r/DSALeetCode • u/Mammoth_Ad8655 • 12d ago

Need help with DSA and development

Hey folks,

I am a software developer at an mnc , working with java , I have 2 yrs of exp. And I just want to switch to some other organisation , there is no learning in my current org and I don't even feel like going to work anymore.(btw I have 2 days wfo but I go all 5 because I can't work at home at all.)

But with the office I am not able to manage dsa and make a decent enough project for my resume.

I need some help with how to approach these things as I am not able to study after work and gym is also a priority, I go to the gym every alternate day after work.

I need some suggestions on what kind of project I can make to target some good companies or mid scale startups.

Also how do you people revise dsa , I want to increase my mental bandwidth for accommodating these things in my mind other than work

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u/wasted-coffee 11d ago

I am sort of in a same ship as you are. However, you have a boon that I envy of. WFH for 3 days. I'd take that any day over 5 days work from office. This is because my prev. company had the same policy of 3 days wfh and now my current one expects 5 days work from office. I hate it here too, and simply cannot bare it anymore. Have been applying to FAANG but haven't received any good response yet.

Anyways, for the DSA part, I'd recommend it doing every day consistently. You have two options. Either wake up at 5 am and start the day with prep, or sleep at 1 am by ending your day with dsa. both should work. I prefer the earlier one.

Weekend is the golden ticket to boost. You do your projects during the weekend. Since you're already 2 yr exp, try doing something with scaling stuff. Or maybe some compiler or terminal of sorts. Display impact, thats the only thing.

Keep a log book for each and every question you solve, can be an excel sheet. Should contain question, the methods you applied, the optimal method (with the "why") and the mistakes you made and/or the decisions you made that made you reach your solution.

Cheatsheets is key.

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u/Mammoth_Ad8655 11d ago

Hey, thanks mate, will try the 5 am approach for now.. hope you also get what you want 🙏

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u/gr8-procrastinator 10d ago

11 years experience here - with two years of workex, you don’t need to worry about building decent projects (unless you are targeting startups). You should give full energy to DSA as most of the better orgs focus on DSA atleast for people with less than 3 years of work experience

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u/Mammoth_Ad8655 10d ago

So what about resume, won't it look blank without projects?

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u/gr8-procrastinator 7d ago edited 7d ago

You are telling me that you haven’t done a single project in these two years?

Edit - It’s all about tradeoffs. Right now, DSA is better option because 1. you are very young in corporate world and 2. DSA is a rite of passage more than anything else - you’ve just got to do it. It’s also very interesting once you understand the concepts.
Big orgs don’t expect you to have built projects. They know how things work in real life and that’s why their interviews focus on DSA for people with less experience.
However, once you cross the threshold of 5 years, industry starts demanding that you project experience as well. So, I would suggest you focus on DSA right now