I have faced several instances where I wished I knew something before I started Competitive Programming.

Here's a thread compiling the things I wish I knew before starting CP.

1/6

I started CP with Python and Java. It was only sometime later I realized C++ should be the go to language for my CP journey, as the TLEs thrashed my submissions.

Though one can do wonders with Python and Java too, I just didn't want the hassle of unnecessary TLEs, at all.

2/6

When I started CP in 2019, I had no clue about CP communities run by high rated CPers. I realized their importance when I joined one, and my daily productivity boosted by a huge factor.

I ended up creating my own community after becoming CM, which now houses 14000 members.

3/6

My first 5 contests, all had negative deltas. Did that mean I was putting less effort? Maybe. Was I on the wrong track? Definitely not.

One needs to know that when they start something new, they might not have positive gains at all, as it's just the beginning.

4/6

The most common mistake people make is that they learn stuff topic-wise to implement in problem solving. The real case should be the exact opposite - Solving problems to learn stuff.

5/6