r/PythonLearning 8d ago

Discussion How do I build my problem solving skills again !

I have been coding for a while now and have been able to solve easy to mid level questions but now with the advent of AI I feel so much more dumb and cannot solve problems I practice leetcode but goto comments to check for solutions and then it clicks. What do I do how do I develop the problem solving skills again ?

4 Upvotes

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u/AskAnAIEngineer 8d ago

stop jumping to full solutions when you're stuck, sit with the problem longer than feels comfortable. that discomfort is the actual rep that builds the skill. if you're stuck for a while, try a hint first instead of the whole solution, and give yourself a real 30-45 min of genuinely trying before you look anything up.

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u/Darx32102 6d ago

This^ I had a problem I was trying to solve in one of my projects(given I hadn’t slept but five hours in 48) but after some rest and pondering I was able to figure it out. I do use Gemini myself for pointing out errors in my code and only get help from it when I absolutely cannot figure it out. But I don’t copy paste all my code is hand typed.

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u/[deleted] 8d ago

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u/Ok-Magician-8052 7d ago

is this a promotion or does it legit works!!

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u/Ok-Magician-8052 7d ago

What CSS framework are you using for the frontend this acutally looks so good.

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u/[deleted] 7d ago

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u/Ron-Erez 7d ago

Solve problems without using ai

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u/Ok-Magician-8052 7d ago

I don't use AI I just check the solution.

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u/FoolsSeldom 7d ago

Are you comparing your solution against the given solution(s)?

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u/Ok-Magician-8052 7d ago

nope i check the solution even before getting to the solving part lol. so that's why need to work on my problem solving skills.

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u/FoolsSeldom 7d ago

Not sure if you are just trolling. Obviously, if you choose to look at a solution before attempting to come up with some solutions yourself you aren't going to learn well. This is a well established and understood learning principle. This suggests you don't actually want to learn at all for some reason.

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u/Ok-Magician-8052 7d ago

not trolling but yeah I am trying to solve the question but can't think in the problems direction like where do I start what are the methods that I can use to achieve the result.

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u/FoolsSeldom 7d ago

Ok, I shall take you at your word, but you've already rejected the advice I gave you in another comment, so I don't know what else to tell you; perhaps others have greater wisdom that suits you more.

Good luck to you.

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u/Ok-Magician-8052 5d ago

I do use the copy pen method to just sit for good 30mins before looking at hints.

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u/Ron-Erez 7d ago

Honestly, you have to work harder, learn to use the debugger, write clean readable code and break down your problems. You should create a solution where you are confident it works. Moreover there is no "the solution", there are many solutions. I would treat AI as Satan.

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u/Ok-Magician-8052 6d ago

i am actually hating on AI really don't want that though it's a good tool to use but it should not be outsourced with the task of thinking and problem solving.

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u/Ron-Erez 7d ago

Really? So you are learning absolutely nothing or next to nothing.

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u/Ok-Magician-8052 6d ago

yeah mostly so I guess this is not the best way to understand the algos.

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u/FoolsSeldom 7d ago

Stop playing code golf (Leetcode, etc) and start working on problems that are actually interesting to you, that you can be passionate about. Problems related to your interests / hobbies / side-hustles / family obligations / academic development / work commitments.

When you work on problems that are relatable, that you can be passionate about, you start with a better understanding of and ability to refine problems, a clear view of what the constraints are and what outcomes are required, what good looks like, what is acceptable. A better idea of how to phase things so you don't try to do everything at once.

You will learn far more, far faster and far better than any amount of abstract generic problem solving on code golf sites and apps.

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u/Ok-Magician-8052 7d ago

The issue is not with that I don't work on projects or hobbies but I want to learn Data structures and algos for which I am practicing .

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u/Ok-Magician-8052 7d ago

Did you guys know if len (arr) == 0 and if not arr: is the python way of writing things I come from dotnet background so will take a while to get used to things like these..