Crack spectacularly your next job interview as Developer :)

IT field is booming and Developers are in demand!

Though many developers are struggling to get their desired or I can say dream job just because of some small things or mistakes...

Let's know the Dos, those are to be taken care of...

1. Be precise while you answer.

Interviews are timeboxed. The more time is spent on answering each question, the fewer questions in total interviewers would ask and the lower their confidence would be in the candidate.

• Aim to fit your answers into 30–90 seconds. Interviewers should be able to follow you for such a short period of time.
• If you realise you need to provide details in your answer that won’t fit into 90 seconds, ask your interviewers whether they would like to hear them. That should mentally prepare them for a longer answer.
• If you have been talking for too long and your interviewer is no longer following, you can ask them whether you have answered their question already and if they have any follow up questions. That will draw the interviewer’s attention back to you.

2. Avoid Vague answers.

Giving a vague answer to an interviewer’s question is not a good idea. Like:

"That is a stupid framework/technology/language - why would anyone still use it today."

"Code reviews are a waste of time. Everyone should just write good code."

It may create an impression that the candidate doesn’t know how to answer the question but instead of acknowledging their knowledge gap, they are pretending they know what they are talking about.

If you don’t know a good answer, it is okay to admit that — you can’t possibly know everything. Then tell your interviewers that you are going to try to answer their question anyway and go for it. The key is to demonstrate that you are transparent about your skills, aware of your knowledge gaps, and won’t give up when facing new challenges.

3. Take time before you answer.

At an interview, remember that it is okay to tell your interviewers that you need to think a bit if you are not sure what your answer should be. When they ask you a difficult question or present a complex problem to solve — your best first step is to pause to think. Moreover, if you are unsure whether you understood the question or problem — don’t hesitate to ask clarifying questions. This is the right behaviour to demonstrate.

• First of all, even though coding tasks are often simple, it is safest to first think what approach would be best. The first idea that comes to mind is not always optimal and when the candidate starts implementing it without considering alternatives — they may be losing precious interview time following the wrong path.
• Secondly, experienced interviewers want to understand the candidate’s thought process. If the candidate jumps on writing code without explaining their approach first — that doesn’t give interviewers enough insight.
• Finally, interviewers are often concerned that a developer may not collaborate with their colleagues on problem-solving and would rush to solve any issue with code instead of discussing their approach and confirming they are solving the right problem first. When the candidate jumps on writing code immediately — that only reinforces interviewers’ concerns.

4. Revise Computer Science Fundamentals once

Don't be too rusty on computer science fundamentals.

In many companies, the interview process includes a stage with questions that require at least basic knowledge of Computer science. Yet, many aspirants can’t pick appropriate data structures when doing coding tasks, can’t explain the difference between data types, and don’t know how to use?Big O?notation.

Make sure to revise Computer Science fundamentals before the interview. Cover at least:

• At a technical, behavioural, or design interview, pause to think about the best answer to a difficult question.
• Big O notation — how to estimate time and space requirements of algorithms depending on their input size.
• Basic data structures such as arrays, lists, stacks, trees, etc and when they are meant to be used.
• Basic algorithms like binary search, some sorting algorithms, depth-first and breadth-first search, etc.
• Recursion and its alternatives.

5. Stretching the truth about the experience.

Some candidates try really hard to impress interviewers and talk about technologies they have little or no experience with or exaggerate their roles in previous projects.

It is best to be open, transparent and honest about your experience and never try to bluff through the interview. As I mentioned earlier, you can’t possibly know everything. Your interviewers would expect you to take some time to get up to speed at the new job anyway.

The fact that you are aware of your knowledge gaps, are comfortable speaking about them, and would like to close them is a big plus for roles of all levels. Your ability to demonstrate your high self-awareness, commitment to professional growth, and evidence that you would seek advice and support when dealing with unfamiliar tasks or a new environment should create a positive impression on your interviewers.

Now, let's go through some takeaways...

Takeaways

To recap, here is what you should be avoiding at your next job interview.

• Don’t give long, vague, or generic answers to the interviewer’s questions. Instead, be concise and stay on point.
• Don’t rush to answer a question or do a coding task. Pause to think of the best approach if necessary. Ask clarifying questions if you don’t understand the task.
• Brush up on Computer Science fundamentals: arrays, stacks, hash maps, queues, lists, trees,?Big O, recursion, sorting, binary search, and other basic algorithms.
• Be transparent about your experience. Don’t bluff. If needed, show you are aware of your knowledge gaps.
• Never bad-mouth your former employees, colleagues, or clients — it leaves a bad impression.
• Show you are interested in joining the company and want the role you are being interviewed for.

Now you know, How to crack your next job interview...

then,

Go get it, man...!