Before diving into complex problems, ensure you have a solid understanding of the basic building blocks of problem-solving, such as:

• Data Structures: Arrays, linked lists, stacks, queues, trees, graphs, hash maps, heaps, tries, etc.
• Algorithms: Sorting algorithms, searching algorithms (binary search, DFS, BFS), dynamic programming, greedy algorithms, backtracking, etc.
• Time and Space Complexity: Learn Big-O notation and practice analyzing the time and space complexity of algorithms.

1. Read the problem carefully.
2. Understand the problem.
3. Identify patterns.
4. Think of a working solution.
5. Execute the solution.
6. Look back.