The Three Weed Out Keys Revealed

If you watched my free case prep course, you'll remember how most people get great scores on four out of the seven keys. Well, the candidates that most often pass the interview are ones who get "great" scores in 3 keys in particular - Takeaways, Math, and Ideas.

Finding the nuggets (Key #3)

Takeaways is the #1 hardest key for most candidates to do "great" on. This is because you usually have to digest and synthesize a lot of information all at once. Moreover, case interview writers sometimes put in superfluous information to make it even harder for the interviewee to parse out the signal from the noise.

Recall the 3 common mistakes candidates make on this dimension:

  1. Reading off the slide / chart / table / exhibit
  2. Getting overwhelmed with superfluous information
  3. Not getting to the “so what” quick enough (speed is the variable that will most often differentiate candidates on this key)

Also recall the 3 strategies on how to do great on this dimension:

  1. Use my “H-T-S” framework for cutting to the “so what”
  2. Always thing about possible "2nd order" effects 
  3. Proactively think about the "now what" (important to be proactive, as this demonstrates "ownership" of the problem)

Calculating math (Key #4)

Math is the second hardest key for most candidates to do "great" on. Some candidates will find the shortcut formulas, so if you don't find them, you are at an instant disadvantage. What matters here is balancing both speed and accuracy. You can't be overly cautious with your calculations, which sacrifices speed.

Likewise, you can't be overly fast with your calculations, which sacrifices accuracy. So you must find those math short cuts, which accomplish both speed and accuracy - because there are fewer things to calculate when shortcuts are used.

Recall the 4 common mistakes candidates make on this dimension:

  1. Not finding the short cut approach with leads to errors (speed + accuracy will most often differentiate candidates on this key)
  2. Making too many errors - even small ones
  3. Not being organized
  4. Not knowing all the case writer's landmines / "tricks"

Also recall the 3 strategies on how to do great on this dimension:

  1. Know the 3 powerful “shortcut hacks” (again, the shortcuts hacks are important because they get you speed and accuracy)
  2. Be organized
  3. Know the 4 landmines / "tricks"

Generating ideas (Key #5)
Ideation is the third hardest key for most candidates to do "great" on. It's less hard than the other two, because you just have to have a mindset that more is often better. Lots of candidates think saying 1-2 ideas is sufficient. What they don't realize, is that everyone says the same 1-2 ideas. So you need to push yourself for 3+ relevant ideas, because that will differentiate you as someone who is both creative and intellectually curious.

Recall the 3 common mistakes candidates make on this dimension:

  1. Not having a structure to think about generating ideas (generating ideas without any framework/structure is very difficult)
  2. Not mentioning enough ideas / options
  3. Not considering the trade-offs / implications of an idea

Also recall the 3 strategies on how to do great on this dimension:

  1. Use an appropriate “idea generation” structure (this is the greatest unlock, a structure will help with ideation immensely)
  2. More matters, but quality does too
  3. Consider the trade-offs / implications of an idea

Again - all the keys matter. But pay special attention to these "weed out" keys, because they will be the ones that more often than not, differentiate candidates.