Foundation · The core skill
How to structure any problem
The most important skill in the interview. Break a problem into clean parts, build the structure from the maths of the goal, lead with a hypothesis, and treat named frameworks as vocabulary, never as the structure.
14 min3 lessonsFacts checked against sources on
Key takeaways
- A clean split has parts that do not overlap and that together cover everything.
- An issue tree is a picture of how you split a big question into smaller ones.
- Structure tells you where to look. A hypothesis tells you where to look first.
By the end you will be able to
- Split a problem so the parts do not overlap and cover everything (MECE)
- Build your own issue tree or driver tree for a new prompt, starting from the goal
- Lead with a hypothesis, and change it when the data disagrees
- Recognize the named frameworks an interviewer may mention, and build from the question instead
Lessons
1
Clean splits: being MECE
Breaking a problem into parts that do not overlap and together cover everything.
5 min
2
Issue trees and driver trees
Turning a clean split into a picture you can work through.
4 min
3
Hypothesis first, and frameworks as vocabulary
Lead with a best guess, change it when the data disagrees, and know the named frameworks as words, never as the structure.
5 min
Look it up
Key terms
Start with lesson 1
3 lessons, about 14 minutes in all. Each one builds on the one before.