Problem Solving Skills for Remote Job Interviews

In high-stakes interviews, knowledge is useless if you can’t access it under pressure. You know that moment.. Your brain goes blank. Your palms sweat. And instead of solving, you start surviving. But here’s the truth → Problem-solving under stress is not a “talent.” It’s a trainable skill. And the candidates I coach who master it often walk out with multiple job offers. Let me break it down with no-fluff, expert-backed techniques that actually work: 1️⃣ Rewire Your Stress Response with the 4-7-8 Reset When your nervous system panics, your prefrontal cortex (the problem-solving part of your brain) shuts down. Before answering, use the 4-7-8 breathing method: Inhale for 4 sec Hold for 7 sec Exhale for 8 sec This activates the parasympathetic system → instantly reduces cortisol and gives you back cognitive control. 2️⃣ Switch from “Answering” to “Framing” Research from Harvard Business Review shows that candidates who frame the problem out loud sound more confident and buy time to think. Instead of jumping straight in, say: “Let me structure my approach — first I’ll identify the constraints, then I’ll evaluate possible solutions, and finally I’ll recommend the most practical one.” This shows clarity under stress, even before the solution lands. 3️⃣ Use the MECE Method (Consulting’s Secret Weapon) Top consulting firms like McKinsey train candidates to solve under pressure using MECE → Mutually Exclusive, Collectively Exhaustive. Break the problem into 2–3 distinct, non-overlapping buckets. Example: If asked how to improve a delivery app → Think in “User Experience,” “Logistics,” and “Revenue Streams.” This keeps you structured and avoids rambling. 4️⃣ Apply the 30-70 Rule Neuroscience research shows stress reduces working memory. So don’t aim for perfection. Spend 30% of time defining the problem clearly and 70% generating practical solutions. Most candidates flip this and over-explain, which backfires. 5️⃣ Rehearse with Deliberate Discomfort Candidates who only practice “easy” questions crash in high-pressure moments. I make my students solve case studies with distractions, timers, or sudden curveballs. Why? Because your brain learns to adapt under chaos and that resilience shows in interviews. 👉 Remember: Interviewers aren’t hunting for perfect answers. They’re hunting for calm thinkers. The ones who don’t crumble under the weight of uncertainty. That’s how my students at Google, Deloitte, and Amazon got noticed → not by being geniuses, but by staying structured under stress. Would you like me to share a step-by-step mock interview framework for practicing these techniques? Comment “Framework” and I’ll drop it in my next post. #interviewtips #careerdevelopment #problemsolving #dreamjob #interviewcoach

In the last eight years, I have interviewed 500+ Software Engineers for various roles. Here are the most actionable tips I can give you on how to do better during your behavioral round. 1/ Set the Stage Clearly - Describe the Situation or Task that needed solving. Focus on the challenge. - Example: "The API response times were too slow, affecting user experience, and I was tasked with optimizing it within a sprint." - Keep it short. If the interviewer wants more details, they’ll ask. 2/ Focus on Key Actions - Highlight 3 core actions you took to solve the problem. - Example: "I profiled the API calls, implemented caching for frequent queries, and reduced payload size by 30%." - Stick to impactful actions. Each action should take under 2 minutes to explain. 3/ Use “I” to Show Ownership - Make it clear what you did to demonstrate leadership and initiative. - Example: "I spearheaded the migration from monolithic architecture to microservices, improving scalability by 40%." - Avoid saying "we" too much. The interviewer needs to know if you led the effort or just contributed. 4/ Stick to Facts, Avoid Emotions - Keep your answers factual, even when discussing challenges. - Example: Instead of "I was frustrated with a teammate’s slow progress," say, "I scheduled a pair programming session to help them meet the deadline." 5/ Understand the Purpose of the Question - Think about what the interviewer is trying to assess—teamwork, problem-solving, leadership, or technical expertise. - Example: If asked about handling conflict, they want to see how you navigate disagreements productively. Frame your response accordingly. 6/ Use Data to Back Your Results - Quantify your impact wherever possible. - Example: "After optimizing the query logic, I reduced database read times by 40%, cutting down page load times by 2 seconds." - Data shows real impact and demonstrates the value you bring. 7/ Keep It Interactive - Make your responses concise to encourage follow-up questions from the interviewer. - Example: "I automated the deployment pipeline, cutting release times from 2 hours to 15 minutes. If you'd like, I can explain the challenges I faced setting up the CI/CD tools." 8/ Maintain good eye contact -Eye contact showcases confidence -In the era of online interviewing, it’s even more critical to showcase your focus via eye contact. And one thing you should never do in the behavioral interview is makeup details. It’s visible how shallow a story is if someone grills you on the details. I hope these tips will help you achieve great results. – P.S: Follow me for more insights on Software engineering.

Struggling with problem-solving questions in interviews? You’re not alone. Many candidates freeze or start rambling when these questions come up because they get overwhelmed. If that hits home, I want to tell you that recruiters are not out to get you — most of them, anyway. They want to assess how you think through problems on the job. And the best way to do that is to hear about a past problem you dealt with. Here’s a commonly asked problem-solving question: “Describe a time when you didn’t know how to solve a problem. What did you do?” The format looks familiar, right? It’s because this question falls under the behavioral questions category — meaning it calls for a STAR answer. If we were in a coaching session, here’s how I’d advise you to respond: 1) Present the situation/task (S/T of the STAR) “In my previous role, we had [a system, software, procedure] that required a high level of accuracy because [reason].” This could work for many roles because all companies have at least one process that requires high attention to detail. 2) Describe your approach (A) “During one of our busiest seasons, my other team members had to prioritize another project, and I was left alone with [the system, software, procedure], which was challenging because I usually contributed only to [task] and didn’t know how to manage the whole thing. I started researching and reached out to my manager for support. 10 pro tips and 6 PDFs later, I was able to manage the whole process by myself.” 3) List the results of your actions (R) “This enabled us to keep things working smoothly and freed up my coworkers to work on the more time-sensitive project. My manager was really pleased with my ability to take initiative and learn quickly. I have managed [the system, software, procedure] ever since, which has been a great learning experience.” Although brief, this example shows the basics of how to tell a problem-solving story in a way that allows your interviewer to visualize the situation and understand your critical thinking skills. If you’d like to read more on this topic, check your inbox tomorrow at 1 PM EDT. Join here if you aren’t signed up yet: https://lnkd.in/eibCxYy2. See you there!

After interviewing 40+ Data Engineer Interns and New Grads at Amazon, I noticed the same three mistakes happening over and over... Not because candidates lacked technical skills. But because they forgot that interviews are conversations, not exams. Here's the thing: We both get the same 60 minutes. You're there to exhibit your skills. I'm there to capture and evaluate them. But if you don't show me your thinking, I can't capture what I can't see. The top 3 mistakes that make those 60 minutes harder for both of us: Mistake 1: Solving Problems in Your Head 🤐 I watch brilliant candidates work silently for 10 minutes, then present a solution. The problem? I have no idea how they got there. I can't evaluate what I can't see. 𝘙𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘮𝘣𝘦𝘳: Problem-solving in interviews isn't about solving the problem – it's about showing HOW you solve problems. ✅ Fix: Think out loud. Say "I'm considering two approaches..." or "Let me walk through my logic..." Help me follow your journey, not just see the destination. Mistake 2: Diving Straight Into Code 💻 "Given a data pipeline problem..." Candidate immediately starts writing SQL..... Wait. What about the data volume? Format? Update frequency? Error tolerance? I can't assess if your solution fits if I don't know what problem you think you're solving. ✅ Fix: Start with questions and assumptions. "Can I assume the data is in JSON format?" "What's our daily volume?" "Is this real-time or batch?" This helps me understand your context-driven thinking. Mistake 3: Treating Assumptions as Weaknesses 🚫 Candidates hesitate to state assumptions, worried it shows gaps. Actually, it's the opposite – it shows maturity. ✅ Fix: Lay out your assumptions clearly. "I'm assuming we have 100GB daily data, so I'll design for distributed processing." This helps me evaluate your reasoning, not just your answer. The Secret? One of the best Data Engineers I ever hired didn't solve every problem perfectly. But she: - 𝘕𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘤𝘦𝘴𝘴 (𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘱𝘦𝘥 𝘮𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘰𝘸 𝘢𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨) - 𝘈𝘴𝘬𝘦𝘥 𝘤𝘭𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘧𝘺𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘲𝘶𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 (𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘥 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬𝘴 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘹𝘵) - 𝘚𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘤𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘢𝘴𝘴𝘶𝘮𝘱𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 (𝘭𝘦𝘵 𝘮𝘦 𝘦𝘷𝘢𝘭𝘶𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘰𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨) - 𝘈𝘥𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘐 𝘢𝘥𝘥𝘦𝘥 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘴 (𝘥𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘥𝘢𝘱𝘵𝘢𝘣𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺) She made my job easy. I could clearly see how she thinks. 𝘙𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘮𝘣𝘦𝘳: We're not looking for robots who compute answers. We're looking for future colleagues who can communicate, collaborate, and adapt. Help us see that in those 60 minutes. Share this with someone preparing for DE interviews #DataEngineering #AmazonJobs #EngineeringInterns #InterviewPrep

Interviews in tech are more about communication skills than they are about technical skills Of course, you need some technical knowledge, otherwise you can't handle trivia questions. But if you can't articulate how you used your knowledge or skill, you'll struggle to move on. Over the years, I found the most helpful tool for job seekers is structured problem solving. It took me years to understand what that meant. It's a thing people talk about but don't explain. Maybe they don't want to? Maybe they can't? All it means is you have a repeatable process to solve problems. An algorithm, if you will. For example: IDEATE I: Identify problem D: Define goals E: Explore strategies A: Analyze tradeoffs T: Test a strategy E: Evaluate results Now put it into practice. Here's how: Talk out loud This is the awkward part of the interview. Most people think quietly. Alone. Now's not the time. Speak your mind. Recap what you know Repeat the question in your words. Break down the requirements as you understand them, include assumptions and open questions. Write things down or diagram It's hard to keep all this stuff in working memory (i.e. your brain, which is your RAM). Plus, you might need a flowchart or punch list. Check-in with your interviewer Confirm you're in sync. Ask if your assumptions are fair (the f-word). Ask questions when you get stuck. They want to know how you think. -- #techjobs #jobseekers #interviewtips #interviewprep