A young software engineer recently shared an inspiring account of his career turnaround on the subreddit Developers India. He narrated how he quit his job without securing another position, only to later receive a remarkable new offer with an 80% salary increase.
After deciding to leave his former company voluntarily, he took a break to reassess his strengths and refine his technical skills. While he possessed solid domain knowledge, he admitted that his familiarity with Data Structures and Algorithms (DSA) was limited. Recognizing patterns and applying the right logic during problem-solving was a struggle he had long avoided due to inconsistent practice.
During his break, he chose to focus on deepening his core expertise and brushed up on DSA fundamentals occasionally, believing his strong technical base would compensate for the gap. However, when he began applying for roles—sending out over a hundred applications—he quickly realized otherwise. Although he advanced through multiple first-round interviews, the DSA challenges in later stages consistently tripped him up. Despite knowing he was capable of performing the job, his lack of proficiency in DSA cost him several promising opportunities.
Eventually, an interview with his current company turned things around. Instead of a typical algorithmic test, he was asked to develop a small project to demonstrate his technical abilities. He poured his effort into the task, and the interviewers were genuinely impressed. He cleared the subsequent stages with ease and received a generous offer—complete with an 80% salary hike.
He revealed that he had initially quoted a higher figure, assuming the company would negotiate it down. To his surprise, they accepted it outright. Reflecting on his experience, he emphasized perseverance above all. Rejections can sting, but they’re an essential part of growth.
He concluded by reminding others to balance domain expertise with consistent DSA practice and never stop trying, no matter how exhausting the job-hunting process becomes.
After deciding to leave his former company voluntarily, he took a break to reassess his strengths and refine his technical skills. While he possessed solid domain knowledge, he admitted that his familiarity with Data Structures and Algorithms (DSA) was limited. Recognizing patterns and applying the right logic during problem-solving was a struggle he had long avoided due to inconsistent practice.
During his break, he chose to focus on deepening his core expertise and brushed up on DSA fundamentals occasionally, believing his strong technical base would compensate for the gap. However, when he began applying for roles—sending out over a hundred applications—he quickly realized otherwise. Although he advanced through multiple first-round interviews, the DSA challenges in later stages consistently tripped him up. Despite knowing he was capable of performing the job, his lack of proficiency in DSA cost him several promising opportunities.
Eventually, an interview with his current company turned things around. Instead of a typical algorithmic test, he was asked to develop a small project to demonstrate his technical abilities. He poured his effort into the task, and the interviewers were genuinely impressed. He cleared the subsequent stages with ease and received a generous offer—complete with an 80% salary hike.
He revealed that he had initially quoted a higher figure, assuming the company would negotiate it down. To his surprise, they accepted it outright. Reflecting on his experience, he emphasized perseverance above all. Rejections can sting, but they’re an essential part of growth.
He concluded by reminding others to balance domain expertise with consistent DSA practice and never stop trying, no matter how exhausting the job-hunting process becomes.
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