interview-prep
Technical interview preparation expert for algorithms, system design, and behavioral questions
What this skill does
# Technical Interview Preparation Expert A seasoned engineering hiring manager and interview coach with deep experience across algorithm challenges, system design rounds, and behavioral assessments at top technology companies. This skill provides structured preparation strategies, pattern recognition frameworks, and practice methodologies to help candidates perform confidently and systematically in technical interviews. ## Key Principles - Master the fundamental patterns rather than memorizing individual problems; most algorithm questions are variations of 10-15 core patterns - Communicate your thought process out loud during coding interviews; interviewers evaluate problem-solving approach as much as the final solution - Practice system design using a repeatable framework: clarify requirements, estimate scale, design the architecture, then drill into specific components - Prepare behavioral stories in advance using the STAR method (Situation, Task, Action, Result) with quantifiable outcomes where possible - Time-box your preparation: focus on weak areas identified through practice, not on re-solving problems you already understand ## Techniques - Study algorithm patterns systematically: two pointers (sorted arrays, palindromes), sliding window (subarrays, substrings), BFS/DFS (graphs, trees), dynamic programming (optimization, counting), binary search (sorted data, search space reduction), and backtracking (permutations, combinations) - Analyze time and space complexity for every solution: express Big-O in terms of input size, identify the dominant term, and explain tradeoffs between time and space - Follow a system design framework: gather functional and non-functional requirements, perform back-of-envelope estimation (QPS, storage, bandwidth), draw a high-level architecture with components and data flow, then deep-dive into database schema, caching strategy, and scalability patterns - Structure coding interviews: restate the problem, clarify edge cases with examples, discuss your approach before coding, implement cleanly, test with examples, then optimize - Prepare 6-8 behavioral stories covering leadership, conflict resolution, failure and learning, technical decision-making, collaboration, and delivering under pressure - Practice mock interviews with a timer to simulate real pressure; record yourself to identify filler words and unclear explanations ## Common Patterns - **Sliding Window**: Fixed or variable-size window moving across an array or string; used for substring problems, maximum sum subarrays, and finding patterns within contiguous sequences - **Graph BFS/DFS**: Level-order traversal for shortest path in unweighted graphs (BFS) and exhaustive exploration for connectivity and cycle detection (DFS) - **Dynamic Programming Table**: Define subproblems, establish recurrence relation, identify base cases, and fill the table bottom-up; common in string matching, knapsack, and path counting - **System Design Trade-offs**: Consistency vs availability (CAP theorem), latency vs throughput, storage cost vs compute cost; always articulate which trade-off you are making and why ## Pitfalls to Avoid - Do not jump into coding without first clarifying the problem constraints, expected input size, and edge cases with the interviewer - Do not optimize prematurely; start with a correct brute-force solution, verify it works, then improve time or space complexity incrementally - Do not give vague behavioral answers; use specific examples with measurable outcomes rather than hypothetical descriptions of what you would do - Do not neglect to ask questions at the end of the interview; thoughtful questions about the team, technical challenges, and culture demonstrate genuine interest
Related in Design
contribute
IncludedLocal-only OSS contribution command center. Auto-refreshes the user's in-flight PR and issue state on invoke so conversations start with full context — no need to brief Claude on what's in flight. Helps the user find issues to contribute to on GitHub, builds per-repo dossiers of what each upstream expects (CLA, DCO, branch convention, AI policy, draft-first, review bots, issue templates), runs deterministic gates before any external action so AI-assisted contributions don't reach maintainers as slop. State is markdown-only: candidate files at ~/.contribute-system/candidates/, repo dossiers at ~/.contribute-system/research/, append-only event log at ~/.contribute-system/log.jsonl. No database, no cloud calls. Use when the user asks about their PRs / issues / contributions, wants to find new work to take on, claim an issue, build/refresh a repo's dossier, or draft a Design Issue or PR. Trigger with "/contribute", "what's my PR status", "find a contribution", "claim issue X", "draft a Design Issue for Y", "refresh dossier for Z".
architectural-analysis
IncludedUser-triggered deep architectural analysis of a codebase or scoped subtree across eight modes — information architecture, data flow, integration points, UI surfaces, interaction patterns, data model, control flow, and failure modes. This skill should be used when the user asks to "diagram this codebase," "map the architecture," "show the data flow," "give me an ERD," "trace control flow," "find the integration points," "verify the layout pattern," "audit the UX architecture," or any similar request whose primary deliverable is mermaid diagrams plus cited reports under docs/architecture/. Dispatches haiku/sonnet sub-agents in parallel for per-mode exploration, then verifies every citation mechanically before any node lands in a diagram. Not for one-off prose explanations of code (use code-explanation) or for high-level system design from scratch (use system-design).
mcp
IncludedModel Context Protocol (MCP) server development and tool management. Languages: Python, TypeScript. Capabilities: build MCP servers, integrate external APIs, discover/execute MCP tools, manage multi-server configs, design agent-centric tools. Actions: create, build, integrate, discover, execute, configure MCP servers/tools. Keywords: MCP, Model Context Protocol, MCP server, MCP tool, stdio transport, SSE transport, tool discovery, resource provider, prompt template, external API integration, Gemini CLI MCP, Claude MCP, agent tools, tool execution, server config. Use when: building MCP servers, integrating external APIs as MCP tools, discovering available MCP tools, executing MCP capabilities, configuring multi-server setups, designing tools for AI agents.
react-native-skia
IncludedDesign, build, debug, and optimise high-polish animated graphics in React Native or Expo using @shopify/react-native-skia, Reanimated, and Gesture Handler. Use when the user wants canvas-driven UI, shaders, paths, rich text, image filters, sprite fields, Skottie, video frames, snapshots, web CanvasKit setup, or performance tuning for custom motion-heavy elements such as loaders, hero art, cards, charts, progress indicators, particle systems, or gesture-driven surfaces. Also use when the user asks for fluid, glow, glass, blob, parallax, 60fps/120fps, or GPU-friendly animated effects in React Native, even if they do not explicitly say "Skia". Do not use for ordinary form/layout work with standard views.
plaid
IncludedProduct Led AI Development — guides founders from idea to launched product. Six capabilities: Idea (discover a product idea), Validate (pressure-test the idea against fatal flaws, problem reality, competition, and 2-week MVP feasibility), Plan (vision intake + document generation), Design (translate image references into a design.md spec), Launch (go-to-market strategy), and Build (roadmap execution). Use when someone says "PLAID", "plaid idea", "help me find an idea", "product idea", "idea from my business", "idea from my expertise", "plaid validate", "validate my idea", "pressure-test", "is this idea good", "find fatal flaws", "validate the problem", "plan a product", "define my vision", "generate a PRD", "product strategy", "plaid design", "design from image", "translate image to design", "create design.md", "extract design tokens", "plaid launch", "go-to-market", "launch plan", "GTM strategy", "launch playbook", "plaid build", "build the app", "start building", or "execute the roadmap".
nextjs-framer-motion-animations
IncludedAdds production-safe Motion for React or Framer Motion animations to Next.js apps, including reveal, hover and tap micro-interactions, whileInView, stagger, AnimatePresence, layout and layoutId transitions, reorder, scroll-linked UI, and lightweight route-content transitions. Use when the user asks to add, refactor, or debug Motion or Framer Motion in App Router or Pages Router codebases, especially around server/client boundaries, reduced motion, LazyMotion, bundle size, hydration, or route transitions. Avoid for GSAP-style timelines, WebGL or 3D scenes, heavy scroll storytelling, or CSS-only effects unless Motion is explicitly requested.