From: Pal (palsehmi@googlemail.com)
Date: Tue May 30 2006 - 10:59:03 ART
Hi Shanky,
Thanks. I'm not sure if my timesheets will help because everyone's personal
circumstances are different. I'll try to explain how it was for me. I liked
the idea of passing the lab but I had so many other commitments that I never
had enough time to put in proper study. All through my school exams and
degree I'd always crammed at the last minute and got through. I eventually
realised that the CCIE was not like any of these other exams and I needed
regular and consistent study, that was the turning point. Who was I kidding?
Other than myself - no one. I was also fed up of kicking the idea around.
I realised I had to make sacrifices for a few months, I stopped training,
stopped socialising and kept just one or two nights a week for the family. I
also had to withdraw from a very busy personal schedule. It was difficult at
first but its all matter of priorities and delayed gratification. I'm not
saying this is the best way - but that's what worked for me. I learned to
say no (nicely), I even left my job so that I would have more time. I had
been in a fairly hands off role for a period so I figured I needed to
immerse myself in the technology and move into a more suitable role. I gave
the kids a task to make a "daddy can I do this now you've passed" list -
that helped ease things and gave them something to look forward to.
I drew up a chart estimating the amount of time it would take per lab -
after doing the first few workbook labs I realised my weakest areas (all of
them :-)). I listed these and then studied these areas until I felt more
confident. I would assign a day where I would do nothing but focus on
multicast or security, or any other area for that matter. Once I had focused
on my weaker areas I found that areas previously thought of as "strong" were
far from it. So I then worked on those. On average I studied solidly for
about 5-6 hours and when I was on a roll I just carried on. When working
with your study partners you will find that you really get into a subject.
Most of my labs took me a full 8 hours and then after this I would review
technologies and make notes.
This approach worked best for me and as I became more familiar with the
technology my scores and speed improved. I realised I still had the ability
to learn. Previously I wondered whether I still had it in me to do this. A
large part of the challenge was sheer physical and mental energy.
Our study circle of three met once a week face to face and we kept in touch
every day whilst studying. We kept each other going.
My plans were flexible and changed due to flu, inability to understand as
fast as I thought I could and so on. After going through the technologies
and the IE labs, I worked on a) developing a toolkit b) navigating the CD
and c) lab strategy - this was in the last 2-3 weeks.
The days before the lab I spent just relaxing and doing some final final
checks.
I don't think that I am any different to anyone else on the group but I did
find that one byte at a time makes it easy. I would suggest that you choose
timescales to match your own personal commitments. Its really to do with
what works for you.
I hope this helps a bit & best of luck.
Regards
Pal
On 30/05/06, Shanky <shankyz@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> Hi Pal,
>
> Congrats on passing, your mail is really very inspiring. I was also
> studying for the lab but due to some unavoidable reasons was not able to
> study for the last few months at all. you write in your mail that you
> studied for 3 months in total ? thats a great achievment I think . Would
you
> like to share info.. like how many hours you put in during these 3 months
> for studying/lab practice etc. and if possible your time sheets/plan.
>
> Thanking you in advance.
>
> Shanky
>
>
> On 5/30/06, Pal <palsehmi@googlemail.com> wrote:
>
> > Just got the results from my lab in Brussels yesterday and I am happy to
> say
> that I passed.
> I'm not sure that I am qualified to do so but I would like to share some
> of
> my thoughts in the hope that it will help someone.
>
> 1) The CCIE lab is very much achievable. Rather than concentrating on
> questions it is better to learn and understand technologies. It is
> possible
> to do this through practice labs but quality of study is paramount - not
> quantity!
>
> 2) The resources available are excellent. I used Internetwork Expert and
> was
> very pleased with the way in which the workbooks highlighted areas to
> focus
> on. No workbooks are perfect but its important not to miss the point -
> they
> are there to help you learn. Equally some of my study partners have
> commented on other vendors and how good they are. Bottom line is - its up
> to
> you, no one will spoon feed the technology into your head - you have to
> put
> the hours of quality study in.
>
> 3) Groupstudy was informative and inspiring but some postings could be
> easily avoided by simply reading a book or checking on CCO. We all have to
> start somewhere but its a big responsibility to guide someone and I feel
> one
> should be very careful. Amongst others I would like to thank Brian, Scott
> M,
> Petr, Dave S, Victor and Godswill - your postings have been very useful.
>
> 4) I was greatly inspired by the stories of failure and success on GS. I
> admire the tenacity of some individuals. Some of the people who failed
> have
> been my greatest inspiration. It takes real guts to keep going, which is
> admirable. Saying that - if you fail it also takes real bravery to analyse
>
> within and re-create a gameplan. Its easier to blame someone or something
> else instead of your lack of study or lab technique.
>
> 5) I tried the lab 5 years ago after studying one textbook and a handful
> of
> poorly written self created labs. I came close on my first attempt and
> thinking that I wasn't far I tried a few weeks later. I failed miserably
> and
> hung up my gloves for a while. The recent upturn in the industry and the
> inspiration that I received from my friends gave me belief and allowed me
> to
> create a new gameplan and have another go.
>
> 6) I found it best to ignore all the "shortcut/cheat sheet" type
> materials.
> Its better to know your stuff and this needs detailed analysis. Use good
> materials and text books, create your own set of notes and keep these
> updated. Study in a group.
>
> 7) As far as lab technique is concerned I rehearsed the same approach
> several times before the real thing.
> a) Create 2 diagrams (BGP and IGP) and a vlan table.
> b) Read all the questions, jot the answers down and also make notes on the
>
> diagrams - take time to do this - maybe 30-45 minutes at the start.
> ASK YOURSELF "HAVE I FULFILLED THE REQUIREMENTS OF THIS QUESTION?"
> c) Start work, verify everything all the way through. If you get stuck for
>
> more than 10 minutes move on and return later.
> d) Save often, I used a technique that I would not minimize my terminal
> window unless I had saved.
> e) Try to get into or complete BGP by lunch and then run TCL scripts.
> f) Re-verify everything at the end.
> Most of this might appear as common sense. General approach is to ask the
> proctor whenever you are unsure. Never assume anything and use the CD if
> you
> need to at will.
> Its a test and if you remove the pressure its much easier - so stay calm,
> but focused.
>
> 8) When studying learn and drill the basics, tricks and corner cases are
> good to know but these should follow the fundamentals. Know the basics
> inside out.
> Use the CD to cover all options and know where to find stuff on the CD. I
> made a list something like this:
> Configuration Fundamentals - Autoinstall, Menus & Banners, Config & IOS
> management
> Dial - Backup, Media Independent PPP compression, dhcp, pap&chap
> Addressing Services - DHCP, DNS, NAT
> Application Services - ICMP, DRP WCCP, Accounting, ACLs (time, options,
> flags), TCP features, SLB, FHRP & Object Tracking
> Network Management - Logging & SNMP, CDP, Small Services, NTP/Time, RMON,
> Security - AAA, Radius, PAM, Reflexive, Lock & Key, Intercept, Secure
> Infrastructure (Privilege)
> WAN Configuration - Frame, PPPoFR, FREEK
>
> 9) More preparation - from beginning to end I took 3 months to study and
> pass. I had a plan for what to do in case of failure as well as success.
> I used a wallchart with the areas of study and the milestones. Its
> important
> to study the areas you are least comfortable with and make these strong.
> The final 3 weeks I had the flu so I hadn't done any full labs for a
> while,
> this bothered me a little but was soon forgotten when I got into the
> questions.
> It's harder with a young family - I involved them in the process and that
> helped a lot.
>
> Lastly I want to thank the powers that be, my family, my essential study
> circle pals (Neil Dearman, Chamandeep Singh Gill and Mike Harries - THANKS
> GUYS!!) and all my other friends who've supported me. I also want to
> extend
> a special thanks to Brian Dennis of IE and Paul Borghese for GS.
>
> I realise I have more to learn now than when I started studying. If I can
> pass you certainly can too.
> I wish everyone on this group the very best in their study, career and
> personal lives.
>
> Pritpal Singh Sehmi (Pal)
> CCIE #16300
>
> _______________________________________________________________________
>
> Subscription information may be found at:
> http://www.groupstudy.com/list/CCIELab.html
>
>
-- Regards Pal Sehmi
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.4 : Thu Jun 01 2006 - 06:33:22 ART