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💪 Practice & Prepare

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Welcome to the practice section! This is where you'll apply what you've learned through hands-on labs, mock interviews, and real-world scenarios.

What's Inside​

🧪 Hands-On Labs​

Real projects to build your skills:

  • Build a Kubernetes cluster from scratch
  • Create a complete CI/CD pipeline
  • Implement a monitoring stack
  • Practice disaster recovery

📋 Interview Format Guides​

Master each interview type:

  • Coding interview strategies
  • System design methodology
  • Behavioral interview framework
  • Take-home project tips

🎭 Mock Interview Scenarios​

Practice with realistic scenarios:

  • Production outage simulations
  • Architecture review sessions
  • Code review exercises
  • Team conflict resolutions

How to Use This Section​

For Interview Preparation​

  1. Review the interview format guides
  2. Practice with mock scenarios
  3. Time yourself to simulate real conditions
  4. Get feedback from peers or mentors

For Skill Building​

  1. Complete hands-on labs in order
  2. Try to solve problems before looking at solutions
  3. Experiment with variations
  4. Document your learnings

Practice Schedule​

Daily Practice (30-60 minutes)​

  • Monday: Coding challenges
  • Tuesday: System design
  • Wednesday: Troubleshooting scenarios
  • Thursday: Infrastructure automation
  • Friday: Mock interviews

Weekly Projects​

  • Week 1: Set up local Kubernetes
  • Week 2: Build CI/CD pipeline
  • Week 3: Implement monitoring
  • Week 4: Practice disaster recovery

Success Tips​

🎯 Be Consistent​

  • Practice daily, even if just 30 minutes
  • Focus on understanding, not memorization
  • Track your progress

🔄 Iterate and Improve​

  • Review your solutions
  • Learn from mistakes
  • Refactor and optimize

👥 Get Feedback​

  • Join study groups
  • Practice with peers
  • Share solutions for review

Common Pitfalls to Avoid​

In Practice​

  • ❌ Copying solutions without understanding
  • ❌ Skipping error handling
  • ❌ Ignoring edge cases
  • ❌ Not testing your code

In Interviews​

  • ❌ Jumping to code too quickly
  • ❌ Not asking clarifying questions
  • ❌ Overengineering solutions
  • ❌ Poor communication

Resources for Practice​

Online Platforms​

  • LeetCode: Algorithm practice
  • System Design Primer: Architecture practice
  • Pramp: Mock interviews
  • Exercism: Programming exercises

Local Setup​

# Create practice environment
mkdir ~/platform-practice
cd ~/platform-practice

# Set up Git repository
git init
echo "# Platform Engineering Practice" > README.md
git add .
git commit -m "Initial commit"

# Create project structure
mkdir -p {labs,interviews,projects,notes}

Track Your Progress​

Skills Checklist​

  • Can deploy Kubernetes cluster
  • Can build CI/CD pipeline
  • Can implement monitoring
  • Can troubleshoot production issues
  • Can design scalable systems
  • Can explain technical decisions

Interview Readiness​

  • Completed 50+ coding challenges
  • Designed 10+ systems
  • Practiced 20+ behavioral questions
  • Done 5+ mock interviews
  • Built 3+ portfolio projects

Ready to practice? Start with Hands-On Labs →