š° Recalibrating my bets - Why Iām pausing LeetCode grind in an AI world
- Published on
- ā¢ 3 min read
- Authors
- Name
- Kien Dang
As someone working in the betting industry, whether you're betting on sports, the market, or even yourselfā¦ it's always a good idea to make adjustments based on current data and observations.
A few thoughts have been circling my mind as I sit here with my wife in a beautiful cabin. We're decompressing, reflecting on one of the biggest events of our lives, and taking time to plan ahead. And with this bit of downtime, Iāve found myself reflecting on my career path.
As we head toward an increasingly AI-driven future, Iāve started to wonder: is investing time into LeetCode still a good bet? What used to feel like a reliable playbook for breaking into or advancing in tech now seems vulnerable.
I had set an ambitious goal to tackle LeetCode seriously in my last post, but recently, another path for career growth was presented to me, one that might make more sense given my current circumstances.
ā Ā 1. The Dev Job MarketĀ IsĀ Rough Right Now
- Hiring is downĀ and more cautious, especially for mid-senior roles.
- LayoffsĀ and budget freezes mean fewer companies are aggressively growing.
- More competition: When jobs do open, Iām up against larger applicant pools
Grinding LeetCode in this climate can feel like fighting for a small slice of a shrinking pie.
On top of that, while on my PTO, I briefly checked my work emails and received news that they had laid off 75 people, this doesnāt bode well for the economy at all, which has me a bit concerned.
ā Ā 2. AIĀ IsĀ Changing the Interview Game
As I mentioned previously, LeetCode seems to be at risk, however, skills like algorithms and data structures are crucial to know. Thatās why I still plan to continue learning them, but without dedicating the bulk of my energy to grinding out algorithm questions.
My shift towards gaining new skills will be around:
- System design
- Product thinking
- Code quality + collaboration
My bet right now is: to be building real things, not solving toy problems which I think is the more future-proof skill.
ā Ā 3. Optimizing for ROI
- LeetCode has low ROI unless Iām laser-focused on FAANG or a specific job
- It doesn't compound like real project work does
Instead, I should build actual products and try building my own company:
- Gain product intuition skills
- Puts me closer to real-world problems AIĀ can't yet replaceĀ (e.g. context, design decisions, tradeoffs)
- Lets me create a portfolio thatĀ isnātĀ just a GitHub of solutions, but actual shipped code and ownership stories.
š§ Final Thought
Iām justĀ recalibrating my betĀ on what skills and experiences will still matterĀ in an AI-heavy future. I hope what I mentioned makes sense and Iām looking forward to having this reflection again to see whether it was the right thing to do.