconds of this video lol Guess I should've not used the tip without hearing the whole thing LOL

[@ByteOfMichael]

Fire video man keep it up!

[@emmanuellopez1960]

Awesome video clem!!!

[@meetthereqs]

Thank you! This helped calm my darn nerves my interview is tomorrow.

[@l4wlite]

Man I was in a hurry and could only saw your early mints of video and it worked XD Thankss

[@deachful]

I got late so I paused at 1:22 and went for the interview

[@aasali40]

I just love his energy

[@goldfish8196]

excellent advice. thank you

[@SamPusegaonkar]

Hi Clement, Could you make tips & tricks video for Online Assessments? Thanks!

[@rupakkorde]

1:13 How to make viewers watch your video completely 😆 Nice video 👍

[@gurusivaram]

I always watch your videos at 2x. It's more enjoyable and informative. Thanks Clem.

[@mattlogan1]

I always watch them at 3x.

[@migueldomingos4570]

Pleade answer clem: What do yiu do to your react app to make it SEO friendly? Do you use something like next or gatsby? Or do you use CRA with react helmet and react router?

[@raiyanmahin]

Yeah , video was really insightful (y)

[@salkjshaweoiuenvohvr]

Doing your course now. It's tough, but I'm definitely getting more mileage out of it now.

[@clem]

Awesome!

[@salkjshaweoiuenvohvr]

@@clem I will email you my thoughts. I have some minor critiques which would better the experience without much effort.

[@sainathsingineedi2922]

@@salkjshaweoiuenvohvr can you post them here as a review of his course

[@salkjshaweoiuenvohvr]

@@sainathsingineedi2922 Honestly the service is worth every penny. The algo questions are not pulling any punches and I'm learning more syntax tricks in the process. The interface is HIGHLY customizable. I can switch not only from light and dark mode, but syntax highlights as well. They even let you chose between vim, emacs, and sublime style text editing too. You even get to choose between multiple programming languages how to solve the problem. They also go into great detail about time and space complexity of each way you can solve each question which in a previous course for comparison only told me how much time complexity something might have but not being nearly as clear explaining why. My only real criticism is the videos explaining the algos are kinda dry and slow. Clément explains them using the share screen over a digiboard in realtime, and a lot of these can be summed up using slides and diagrams that he instead takes the time to draw up. I use a chrome extension Video Speed controller to watch all my videos at 3x normal speed but even then my brain tends to wander off. Some parts he explains very well and what ultimately I wish was explained better was certain code tricks in syntax (commenting code at certain hat tricks would be good). So really all that needs improvement is a little more polish in his video explanations. Some videos run up to an hour when really 20 minutes would be enough if done with better editing and refinement. 9.5/10 would highly recommend.

[@sainathsingineedi2922]

@@salkjshaweoiuenvohvr thanks for concise review

[@Nnemka]

the glitch did make me like the vid! you're funny for that 😂😂😂😂

[@pinkylover911]

you are funny, nice and helpful wish you all the luck

[@AaronandAsh]

Yeah I got stuck on the 4th interview at google 💀 it took all i had to not panic! 😥

[@clem]

Did you end up getting the job?!

[@AaronandAsh]

@@clem ..............yep!

[@clem]

@@AaronandAsh 🎉 🎊 💪 🎉 🎊

[@basharanisnarendramodi3526]

@@AaronandAsh hey do u care to guide a 13 yo learning HTML (I am completely new and study in grade 9)

[@christianog]

Ashaz Anis You learning CSS too? That’s when it gets fun

[@jameshizon4861]

Clement, thanks. I have a Zoom interview for SWE on Tuesday. I partially feel unprepared.

[@prashantdwivedi9073]

Did you got that job?

[@sehzadeselim863]

How was it?

[@videocorner3305]

3:12 when he said "wait", instantly ad popped up.

[@theav.1313]

Sold! I actually did “like” right after the joke.

[@none0n]

It worked. I liked the video 😁

[@aparnamahalingam1595]

Dear Clem, what is the level of onsite interview for a Google level 4? Like do they ask "very hard" and DP/graph types problems?

[@XueyongQian]

Very sound suggestions!

[@fabiosuarez144]

Hey Clément! I’ll be graduating this December and am trying to get a job lol. A couple of questions I have: when should I start applying (I’m about halfway done with AlgoExpert, trying to finish within the next two weeks)? And should I apply for a job or an internship (I’ve had a few internships in the past and have some more projects but maybe landing an internship is easier?)? Thank you so much for everything, your info helps a lot!

[@StephanBranczyk]

You should apply to both and see which ones call you back. With that said, if everyone is working from home in your area, don't be surprised if internships are harder to find than normal.

[@fabiosuarez144]

@@StephanBranczyk Thanks for the help!

[@StalkedByLosers]

Lol the network issues ACTUALLY happened to me when I was stuck. The interviewer was trying to get me to use a shared site to run the code live and it wasn't working. So I suggested I just run it on my machine with screenshare. Well Zoom messed up and would NOT let me, and froze. Then it dropped me. Holy crap I'm sure they thought it was me trying to stall but I wasn't in fact that event just put me into a mental tailspin and just made it worse. Had to reboot my computer and I reconnected asap and the interviewer was not amused. To top it off, he didn't like my solution and told the in-house recruiter that basically I'm worthless.

[@felipeventura6176]

just got out of my very first coding interview practice at the bootcamp I'm taking and I got stuck in a really basic problem omg haha I really am going to have to practice more

[@TonyDUsopp]

You made me do it! I was stuck in an interview and I just watched this video upto the first step and replicated it. I lost my job

[@M.A.H.I.R]

I smashed that LIKE BUTTON the moment you faked that Internet connection problem. 😂😂😂

[@puruarora3584]

Interview i can handle...tests are the main problem 😭😭...any tips for that?

[@ashishmadhu7829]

I respect you sir

[@alextrex3975]

Thanks Clement

[@maxcreation3619]

Excellent video 📸

[@Fanta....]

If you're going to cut your internet connection, make sure you do it via some sort of pedal switch, so you can have both hands clearly up when you press it!

[@noobCoder26]

That's a great advice

[@alwaysinagoodshape5327]

My internet started having issues around 1:26. I tried your tip but it didn't work. Instead I was made fun of and I'm on a watchlist now.

[@JohnCodes]

1:00 lol big oof. Had this happen for real during an interview. Internet issues and had to resume the interview over the phone. The wooorst.

[@anchaleejittanupakorn8166]

Lol I laughed so hard on a first tip. I thought it was real recommended tip 😂😂

[@LettuceMeetAgain]

You can sort an array if it wasn't sorted and that helps the problem work better. :)

[@neeraj1bh]

I think we should write a counter function and increment it everytime you say Coding interview. A lot of Coding interviews in the video. 😅😂☮️

[@snlagr]

You had one job CJ! REVERSE-THE-DAMN-LINKED-LIST

[@shankarsuman8801]

Can A fresher with 6 months experience get into FAANG If I prepare for 1 year. I have already completed half of algoexpert problems?

[@kaustavnag9896]

Do you know what is the scariest thing on this planet - to get stuck in a coding interview And do you know how to get rid of this intimidation - algoexpert

[@ninjaninja9954]

All interviews are remote now. The best tip is to get your wife to stand quietly by your side and start googling the answers on a laptop and you just read the solution. Then once they employ you they will wonder why you know nothing

[@sehzadeselim863]

😂😂😂

[@michalgasparik90]

Perfect!

[@himanshuchhikara4918]

haha i was serious on ur 1st advice and i have interview at google on next tuesday :)

[@Neworldexport]

Very nice syncro with ur partner 👩nice choice

[@UIGems]

I bought ur course! It's good 👍

[@rick-kv1gl]

man, Clement's humour is top notch .

[@smaranh]

Can you make a video on how to mentor (interns/junior colleagues) and talk about Leadership skills in Software Development?

[@basharanisnarendramodi3526]

Hey I am 13 learning html feel free to advise me :)

[@chips-n-salsa]

thank you for this video and tip about asking for a hint. haha

[@nelsonthekinger]

Can you post a video about your work ethic? Thanks

[@Opportunity631]

thankYouClem:)

[@jardondiego]

[1:46] - Reiterate out loud the entire process so far (prob statement, edge cases, approaches, data structures, etc). [5:47] - Ask for a hint

[@StarcraftGT500]

Hahahaha that was great! Definitely got a like from me, thanks for the laugh! 👍

[@hemanthkumar8330]

Damn, I heard that ad so many times that I felt it played again ...

[@carlosbp2002]

Good tips

[@tanshisian1279]

i smash the like button after your "first tip" hahaha

[@vatsallalcheta4256]

Are all who are working at faang companies have 5* 6* 7* sort of rating on codechef or do the 3* 4* kinda guys also work at them?

[@jtek.7472]

I actually thought it was funny and I liked :)

[@omarvayani3452]

Clément I have a big question How much time should I study on a bootcamp to get a job? And what was the process that got you hired at Google?

[@duongtran642]

Have you ever considered making a math series?

[@RohanKumar-zd3pc]

I thought I am going to get that algoexpert ad

[@anonymusk9397]

Clement I have a question about algoexpert. If I buy algoexpert and read it thoroughly for 3 months ,can I crack faang companies coding interviews.

[@muhiuddinhazari4229]

No you can't. You'll need to practice aside from reading

[@anonymusk9397]

@@muhiuddinhazari4229 I forgot to include that point. I know practice is best to crack interviews. Beside that I asked about algoexpert

[@saurabhsrivastav3012]

@@anonymusk9397 yep if you already know concepts of ds algo and start algoexpert try to solve the problem by yourself first then watch the solution complete 100 questions and aside from that practice on leet code too then you can crack if you practiced both

[@clem]

If you go through the entire AlgoExpert platform-data structures crash course, 100 questions, all coding assessments (not talking about SystemsExpert here)-you will be very well prepared for FAANG coding interviews. Will you be guaranteed to pass them? No. Everyone is different; some people require more practice than others, and there's always a luck factor. But you _will_ be well prepared.

[@vrashankraom]

100 problems, one solution. Algoexpert!

[@namitpiriya]

great channel great content

[@namitpiriya]

as a millionaire

[@anonymusk9397]

Do the recruiter ask us to show the code of our resume projects at faang companies coding interviews.

[@AnkitSingh-lb9fj]

I would recommend that you should only mention those projects on your resume whose code is available online(On github etc.) Because it is quite possible that interviewer would like to see you code.

[@KennyTalksCode]

I don’t think they would ask you to show it in an interview, but it’s possible that they look at it when they screen your resume, so good to have it available.

[@clem]

What Kenny Yuan said: a recruiter is unlikely to specifically ask you to show them your project code (or to even be the one reading through your project code), but generally speaking, it's always good to have your code publicly visible, like on a public GitHub repository for example.

[@datdang2492]

I did smash the like button, lol :)))

[@Alex233xx]

Hi Clement, I just wanted to let you know that i know how to invert a binary tree. Thank you for your time. I hope u have a great day Best Regards, Shabaz

[@eligbnsu71]

Clement!!!!♥️♥️♥️

[@diego-aquino]

1:12 I really thought you were talking seriously 😂

[@clem]

😂 Absolutely not!

[@sjamr10]

Me too! lol

[@braxtonjackson9216]

Me too I was a little mad at first. Like c’mon Clem 😂😂

[@alonm6232]

Same

[@KaranSharma-ew7io]

no no no and no , yea hints are useful . Bravo clement .

[@abcd-dcba]

wow.. that first tip !!

[@mohamedlegtibi802]

That happen to me when i code or trying to resolve a java program. Btw I'm new on your channel. Greeting from Morocco