DEV Community: How's It Like

14 Work Hacks To Check Out For 2020!

How's It Like — Thu, 27 Aug 2020 10:13:46 +0000

Most of us begin each year with objectives and desires to accomplish. With proper planning and objectives, you are able to save time and prevent failure. We all do not want to fail but when you do not plan, you are simply planning to fail. In this article, there are clearly discussed ways that can help you achieve your desires and have you achieve your goals this year.

Working from home

There is a wrong notion that working from home reduces productivity. Research has proven that this is not true and working from home actually increases productivity by up to 13%. This is contributed to by the fact that working from homes reduces days off and working from home isolation increases productivity. You may consider working from home two days a week and see how that impacts your work.

Identify tasks that use up too much time

It is likely that you are spending too much time than needed on tasks. If you set time to complete a task within an hour, focus on achieving that since if you simply let such a task take longer, it will definitely take longer. Track your time to see how much time you would require to complete each task and stick to set timelines. You could achieve this by tracking time manually or by using online tracking methods. With good tracking, you are able to schedule your time well and allocate each task the correct timing and have you completing tasks much faster. This way you save on time and are more productive.

Have a working schedule

A working day has about hours and so as to ensure you remain productive this entire time, it is important that you schedule all your tasks. Have a calendar of all your work so that you know which task needs to be handled next. You will otherwise use up so much time deciding on which task to handle next after the other. It is also important to stick to a planned schedule, if a task takes two hours, use no more. That way, your schedule is effective and helps you to achieve. This also helps you to be self-disciplined.

Prioritize your tasks

Having a random schedule is not enough and it would make more impact if you ensure that you are doing the right tasks at the right time. Therefore, have a well-structured system that enables you to prioritize your work. Prioritize tasks in regard to those that give you the best returns of invested time. For instance if you happen to work as a sales person, you should prioritize tasks that bring in more sales and opportunities. Clearly label tasks as high priority and low priority. This will eventually make you more productive not only at work but also in life.

Figure out what time you’re most productive

Daily routine determines your productivity. Therefore, plan your day according to your personal pace. Place high priority work at a time when your brain is most active and when your body is well relaxed to work. Low priority work can be done at other times. Simpler tasks should be done when you are a bit worn out as they do not take up much of your energy.

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8 Tricky Engineering Interview Questions & How To Answer Them?

How's It Like — Wed, 12 Feb 2020 22:26:13 +0000

Interview questions seem obvious and easy, a question like ‘tell me about yourself’ seems to be an easy to tackle question but then your response should not be as easy as the question comes. Each question, no matter how easy or obvious it may seem, should be answered in the context in which it is asked. This is to mean that in as much as these questions sound similar or simple, the interviewer expects to hear a response that shows you are suitable to help solve his or her specific problem. Not all interview questions are simple, some can be quite challenging and even smart candidates could find some interviews really tough. Engineering interviews are for instance not easy to handle.

It is important to prepare for any kind of interview, whether an engineering interview or any other, this makes you have your focus on the interview psychologically for a while and gives you an opportunity to go through interview questions to expect as well as possible responses. This article will help you know some of the tricky interview questions and how to respond to each.

Engineering interviews are very complex and the engineering interview processes are much more complex. However, with good preparation and confidence, you might find it smooth. Here are some of the interview questions to expect at an engineering interview with guidelines on how to respond to them. Go through your experience and relate that experience to the job description. Your experience is the highlight of who you are and what you are made of, what you can do. Research about the company you are hoping to work with as this will help you know how to structure your answers.

Key skills for an engineering position

An engineer is one who is expected to be very dependable and hardworking, demonstrating deep knowledge of the field and the specific specialized skills. An engineer is key to delivering all major results and products of a company. Engineers must be very keen in following guidelines and procedures as safety and good execution of guidelines is very key in engineering work. For employers therefore, there are key skills that are very necessary for an interview candidate to have. Having these skills helps you as an interview candidate to also know how to go about preparing for an interview.

Creative Thinking

As you have to be very smart and creative as an engineer as creativity makes you innovative. When you are creative, you are able to handle projects best and you even enjoy working. Engineering projects require technical and smart solutions so be smart.

Mechanical and Practical Abilities

Engineering calls for one to have the ability to implement projects and mechanical concepts. Ability to understand and be good in implementation is key.

Problem solving skills

Engineers are key problem solvers. They are expected to come up with solutions to sometimes very complex situations. You need innovative and good problem solving skills to handle day-to-day work. You cannot imagine being unable to offer solutions to issues in your hands.

Team Working Skills

Engineers are related to keeping to themselves or being loners. However, to be effective in handling your work as an engineer, you need to work with other very key team players. Be good at working with fellow engineers as well. Your work is important to the entire company and thus, teamwork is important. Hardly do employers want to hire engineers who never relate with others at work, therefore so that you are a team player.

Project Management Skills

You are an engineer because you manage projects. You therefore need good project management skills, important in handling company projects from the beginning to the very end. From basic skills such as time management to complex one such as analyzing skills, all equally matter for an engineering job so prove good mastery of project management in the interview.

Communication Skills

Engineering work involves plenty of talking apparently, even as most engineers are termed as introverts. As an engineer, you need to explain the projects and the key procedures to your superiors, co-engineers, stakeholders and all relevant parties. This definitely calls for engineers to have good communication skills as one wrong word could mean something totally different and wrong.

Tips to help you in preparing for an engineering interview

In an engineering interview, expect three major types of questions. The three types are motivational questions, behavioral questions and research questions. Motivational questions allow your interviewer to know you better as you also get the opportunity to show your interest in the position. With behavioral questions, the interviewer relates your previous experience to the job description at hand for you to bring out its relevance. Research-based questions at an organization aim at testing your understanding of the role and the company.

For any engineering position, ability to strictly follow rules and procedure is not optional. This is very key. Therefore, as you tackle interview questions, make strict reference to questions in the order the questions were asked. Adherence to strict order of instructions tells a lot about you as an engineer.

Another important tip for an engineering interview candidate is, find out as much as you can about the company. Every company hires employees so as to solve a certain problem. Find out as much as you can about the position as well. This way, you are able to relate the knowledge you have to the questions asked so as to boost your responses.

Be smart and neat as you appear for the interview. Engineering is not just any mere position but is a crucial one for any industry. Prepare to impress with your first impression. Try and have a formal outfit that brings you out as a serious candidate. No matter how much you know, first impressions really count in any interview as the interviewer will quickly develop some judgement about you from appearance.

Interview Questions And How To Respond To Them

Tell me about yourself

This comes as the first question in many interviews, to create rapport for the interviewer and the interviewee to know each other. Simple salutation works as the interviewee walks in and with this question, the interviewer wants to know something about you that is of help to the position you are interviewing for and also something about you that makes you suitable. Answer this question in relation to the position, mentioning a few job requirement skills. Don’t just answer about your hobbies and experience that would not highlight key areas that are relevant to the position. How you respond to this question will have the interview already have a judgement of you. Respond to get the interviewer’s attention.

As an engineering interviewee, include relevant work experience as a key highlight in your response. Talk about the company’s products, software, systems and relate them to your experience. Avoid repeating what is already in your resume as that is information that the interviewer already knows, focus more on relating what is in your resume with the company objectives and the job description.

What is your greatest weakness?

In this question, the interviewer is testing you and mostly, it is advised that in response, you make an extreme positive thing about you to be a weakness. Tell the interviewer an issue you are dealing with. The response should come out as what it is you are going through, how the issue has affected your work before and how you are dealing with it or working to improve the condition or situation.

Why do you want to work here?

This is a question that can freak you out if you are not properly prepared for the interview. When asked this question, have a response that expresses your interest in the company. Go through the company website and details before attending the interview. This question seeks to prove whether you have done your homework in getting to know the company you wish to work for. Highlight the company’s main business and say how your skill, knowledge and experience would help the company achieve its mission. You could also include how you feel the company would help you grow, as this makes the future employer feel valuable.

Another very impactful way of answering this question is by identifying the main problem that the company intends to solve by advertising for this specific position. This you can get from the job description. With that, frame your answer to show the employer that you are the solution to the problem.

Tell me about a time when you failed

None of us like to recall bad moments like failure and when an interviewer poses this question, their intention is to find out how you can handle tough situations and regain your focus back to work. This question is an opportunity to show the future employer that you acknowledge failure. Mention a situation that brought you down, how you reacted to the situation and bring it out to have a good ending. Show that you learnt from your mistake and fully understand that you were at fault.

Where do you see yourself in the next five years?

The fact that you are there applying for a job you hope to have, makes this question very hard to answer. However, there are smart ways to go around it in line with your dreams and fitting the company’s existence. For the interviewer, this question will tell them how realistic and focused you are in terms of the career and field you want to get into. This question also helps the interviewer to know whether you are there to walk the company’s journey. Answer this question explaining what you hope to achieve in the next five years, do not stop at your achievements but show the interviewer how your achievements will help the company goals.

Describe yourself in one word?

With this question, the interviewer wants to know how you think of yourself. It will mainly help them know your personality and will mainly be followed by a follow up question such as ‘why that?’ Therefore give the best description of yourself that suits the job description and what the company is looking for.

You could describe yourself as optimistic or passionate. Search terms are easy to explain and cut across various roles and duties of a professional. Remember an interview is an opportunity to sell yourself so don’t shy away.

Why did you leave your previous job?

Expect this question at almost all job interviews. Employers want to know if the reason you left your previous job was your own wrongdoing. It is advisable to be very honest when answering this question as this creates trust between you and your future boss. Avoid telling lies on this one as it is easy for employers to tell if you are lying, they have experience dealing with these types of questions. No employer wants to hire someone who was fired for mistrust and who is lying to their face even at an interview. You may lie during the interview and your referees happen to tell a different story or they learn through other networks. Honesty creates trust and again, some mistakes are reasonable and honest mistakes. You never know but stick to honesty.

If you happen to have messed up at a previous job and you encounter this question at your engineering job interview, prepare to answer it prior by writing down your response and then seeking advice from colleagues, online or mentors.

How do you deal with pressure at work?

For an engineer, pressure is part of the job. From tough projects to strict deadlines, engineers must always deliver under strict conditions. Another tricky aspect about engineering is that even as it is complex, engineering must deliver good results and nothing less. So when hired, how will you deal with pressure at work? This question is a test of attitude and to bring out your passion in the field of engineering. Responding to this question requires you to tell of your experiences delivering good results under stress and pressure.

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What Type Of Questions You Should Ask In An Interview?

How's It Like — Sun, 26 Jan 2020 21:22:47 +0000

Asking questions to the interviewer gives a better idea of the company, the boss, as well as the team you will be working with.

You might think that the job description has already laid out this to you, but having a real conversation about the job role is helpful. You get to understand your job responsibility well and learn what will keep your seniors happy with your performance.

With answers to the questions you might have in your mind, you’ll learn things that may not be clear from the job description. For instance, you have to work with a hard-to-deal manager or work within a limited project budget.

So what smart questions you can ask during the interview? Rehearse the following list of focused, open-ended question questions to make an informed decision before joining a job role:

About the Job

• What does a typical workday look like?

• Can you tell me about the projects I’ll be handling?

• What skills and experiences do you expect in the best candidate for this position?

• How do you define the success of the person in this position?

• What are the biggest challenges you think someone in this position would face?

• Is this an old or new role you’ve created?

About Professional Development

• What training programs do you provide to your employees?

• Are there opportunities for personal growth?

• Would I get the opportunity to represent the team or company at industry conferences?

• Where have been persons previously in this position progressed to?

About your Performance

• What do you want me to achieve in the first 30, 60, and 90 days in this role?

• What are your performance expectations of this position over my first year here?

• What is your performance review process?

• What metrics do you consider when evaluating employees’ performance?

About the Interviewer

• How long have you been working with the company?

• Why did you join this company?

• What’s the best thing, in your opinion, about working here?

About the Company

• Where do you want to see the organization in the coming five years?

• Can you tell me about your plans for the company’s growth?

• What current goals is the company focusing on?

• What excites you the most about the company’s future?

About the Team

• Can you explain something about the team I will work with?

• To whom will I report to?

• What are the biggest strengths and challenges in the team?

• Are you planning or expecting to recruit more people in the department in the coming few months?

• Which other departments will I work with?

• Can you explain the most common career paths in the department?

About Work Culture

• What is the work style of the company and the team?

• How do you describe the work environment in the company?

• What was the last team event you organized together?

• What do you do for lunch?

• Does the team hang out outside the company premises?

• Do you organize joint events with other departments or companies?

• What is the best and different thing about working here?

Final Words

Asking these questions during or at the end of the interview will provide valuable information about the company and the job role.

How To Prepare For Software Engineering Interviews?

How's It Like — Thu, 23 Jan 2020 15:36:56 +0000

Interviews require preparation and even experience. Like all other interviews, software engineering interviews are quite a task, with most that have gone through them confessing that the first software engineering interviews are tough. Preparing for software engineering interviews is also a task that calls for a lot of commitment and seriousness.

During first software engineering interviews, one may receive numerous rejections, which pushes a determined candidate to research on the major do's and dont's of preparing for future software engineering interviews. In current times, technology has greatly advanced and with that, it is easier to prepare for software engineering interviews today as compared to earlier times, since there is adequate material online.

Software engineering is complex but with proper study and a well-planned study structure, one is able to achieve. Even easier is the fact that software engineering grows and develops with technology more than any other form of engineering. This article reviews important steps that can help one to prepare well for a software engineering interview.

When one learns concepts of programming during course work, interviews become easier to handle. One requires to have a well structured study plan and to practice a lot so as to grasp different concepts better. Preparing for simple interviews may only require one to prepare by going through regular interview questions, however, to be able to handle software engineering interviews, one must do more than preparing normally and more of practice.

Select and learn a programming language

There are various languages in programming. For an interview, especially entry level interviews, one only needs to learn and focus on one programming language, any of those used. For some interviews however, one is required to know a specific programming language. In such a case where one is directed to know a specific language, it is good to learn and master it well. For a simple software engineering position, any of the common programming languages such as Python, Java and C++ will well equip the candidate for interview.

Having selected and picked the programming language, one must put effort to learn the programming basics of that language.

One may enroll and take a course to learn the programming basics of the language as well as to grow their practical skills. From the learning and practical skills, one should know the language concepts which include variable, data types, arrays, object oriented programming and more.

Information about key aspects of programming languages can be gained from online sources, books articles and other sources. Like in all other learning processes, there are basic and complex topics when learning a programming language.

For better understanding of the complex topics, one must have good grasp and understanding of the simple topics first. In the beginning, one needs to learn basic topics so as to build on a good fundamental understanding before getting to learn the more complex topics.

Software programming languages are a major aspect of software engineering, software engineering interviews are difficult and hard to prepare for and manage but very possible. For good deliver and success in all aspects of learning a programming language, acquiring skills is not enough.

Practice and good grasp of the programming language is also important. With software engineering interviews a candidate is able to prove that he or she has good understanding of software engineering and would be key in development as they work. Practical skills in software engineering are as important and not just crammed content from reading and learning sessions. There is also good and reliable software engineering content online that would best help an interview candidate while preparing.

Software engineering interviews have various stages and steps and each one of the stages is key and equally important to get the interviewee to the next level of the interview and finally to the last stage.

Datastructures andAlgorithms

Another key step in preparing for software engineering interviews is learning data structures and algorithms.

These are the core of software engineering interviews and it is important that one proves they are very well conversant with this specific topic during interview.While preparing on this topic, there are points to note that one can easily come across.

One should understand the uses of data structures as well as the complexity of their time of insert, lookup and delete procedure. For algorithms, it is important to know the time and space complexity for each one of them.

Using one’s own language of choice, one should be able to write popular algorithms such as merge sort, binary search and quick sort.

The content may seem much to internalize but with more time and even online research, one is able to understand the content deeper and easily.

Acquire a copy of cracking and coding interview

This is a book that many programmers largely refer to when preparing for interview. The bookentails key tips on interview processes, review of concept and questions asked during interview.

The book offers one a complete summary of key topics. By going through this book, one is able to recap the knowledge and information learnt during programming basics as well as data structures and algorithms.

With the cracking and coding interview, it is advisable to begin by reading the book content to revise and then tackling the questions provided for practice.Unlike in previous times, technology has greatly changed and with that, it is easier to prepare for software engineering interviews since there is enough review material online.

Software engineering like all other sectors has been simplified by technology in a very big way and this makes it possible for candidates to best prepare for software engineering interviews. With the growth in technology, software engineering cannot be left behind and for learners, there is more to learn as well.

This article reviews key and important steps that can help one to prepare well for a software engineering interview.

There is also key ways one can use online to be able to get to know what he or she needs to be able to handle a software engineering interview. Reading as a way for revision and preparation is a good way to create better mastery of concepts and understanding of given content.

The more one sees something, the harder it gets for one to forget during interview. They are able to handle questions and even in a situation where the interviewer tries to twist basic questions to make them appear complex, the interview candidate is able to relate to all language used and answer the interviewer as expected.

Practice as many times as possible

They say that practice makes perfect. During an examination period, revising and reviewing taken notes and commonly tested areas helps one master taught content better. It is effective and efficient to practice and do it many times other than walking into a software engineering interview without adequate practice.

When preparing for software engineering interview, practice is inevitable and a good way to understand and learn.There are many online sites that offer good practice content and apps and software engineering sites are of key importance for interview candidates.

For intense preparation through practice, sites such as Geeks for Geeks and Leetcode as well as that on Leetcode provide good preparing content, including questions previously asked during past interview questions in various companies.

The sites offer nice interface thus allowing the reader to code solutions in the many available programming languages, as well as be able to run and test one’s code. One can also resubmit their code for retest against a plethora of test cases to ascertain that the code is well functional and efficient. Review materials such as books have review questions that are common during interview.

One should try and review simpler questions and then the more challenging ones with time as they advance. During entry level or internship interviews, companies ask simple and medium questions to the candidates, with rare occasions of one or two hard questions. Candidates preparing for internship interviews and entry level job interviews should ensure good understanding of easy and medium problems and questions.

There are problem patterns that one should take note of while preparing for interview. This also helps toget used to tackling the interview questions. One should also avoid the mentality that reviewed questions will be the ones to be asked during interview because that may not be the case.

The reason for practicing is to gain mastery of questions patterns and familiarize with interview questions.

White boarding

Another important step to handling a software engineering interview is to practice white boarding. This is easy to practice with a colleague.

If one is a student at college, they will be expected to express code in writing on a whiteboard. For one to get to the final round of any interview in a company, the person must write code on a white board to proceed through.

The final stage interview is a complex and different platform. Unlike during rehearsal, one is expected to write code on a whiteboard without getting code completion features or being able to run the code or refer to any documentation.

This is why whiteboard practice is important, to help one get used to the environment.It is possible for an interview candidate to forget content they earlier reviewed.

In a case where one forgets a library function, they can freely explain it to their interviewer who either proceeds to tell the candidate the name or allow you to create another name for it that the candidate and the interviewer both agree on.

If one has no whiteboard to use to practice, they can use a simple text editor and use a pramp if they have no friend or colleague to rehearse with.

A pramp is a free service which creates a video call platform between one and another person and the two take turns as the interviewee and interviewer.

It is same as practicing white boarding with a colleague. The pramp is very useful as it allows one to get feedback from a person, have an almost real interview experience and gives one the chance to experience interviews from an interviewer’s perspective.

Final Verdict:

As discussed in the article, software engineering interviews are complex not only during the main interview but also during preparation for the interview. For good deliver and success in all aspects of learning, acquiring skills is not enough. Practice and good grasp of the application skill is additionally important.

What software engineering interviews are focused on achieving is purely to prove that the candidate being interviewed has good practical skills on software engineering and not just crammed content from reading and learning sessions.

There is also good and reliable software engineering content online that would best help an interview candidate while preparing. Software engineering interviews have various stages and steps and each one of the stages is key and equally important to get the interviewee to the next level of the interview and finally to the last stage.

Attending a number of interviews also prepares one to be able to handle software engineering interviews in future as compared to being a first timer. This is to mean that interviews not only require practice but experience as well to a large extent.

Preparing for software engineering interviews is possible when one is keen and focused during study and preparation.

During first software engineering interviews, one may not succeed to go through and may receive numerous rejections.

In current times, technology has greatly advanced and with that, it is easier to prepare for software engineering interviews today as compared to earlier times, since there is adequate material online. Software engineering is complex but with proper study and a well-planned study structure, one is able to achieve.

This article is very useful most especially for persons preparing for entry level position interviews or software engineering internship interview. The most important point from the content is that understanding the content and being able to put it into practice is very important.

Largest Culture Driven Job board "HowsItLike"

How's It Like — Wed, 15 Jan 2020 21:55:09 +0000

Hi All! Happy New Year!!

We built 'How's It Like' to help people find jobs through culture and work environment. Our mission is to share how's it like to work at a company even before you apply to one of the roles.

We are looking forward to be the largest and finest culture fit job board!

Hope this adds some value in your job search process. Looking for your valuable feedback!

fyi - We are focusing on Developer jobs