Ask HN: How can I increase my 'clock speed' in problem solving?
	I&#x27;m getting increasingly discouraged at how long it takes me to solve technical problems, whether it&#x27;s during programming interviews or doing puzzles on the internet.
I know the most common advice is to practice practice practice and that is what I have been doing - online puzzles, TopCoder etc etc, but I don&#x27;t seem to be getting better. I have friends who are always able to solve these things much faster than me, seemingly without any practice.<p>This is holding me back from getting the job I want because I&#x27;m always so slow to come up with an answer during interviews.<p>The sad thing is that I have a PhD in CS from a top university, and an IQ in the high 130&#x27;s, so on paper I&#x27;m not exactly stupid... But I always rationalize this and say that the only reason I got accepted was because of good grades due to excellent rote learning skills, not smartness.<p>Does anyone have any pearls of wisdom?