Ignoring all the false assumptions you make about IQ, the couple of weeks I could have spent grinding LeetCode I instead spent applying and interviewing at other companies. Maybe I could have had 3 rather than 2 offers by the time I made my decision if I didn't ignore Company X, but I also might not have, as my focus on LC would have taken away focus from preparing for interviewing with companies who know how to hire engineers.
In my experience, a company using LC usually means that, if hired, 95% of your coworkers will be young 20-somethings fresh out of college. Generally, that is who has the time and lack of self-worth to put themselves through this process.
But the often-mocked LC interview wasn't as prevalent as I thought it would be. As a senior+ engineer I generally saw some system design whiteboarding and some take-homes, with a lot of engineer-run companies proudly proclaiming during the interview process that they don't interview that way. So I get it, LC is the standardized test for college grads entering the real world who have no professional experience to demonstrate. And that's fair, you gotta vet junior engineers somehow, I guess.
The one company that asked me straight-from-the-book LC-style puzzlers was an established SF-based startup that opened an office locally. Luckily it was a puzzler I had already watched someone solve on youtube and had memorized so thanks for testing nothing about my technical ability I guess.
In my experience, a company using LC usually means that, if hired, 95% of your coworkers will be young 20-somethings fresh out of college. Generally, that is who has the time and lack of self-worth to put themselves through this process.
But the often-mocked LC interview wasn't as prevalent as I thought it would be. As a senior+ engineer I generally saw some system design whiteboarding and some take-homes, with a lot of engineer-run companies proudly proclaiming during the interview process that they don't interview that way. So I get it, LC is the standardized test for college grads entering the real world who have no professional experience to demonstrate. And that's fair, you gotta vet junior engineers somehow, I guess.
The one company that asked me straight-from-the-book LC-style puzzlers was an established SF-based startup that opened an office locally. Luckily it was a puzzler I had already watched someone solve on youtube and had memorized so thanks for testing nothing about my technical ability I guess.