this post was submitted on 17 Oct 2025
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I don't prepare, because it's testing a task that I do pretty much everyday. If I can't do it on-demand I don't see how I can call myself a programmer. That said, I do have some strategies.
Often the interviewer isn't looking for people able to recite detail in the documentation. They are looking at the quality of the code you'll produce. So I concentrate on explaining my approach to the problem, rather than the code.
...and so on. If it's on a whiteboard I'll often write in pseudo-code that looks something like a language, but I'll state that I'm not trying to write perfect, compiler ready code.
I let them guide me to the level of detail they are looking for.
If it turns out they want to score points on me for missing a bracket, or getting the order of arguments wrong, then I take that as a negative against the company. Interviews go both ways, and you're looking for people you can work with too. So if they're going to nitpick in an interview they're probably going to be horrible to work with day-to-day.
Agree with everything you said, but if you're going to ask me about anything, then the thing I do 40 hours a week every week should be a safe subject. If I'm interviewing a chef, I'll probably ask them about working in a kitchen. I may even ask them to demonstrate something.
I think it's a reasonable expectation.
The key thing is to be as relaxed as you can be. Interviewing is a skill you learn, so go for a few interviews that you're not as interested in. Try not to go for your dream job first, because you'll be stressed to hell. Get a couple under your belt first if you can.
Interviews aren't an exam. They're a conversation.