Week 11: How Not To Reverse a Linked List

on updates

Week 11 was my worst week yet. The job search looms, but I’m going to plan my way to success.

I felt like a zombie throughout week 11. Everyday, I felt serious brain fog and self doubt. For the first time, I felt like I really lost my focus. The pending job search is weighing on me. I feel so much pressure to get a stellar job that’s well beyond the average. I can’t count the number of times I’ve been asked why I would leave a great job with a distinct career path where I got to work with people I liked.

For the first 10 weeks, I was motivated by sheer interest, and unwavering hope. I was trying to develop a certain set of skills, and as lifelong learner, I felt like I was thriving. The competitive and seemingly endless job search has taken the fun out of things. Anecdote below:

Reversing a Linked List
I was feeling a bit distracted on Thursday, and decided to not do any of the assigned work in the morning and just work on some hackerrank problems instead. I came across a linked list problem, and seeing as the linked list and I became friends in week 2, I thought it would be a breeze. Here are the steps I took to reverse a linked list, with time taken in parenthesis:

  1. Read problem, notice that it’s marked as being easy (1 min)
  2. Tell self it’s easy (1 min)
  3. Feel brain go numb (10 min)
  4. Freak out (5 min)
  5. Write some sort of solution on paper (5 min)
  6. Feel brain go numb (part 2) (5 min)
  7. Go get lunch (15 min)
  8. Call dad on the way back (1 min)
  9. Explain to him that I am a complete idiot and probably shouldn’t have done this because clearly I don’t know anything (5 min)
  10. Listen to him as he tells me that I’ll get it once I stop being so hard on myself (5 min)
  11. Tell myself that it’s probably easy for him to say because he can reverse a linked list in his sleep (1 min)
  12. Indulge in some serious self loathing, because why not (5 min)
  13. Sulk and walk back to chair, pondering how I will be able to do this during an interview (5 min)
  14. Decide it’s probably not worth it to reverse a linked list, but will try again anyway (1 min)
  15. Write solution on paper (3 min)
  16. Reverse linked list iteratively (4 min)
  17. Reverse linked list recursively, because why not at this point (3 min)

On my LinkedIn or Angellist or whatever, I wrote that I try and meet every problem with a smile. Truth be told, I actually do. However, something about the pending job search is really throwing me off my game. Solving problems used to get me really excited- I’d hunch up in problem solving position with feet on my chair, turn up my music, and write little notes on my paper.

I’m going to make sure that this week is a lot better than the last. To ensure that, I’ve set up a detailed scheduled for myself. In the past, I’ve found that when all else fails, the planning process of creating a schedule calms my mind, and the satisfaction of sticking with a schedule keeps pushing me forward. I’m going to treat this job search like a job. I’ve set up my toggl productivity timer and am now timing myself on the various job search tasks I want to complete in a day. My google calendar is up to date with my wake-up times, workouts and meetups. I intend on finishing strong.