Feeling stuck at Case Practice

Hi there,

Two tips :

1. Practice, practice, and just dont give up. Give yourself time & celebrate little successes. Take a break for couple of days here and there and do something fun/creative to unclock the trapped energy in you

2. Thinking-feeling loop: perhaps you are stuck in the same sequence of thoughts that make you feel the same way over the weeks. E.g. I am not good enough or My case structuring is weak, Maybe I am not suited for this consulting world etc etc. Stop doing this. Visualise yourself "being successul and enjoying the case solving exercise". Do this for 10-15mins everyday and I can assure you things will turn

Good luck!

Adi

Hi Floyd,

ad 1) Practice problem solving skills during math

The trick here is to separate the conceptual problem solving from the actual math. Most candidates try to do both at the same time, which leads to multi-tasking for the human brain which it is not made for, and thus the result is prone to errors.

Therefore figure out the conceptual approach first, and only afterwards put in the numbers and do the math.

ad 2) Feeling stuck

Sounds like a natural situation. Many candidates focus too much on theoretical case interview prep, and especially LOMS and case in point oftenly do more bad than good for the structuring part. The major point here is that you need to learn to start thinking like a tier-1 consultant, and not relying to a major extent of prefabricated frameworks. If consulting was that easy applying some existing frameworks to any given situation, everybody would do it - but obviously it's not.

So if you are serious in your case interview prep, I'd recommend you to invest in an experienced professional coach to guide your thinking into the right way.

Hope this helps - if so, please give it a thumbs-up with the green upvote button below!

Robert

I get the impression that you could benefit from being more curious about different businesses in the real world as opposed to continuing to focus purely on 'theoretical' consulting cases. 

Perhaps you can take some time to read the news/reports/etc. on different industries and companies - the problems they are facing and how they are tackling them. We are in the midst of unchartered times where there are a lot of unique business problems and a lot of literature around it. The important part is for you to be able to put a structure around the various 'issues' and independently think about what could be done etc. as opposed to just reading 'solutions'. 

The maths will come with practice where it's not just practicing mental maths (e.g., through GMAT etc.) but also around putting a structure around an abstract numerical problem.

Hi Floyd,

You need a case coach. 

Plain and simple.

A lot of problems/issues can be solved in Q&A. However, your issues here are, I'm sorry to say, pretty impossible to fix by reading a few written answers. You need dedicated, tailored, one-on-one training to get you through a mindset shift!

Hi there,

Both those problems are normal when you practice alone or when you work with other candidates who do not have experience in coaching.

For the structuring, you might do some cases with an expert to see and understand how he/she would crack the case from the identification of drivers until the conclusion. Case cracking is a "scientific and logical exercise", and an expert would definitely help you learn how to proceed.

For Problem solving, I still believe that you can improve through practice. Make sure you take all the necessary time at the beginning to do the math right, and then start working on using math tricks to do math faster and without any mistakes!

I will be happy to share with you more methods and tricks on how to crack cases, do not hesitate to reach out to me for further information.

All the best,

Mehdi

Hi,
I understand you. Actually, there is a certain point, a very common one, which every candidate might face.

I can write you a dozens of advice here, but it may not be relevant for you. So, I have 2 options for you:

Option 1: Practice more and more, until you feel natural in this field

Option 2: Take at least a couple of sessions with a career coach here on the Platform, who helps you to point out your real stepping stone and defines the easiest ways for you to overcome it. I and my colleagues here are happy to help you.

Does it make sense to you?
GB