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Why I'm Quitting Leetcode @1234 Day Streak
Why I'm Quitting Leetcode @1234 Day Streak
Like any drug, I had a reason - I wanted to break into FAANG and get paid 3x my salary.
I got my first hit after completing a Leetcode Hard - It took me over 6 hours to do - on a Saturday morning while visiting my Grandmother's house. But damn was I proud.
My second hit was when I reached a 30 day streak. A successful friend - who was launching a startup at the time - gave a heartfelt congratulations, and told me to go for 60.
And while I'm glad I did it, this has gone on too long. There's too many reasons not to continue any longer:
- Validation: Neither myself nor anyone else cares about my streak anymore. I would like to say "it only matters if I care", but reality hits different.
- What I gave up: I used to spend significant amounts of time contributing to Open Source. This stopped when I started Leetcoding
- Time: Leetcode takes time. You can't multitask it when you're hanging out with friends, and there's a feeling of anxiety when you haven't solved the daily problem yet
- Need: I don't need to get into FAANG anymore. I'm already here. I don't plan on going back into Big Tech once I leave, and if I ever do, I can easily learn Leetcode again.
- Cheat: During a trip to Yosemite, twice I used a "Streak Freeze"; but once you corrupt it a little, the value loses a lot.
In 2 days I will be at a 1234 streak. That will be my last day doing Leetcode for a very long time.