Magic Spreadsheet
TL;DR
Merry Christmas you filthy animal: What you came for!
Intro
Do you ever feel like you don’t know what problems to solve? Are you solving problems but feeling like you aren’t making progress? Do you have troubles holding a coherent conversation when faced with the daunting task of conversing with the fairer sex? Although the magic spreadsheet doesn’t have the answer to that last question (maybe it does, surprise me), it can help you with the first two. So sit back and strap in, as I give some tips on how to get the most mileage out of the my practice spreadsheet!
Timing
Marking down attempts is like food, you have to get at it while it’s still warm but not burning hot. If there’s a problem you end up checking the TCs or editorial for during a practice session, wait until the end of the session to add it to your list. This helps you stay focused for the rest of your practice, and also relieves you the stress of trying to write a good reflection while solving. Be sure not to leave it for too long though, or you’ll forget what sections of the problem caused you the most trouble.
Spaced Repetition
If you notice at the top of the “Attempts” page, there are three color statuses: Completely Solved (blue), Solved Once (green), and In Cycle (yellow). In cycle just means that you needed external help to solve the problem, so they’re now in your spaced repetition problem bank. 3/4 weeks after solving the problem with help, go back and try solving the problem once more. The timing is key here to make sure you don’t just have the problem memorized and are actually solving it from scratch again. If you successfully solve it for the second time, move the problem up to the green level. Although reflection for the second time isn’t necessary, it’s always nice to look back on what this problem has taught you. Finally after another period of time, give the problem one last solve before retiring it to the Completely Solved tier. By going through the arduous process of solving a problem three times, you make sure there aren’t any holes in your skill set that you forget about.
Reflection
We’ve finally arrived at our main ingredient. Although every component of the spreadsheet is important, reflection is by far the most crucial. Remember that content far outweighs your writing style so don’t feel pressured to write MLA double spaced essays for each one. But Ivy, what’s important to write about in a reflection? Well, I’m glad you asked. The three main points your reflection should 100% cover are: your thinking process, technique missed, and keywords/patterns, but let’s go a bit more in depth. For thinking process, be sure to note what other solutions you thought about, what led you to that faulty idea, and why it didn’t work. A bare-bone example might be, “Tried to brute force which didn’t work because of large constraints and tight TL”. It’s also key to identify keywords/patterns that lead to the correct technique; like how maximum/minimum/count often lead to DP solutions. By finding which topics you struggle with the most, your weaknesses become clearer and help you select future problems.
Outro
I want to thank you guys for all the support I’ve gotten this year, and I can’t wait for what next year brings. If you have any suggestions for the blog/spreadsheet, I’m always open to ideas! Until next year, Fake LGM Ivy signing off.
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