Newbie to Expert in 3 Months

 

1. Solve Problems Around Your Rating

  • Focus on problems within ±200 of your current rating.
  • Avoid problems that are too easy (no challenge) or too hard (wastes time).
  • Daily Target: 10 problems to build skill and confidence.

2. Skip Unnecessary Materials

  • Avoid advanced/irrelevant topics like Persistent Segment Trees for now.
  • Stay focused on problem-solving skills over complex theory.

3. Master Dynamic Programming (DP)

  • One of the core skills in competitive programming.
  • Practice both tag-free (for recognition) and tag-specific DP problems.
  • DP Focus Target: 10 problems/day when training DP.

4. Core Focus Areas

  • Number Theory
  • Greedy Algorithms
  • Mathematics
  • Implementation
  • Brute Force
  • Bitmasking
  • Graph Algorithms
  • Two Pointers
  • Binary Search

5. Smart Problem-Solving Approach

  • Spend 30–40 min thinking before checking solutions.
  • If close to solving, skim the first line of the editorial for hints.
  • If stuck, read the full editorial + analyze others’ code.
  • Learning from other coders exposes you to new techniques.

6. Learn While Solving

  • Don’t memorize algorithms in advance.
  • Learn on demand — when a new concept appears, understand it and apply it immediately.

7. Never Miss Contests

  • Participate in every Codeforces contest — no excuses.
  • Upsolve immediately after contests; review others’ implementations for tricks.
  • Add 2 virtual contests/week for extra speed and accurac

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