From: Ron Hix (ronhix1@xxxxxxxxx)
Date: Thu Apr 27 2000 - 16:06:06 GMT-3
Thanks for the guts it took to be so honest. I missed going on to troubleshoot
ing by just a few
points last week in San Jose. I am gonna make another run at it in San Jose on
Aug 15. Thanks
for the excellent email and for the encouragement.
Ron Hix
--- "Derek Small (Fuse)" <dwsmall@fatkid.com> wrote:
> It appears to be turning into a custom to post a little blurb here after you
> finally pass the examine so here is my "short" story.
>
> I started working on the CCIE a little over two years ago. My first attempt
> at the lab was about a 14 months ago. I did horribly, and was not sure I
> was in the right line of work. I obviously needed more access to equipment
> so I decided to take out a loan, talk someone into fronting me the same
> amount, and started Fatkid.com. In the beginning I just hoped it would help
> me cover my loan payments. By the time my next test rolled around I only
> had a couple of routers assembled. Still, I thought was ready, based on my
> last attempt. My second attempt was no more impressive, and I left for home
> without getting to go on to day 2.
>
> My confidence was pretty much shot at this point and I was ready to give up.
> My employer at that time, only agreed to send me to the test two times.
> After that the cost of the test, airfare, hotel, and everything else was my
> baby. Still my wife and I had agreed that we would foot the bill for a third
> attempt if necessary when I started the process.
>
> By my third attempt I had all the equipment that you see now on Fatkid.com's
> rack, had developed a number of scenarios and kicked into heavy-duty study
> mode. The four weeks before the test I studied between four an five hours a
> night, and all weekend long. My third trip to Raleigh would prove no more
> fruitful than the previous two however, and again I went home after day one.
> This time about $2500.00 poorer when all the bills finally were tallied up.
>
> As you all know this process is a lot of work, and is very stressful, and
> after three attempts and over a year of preparing, I still couldn't get past
> day one. A week after I failing a third time, my wife asked me what I was
> going to do. I said I just could not see putting us all through the ordeal
> of preparing again, not to mention the expense. This process had now cost
> us over $10,000.00 with no payoff in site. Fatkid was turning out to be a
> lot of work and was just barely keeping the lights on, much less helping pay
> for the equipment. I told her I thought I should just give up. She said
> that she thought I would always regret it if I did, and encouraged me to
> sign-up for the test one more time. This time I thought I would try San
> Jose for a change and to see if I might have any better luck with a
> different proctor.
>
> I started preparing for the test four weeks before hand. I came home from
> work, spent 10 minutes with my wife and new born son, then headed to the den
> to study. I did this every night until the last week before the test.
> Then, one week before the test, I quit my job and took another, with a
> company that I though might support me more in my efforts. This allowed me
> to take the entire week off before the test to study, which I did for
> roughly 14 hours a day, for the next five days. When I left for San Jose, I
> felt that I could not have been better prepared, and I was right. I knew
> the material cold. I sat down with the test, read everything and instantly
> started piecing configs together in my head. After reading through the test
> there were a couple of questions that I needed clarified. I could see where
> they may be asking for something pretty strait-forward, or they might be
> trying to make sure you read carefully, and trip you up. When I presented
> the proctor with my questions she flatly refused to offer any clarification,
> beyond "if you read the question carefully enough, the answer to your
> question is there". I took that to mean that they were, in fact, making
> sure you read carefully, and interpreted the questions as specifically as I
> could. I felt pretty good after day 1, but was pretty sure I had missed a
> couple of points because the config that I came up with was pretty weird,
> even though I thought it was what the test was asking for. I was certain I
> would get to go on to day 2 however. The next morning I did get to go on,
> and I smoked through the test. I had the day 2 config done in two hours,
> and triple checked everything. I knew I got all 30 points. I came back
> from lunch and was told that I was done, and would not get to go on. I was
> devastated. I was told I had just enough points from day 1 to even make it
> to day 2, and lost quite a few points on day 2 also. I could not believe
> it. I knew this stuff forwards, backwards, and upside down. It was not
> possible that I didn't even get to go to trouble shooting.
>
> I was convinced that the CCIE was not within my abilities and resigned
> myself to the fact that I would have to be content with a CCNP. My new job
> was working out well, and the company was being very supportive, despite my
> recent failure again at the lab. As delicately as possible new boss pulled
> me aside after a few weeks, and told me that he was beginning to catch some
> heat about me not having passed the CCIE. This was apparently a major
> hiring point when he presented my resume to the regional manager with his
> recommendation to hire me. I thought long and hard about my future with my
> new company. They were willing to pay for the attempt, my wife was still
> somehow encouraging me also, and the local office of the new company was
> still struggling to establish a client base, which would give me large
> amounts of time to study during the day. I decided to try the test one last
> time. This time I would go back to Raleigh.
>
> About a week before I had planned to start studying for the test, Darlene
> called from Cisco (lab administrator for RTP) and said that she had a slot
> that had opened up. It would allow me to take the test almost one month
> earlier than I was scheduled for. Thinking it would take some of the heat
> off of my boss, if I could actually pass the darn thing, I agreed to take
> the test on April 23rd. When I told my wife the new date, she instantly
> asked what about Easter? My jaw dropped. I had completely forgotten. But
> now it was too late, as Darlene had already confirmed the schedule change to
> me. Disappointed but determined, I prepared for the earlier test date,
> which was only three weeks away.
>
> I studied for the test during the day, and spent the evenings with my family
> this time. I had also started reading a bible that my sister-in-law had
> given me as a Christmas present. I am not a terribly religious man, and
> have my own beliefs about God, but have always felt a certain amount of
> hypocrisy discussing religion without having even read the bible. I found
> that reading from the bible in the evenings helped take my mind off of Cisco
> materials and kept me more relaxed in preparing for the test. My wife was
> raised a devout church going Southern Baptist, but never forced religion on
> me, and I felt like reading the bible might help bring the two of us
> together more.
>
> I left for RTP on Saturday with one binder of notes that I wanted to review,
> and the bible my sister-in-law had given me. I studied on plane, and some
> more at the hotel, but again read from the bible that evening to relax. I
> went in to take the test on Easter Sunday, feeling guilty for not being with
> my family, and for working on such a holiday, but I felt determined to make
> it worth the sacrifice. Myself and one other person where the only ones
> anywhere on the entire campus. The weekend proctor showed up, let us in and
> went to prepare the lab. A few minutes later she returned. Denise earned
> her CCIE in '97 and is the regular proctor on weekends. She was great! She
> tried very hard to help us relax and proved very helpful during the test. I
> worked through the lab on day 1 by lunch, and was convinced by the end of
> the day that I had aced everything. I check, and rechecked everything, then
> went back and re-read the entire lab again, checking my configs as I went.
> That evening I was more confident than ever that I had done well and might
> even pass the test this time. I came in on day 2, and Alan (the regular
> proctor at RTP) began showing me things in my config that did not work, two
> things I knew I had configured, but somehow where no longer in my config.
> He didn't say exactly but I summized that I must have lost around 8 points g
> ive or take. I was devastated, shocked and even thought about just leaving
> once. Instead I fumbled through the second part of the test for an hour
> before I finally regained my composure. I finished the last part of day 2
> with five minutes left before lunch, so I did not get to go back and recheck
> anything. Based on my previous attempts I was sure I had lost some points
> on oversights, or typos. Finally Alan came to collect us from the
> cafeteria, where he told me that I lost no points at all on day, and I would
> have to wait for about two hours while he prepared my rack for trouble
> shooting. I was floored. I had already planned to try to catch an early
> flight home. I was also a basket case. I could not believe I was going to
> get to that last part of the test. I went out to the car, got the bible I
> had been reading and found a sunny place in the grass in front of the test
> building. I sat and read, and put Cisco out of my mind entirely. Two hours
> later I walked back into the test center and sat down to try to start
> debugging my rack. I found and corrected every problem that Alan had put in
> my config. I finished checking my work for the third time, just before time
> ran out. Alan sat down reviewed my config, then stood and shook my hand and
> congratulated me. I was speechless.
>
> It had taken me two years and five attempts to meet the goal I set for
> myself. I realized that I had not failed in my previous attempts because I
> was not prepared well enough, but because I was not prepared well enough in
> the right subject.
>
> Incidentally the other person that started with my on Easter Sunday also
> passed his test as received CCIE #5831.
>
> Without a doubt, this group has been the best study aid I have found. I
> think it is a must read for anyone working on the lab. I have never been to
> a formal Cisco training class, only a few local ASET discussion group
> meetings that Cisco does once-in-a-while. I did get a great deal of help
> from the local Cisco SE responsible for channel partner training, Bob Carr,
> and probably would not have passed the test without his help.
>
> Thanks to everyone in the group!!! You guys rock!
>
> Derek Small
> CCIE # 5832
> dwsmall@fatkid.com
>
>
>
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