From: CCIEin2006 (ciscocciein2006@gmail.com)
Date: Tue May 30 2006 - 11:21:26 ART
Congratulations on your great acheivment!
Its interesting to hear you left your job because I know a few people who
passed the lab after being laid off from their job. Until they got laid off
they never had time to study.
I think there is something to be said for studying for short, intense bursts
and then taking the exam versus long marathon studies.
I've been studying for a year now and some things I learned 6 months ago
that I haven't used have already faded from memory...
On 5/30/06, Pal <palsehmi@googlemail.com> wrote:
>
> 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
>
> _______________________________________________________________________
> Subscription information may be found at:
> http://www.groupstudy.com/list/CCIELab.html
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