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Danish Saleem
Danish Saleem

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Improve Your Problem Solving Skills Today

Intro - Have a problem? Don’t Panic

As programmers we are often placed face to face with difficult problems that seem almost impossible to solve at first.

In reality, every problem has a solution, you just have to learn how to see it.

Here are some steps to follow:

Step 1 - Be aware of your attitude

When working on something new, you need to develop and awareness of the subject. Don’t have a negative attitude and don’t say your tasks is impossible. Do this instead:

  • Research your problem and start developing a plan that is split into small steps
  • Keep a positive attitude even if things are not working as expected and keep searching

Step 2 - Find your strengths and weakness

Problems can usually be broken up into many smaller tasks. If you know which parts you can handle, you will be able to put together parts of the solution. So, you will need to:

  • Find ways to split your problem, this way it will no longer seem so intimidating
  • Learn from past solves, and apply what you know to new problems, they might be more similar that you think

Step 3 - If you found your weakness, work on it!

Your weakness is holding you back and you know this. Do whatever it takes to overcome it and you will be a better programmer and a better problem solver. You should:

  • Try to go through a short course about your weakness, spend time improving that you lack
  • See how your weakness is reflected in the problem at hand and apply what you learned

Step 3 - Still stuck? Ask for help!

When you’ve done all, you can but still can’t find a solution, it’s not a shame to ask for help! Find someone who is senior to you, they will be happy to help. Make sure to:

  • Take a note of all the solutions you’ve tried up to this point and explain them to your senior
  • Think about your questions before asking them, make sure you’re able to explain the problem

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