interview-prep

Files (6)

• SKILL.md
• company-note-template.md · assets/
• fit-and-story-bank.md · references/
• process-and-tracker.md · references/
• research.md · references/
• technical-prep.md · references/

SKILL.md (first lines)

# Interview Prep

Prepares a target company/role end-to-end: research, fit, behavioral prep, technical prep, and process tracking. All notes live in the vault under `02 Areas/Job Hunt/` (`work/vault/02 Areas/Job Hunt/`) -- see `references/process-and-tracker.md` for the exact layout.

## Workflow

1. **Capture the target.** Get company name, role, and how it came up (referral, job post, cold interest). Create `02 Areas/Job Hunt/Companies/<company-slug>.md` from `assets/company-note-template.md` if it doesn't exist. Add a row to `02 Areas/Job Hunt/tracker.md`.

2. **Research the company.** Read `references/research.md`. Use WebSearch/WebFetch to fill in product, stage, recent news, tech stack, competitors, culture signals. Write findings into the company note.

3. **Explore the fit.** Read `references/fit-and-story-bank.md`. Work through why this is actually interesting (not generic enthusiasm), cross-check the vault for existing related interests, and draft 2-3 tailored questions to ask interviewers.

4. **Prep for the format.** Determine what rounds are coming (or likely, from research/role type):
   - Behavioral round -> `references/fit-and-story-bank.md` STAR story bank.
   - Technical/DSA round -> `references/technical-prep.md`, including `work/kata-machine` for hands-on practice.
   - System design or take-home -> same file, relevant section.

5. **Track through the process.** Read `references/process-and-tracker.md`. Update `tracker.md` and the company note's hiring-process table as stages happen. Log post-interview notes right after each round while it's fresh.

6. **Offer stage.** When an offer lands, use the negotiation section of `references/process-and-tracker.md` before any number gets discussed live.

## Baselining

An interview is a shared baseline before it is a performance. Scott's pattern:
answer one part of a question, get to a shared footing on that part, then answer
the rest from there. Advancing to the next question before the floor is set
reads as noise, not rigor.

So when running a mock, bring him back. Confirm the part that landed, name it in
one line, then return to the same question for the next layer. One question at a
time. Don't advance until the current question has a floor.

This is also the thing he is evaluating. Can we set a comfortable baseline with
this company - can each side bring the other up to speed and keep them involved -
is a real criterion, not a soft one. Technical depth still has to be covered; it
just doesn't count if nobody is standing on the same ground.

## Notes

- Don't fabricate company facts (funding numbers, headcount, exec names) when research doesn't turn up a confident source -- state what's unknown instead.
- Keep the STAR story bank and DSA study notes reusable across companies; keep research and process notes per-company.
- If the user drops an external resource (a video, article) for a DSA topic, file it into that topic's vault study note (`02 Areas/Job Hunt/Study/<topic>.md` - see `references/technical-prep.md`) rather than losing it in conversation.

From scott-fryxell/brayness, MIT.

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