High Greedy Question 191 of 224

How do you burst the fewest balloons (or shoot the fewest arrows) so every interval is hit?

DSA interview set · Speak this in 60–90 seconds · Faridabad & Delhi NCR

IdeaGreedy

HowWhat happens inside

Why they askShows real use

Sort intervals by end and shoot at the current end

Why interviewers care about Greedy:

This is a process

question about Greedy.

Panels listen for order,

trade-offs, and what you would actually do on a DSA project - not buzzwords.

Stay structured

Name the idea, why it exists, then one short example.

Close cleanly

End with when you use it and one common pitfall.

Before you speak the answer, walk the interviewer through these steps:

1
Sort intervals by end
and shoot at the current end
2
skip later intervals that
start at or before that point, otherwise spend a new arrow.
3
Sorting O(n log n),
scan O(n).
4
This is the same
greedy as activity selection on finish time.
5
Common mistake
What juniors usually get wrong.
6
Close
When you pick this over the alternative.

Here's a short line you can speak, broken into clear beats:

Say this line

“Sorting O(n log n), scan O(n).”

Break into beats

SortingOnlognscan

Speaking order

2987408337471632900

Note: Adapt this scaffold to your own project — keep it under 60–90 seconds.

Sort intervals by end and shoot at the current end skip later intervals that start at or before that point, otherwise spend a new arrow.