Harshal Shree

The problem with LeetCode-style questions….. Many tech companies use LeetCode-style questions in their interviews. 📌 On one hand, they help interviewers see how you think through complex problems. But on the other, they do not reflect real-world situations like collaborating with others, designing, and dealing with existing codebases. So, instead of running after LeetCode problems, try this: → ⁠Learn algorithms: Don’t memorize answers, try to understand how and why the algorithms work. This will help you solve new problems. → ⁠Identify Patterns in Problems: Look for recurring themes in problems. For example, when you see a tree problem, think about depth-first search versus breadth-first search. → ⁠⁠Do mock interviews: Practice mock interviews with top MAANG/PBC engineers copying your target company’s setup (ex- shared doc, 45-minute time limit) You can connect with them for FREE here: https://lnkd.in/gFcPVZVZ They’ll share what kind of questions to solve, patterns to focus on and areas to improve. → ⁠Iterate and Optimize: After solving a problem, ask, “How can I make this better?” Aim for improved time complexity with smarter algorithms. While LeetCode-style questions are useful, it's important to balance them with practical coding skills. However, if you are struggling to improve your coding skills, you can always reach out to senior SDEs at Preplaced for 1:1 guidance. ✅ PS: How do you prepare for coding challenges? 💬 #leetcode #DSA #interviewpreparation #interviewtips #paidpartnership #codingrounds #techinterviews

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Meta gives 40-50 LPA & asks complex graphs Microsoft gives 40-45 LPA & asks DP + object-oriented design Google gives 35-40 LPA & asks time-bound optimization challenges At all of these companies, the main focus is → DSA So, when I began my prep, I focused the most on DSA  ✅ 300+ problems solved, covered a mix of all topics from arrays to strings But still, when I got a call for Google & I gave the interview, I fumbled in it💔 They wanted intuition, logic-building capabilities and communication under pressure. I struggled to check all 3 boxes and I know I’m not alone in this — many of you are facing the same struggle 😓 But today, this FREE AI coding companion, Leeco AI can simplify it and help you get that complete score in your DSA prep → https://lnkd.in/d3XqH87k It asks you the exact DSA questions a real MAANG interviewer would ask in a real interview-like setting and then scores your performance💪🏻 You’ll get precise feedback, clear improvement areas, and real mentor-style guidance.  🔗 Download for FREE here → https://lnkd.in/d3XqH87k I use this AI daily and so do 40,000 SDEs. It is like a FREE mentor sitting beside you that will ensure you’re prepared for real interviews, give it a shot!❤️ #dsainterviews #dsaimportance #dsatopics #codingrounds #paidpartnership #techinterview

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After solving nearly 300 LeetCode questions, here’s what I’ve realized: ✅ It’s not about quantity → it’s about depth, patterns, and solving the right problems. Here are 15 LeetCode questions that can significantly boost problem-solving skills: 1️⃣ Merge Intervals 2️⃣ Koko Eating Bananas 3️⃣ Search in Rotated Sorted Array 4️⃣ Detect a Cycle in Linked List 5️⃣ Word Search II 6️⃣ Gas Station 7️⃣ Sliding Window Maximum 8️⃣ Coin Change 9️⃣ Word Break 🔟 Edit Distance 1️⃣1️⃣ Trapping Rainwater 1️⃣2️⃣ Largest Rectangle in a Histogram 1️⃣3️⃣ Rod Cutting 1️⃣4️⃣ Binary Tree Maximum Path Sum 1️⃣5️⃣ Number of Distinct Islands But here's the problem: You can solve all 15 of these…..and still fail interviews if you don’t understand the underlying patterns. That’s where this FREE AI LeetCode companion taught me how to connect patterns across problems → https://lnkd.in/gnPTK_Ty Instead of just telling you if your solution works, it helps you: ✅ Identify the core pattern behind each problem type ✅ Shows you how to recognize similar problems in different contexts ✅ Guides you through optimizing your approach step-by-step ✅ Helps you articulate WHY your solution works, not just HOW It gives you real-time feedback, nudges you when your logic goes off track, and mirrors how a senior engineer would guide you during a mock interview. Trust me, once you experience this kind of support, you won’t go back to passive LeetCode grinding. ✨ #dsapatterns #leetcode #techinterviews #dsastrategy #paidpartnership #codingrounds

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Learning and grinding 400 DSA problems might get you 20-30 LPA offers... But it's system design that will take you from 30 to 60-80LPA+ as an SWE. Here are some great resources that will help you master system design and get ready for this market: Before diving into these resources, there’s one thing that makes all the difference: building and getting feedback. Learning system design without building is like just flipping through slides. Learning without feedback is like guessing in the dark. Learning without real-world constraints leaves you unprepared for reality. So, use all these resources, but then use all of that knowledge to test yourself on out free platform, Layrs (It’s Leetcode but for system design) 1. Sign up on layrs.me (it’s free, I’m the founder ) 2. Pick any problem, go to our interactive canvas 3. Use the components to plan out a flow, put up constraints 4. Get proper feedback on your design with our AI assistant Join the discord: https://lnkd.in/gnjkdNqS Coming back to the resources: ➤ Great GitHub Repos to learn basics: - System Design Primer - https://lnkd.in/gmTP7kwc  - System Design 101 - https://lnkd.in/gyDYHhpF  - Low-Level Design Primer - https://lnkd.in/g4aVVDue  - Awesome System Design Resources - https://lnkd.in/gEX9FCaU  - System Design Questions- https://lnkd.in/gzDhrk-J ➤ Some Must-Read Engineering Articles – How Discord stores trillions of messages:https://lnkd.in/ezDPQzq6 – Building In-Video Search at Netflix:https://lnkd.in/euENKEkS – How Canva scaled Media uploads from Zero to 50 Million per Day:https://lnkd.in/eDyAugu9 – How Airbnb avoids double payments in a Distributed Payments System:https://lnkd.in/ekuAzhPh – Stripe’s payments APIs - The first 10 years: https://lnkd.in/eyXHiGXv – Real-time messaging at Slack: https://lnkd.in/e48uxfB7 ➤ Some Must-Read Distributed Systems Papers – Paxos: The Part-Time Parliament: https://lnkd.in/ew-z83GY – MapReduce: Simplified Data Processing on Large Clusters: https://lnkd.in/e2FDfikq – The Google File System:https://lnkd.in/eTtjq3Hx – Dynamo: Amazon’s Highly Available Key-value Store:https://lnkd.in/eva6n2Ej – Kafka: a Distributed Messaging System for Log Processing:https://lnkd.in/eTPA4ey9 – Spanner: Google’s Globally-Distributed Database:https://lnkd.in/eRM6crw8 – Bigtable: A Distributed Storage System for Structured Data: https://lnkd.in/eqyS2aU4 – ZooKeeper: Wait-free coordination for Internet-scale systems:https://lnkd.in/eADJaST3 – The Log-Structured Merge-Tree (LSM-Tree):https://lnkd.in/eZ7iaXD8 – The Chubby lock service for loosely-coupled distributed systems:https://lnkd.in/ehmtKEWJ

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Just one message to all companies: Stop expecting SDE-2 level skills from a fresher. They are freshers for a reason. They’re not supposed to have: → 3 years of production-level experience → Expertise in system design → End-to-end ownership of complex architectures What they should have is: ✅ Curiosity to learn ✅ Basic problem-solving skills ✅ The ability to adapt & grow with mentorship The truth is — freshers aren’t meant to replace senior engineers. They’re meant to learn from them. They’re the investment that grows into tomorrow’s senior engineers. So instead of rejecting them for “lack of experience,” give them a chance to prove their potential. Because talent without opportunity is like code without execution — it never gets to run. I share actionable advice for freshers and early-career developers here and on YouTube : https://lnkd.in/gT7acAgd If you’re a fresher looking to navigate your career, follow along. - Abhay Singh

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