From: Darby Weaver (darbyweaver@yahoo.com)
Date: Tue Apr 10 2007 - 11:49:08 ART
No studying Paul just working and not much sleep.
I read when I can, but I work most of the time and
finally today I get to go home.
I had to work Saturday and even put in 6 hours on
Easter Sunday as I recall.
I think they said I would get a few days off for my
efforts when I get back in town.
And the guy who worked with me gets the same benefit.
And the facilities and security folks got paid
overtime for putting up with me.
But hey, a lot of the time, I get to do whatever I
want. I just had to meet the goals of the project and
they were unrelenting and necessary.
I imagine you have done the same
--- Paul Dardinski <pauld@marshallcomm.com> wrote:
> 82 hours billable....hrmm.
>
> Anyway, I think the original poster was concerned
> about balancing home
> life with studying/work. I'm not so sure that if you
> are
> working/billing/studying all that time(82hrs +
> studying....wow) that
> there could be a whole lot of balance indeed. The
> guy is having a child,
> so that's going to be an overwhelmingly difficult
> thing to balance
> out......
>
> Just my $0.02
>
> PD (#16842)
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nobody@groupstudy.com
> [mailto:nobody@groupstudy.com] On Behalf Of
> Darby Weaver
> Sent: Tuesday, April 10, 2007 9:18 AM
> To: Hoogen
> Cc: Narbik Kocharians; James Russell;
> ccielab@groupstudy.com
> Subject: Re: OT: Feeling overwhelmed
>
> Hoogen,
>
> I actually wrote James offline with what I really
> thought about the matter.
>
> This was more of a joke.
>
> As much as some may think I spend or obsess on the
> matter - the truth is I'm a workaholic and not quite
> as much of a studyaholic as I may seem to some.
>
> Work comes first and I do spend time with my wife
> when
> I'm at home too.
>
> I don't get as much time on my own racks actually.
>
> I actually do use my training budget to get
> concentrated study time and I try to maimize it.
>
> I'm paid well and the companies I choose to work for
> also pay for training. It allows me to get a little
> ahead in my studies a few times a year.
>
> As much as I'd like to pass the lab, I really enjoy
> the work and that is actually what I spend my time
> doing - literally 24/7.
>
> I clocked 82 billable hours last week.
>
> ====================================
>
> Here's what I spent my time on just over the past
> two
> weeks alone. I'm copying from another email:
>
> People are forgetting why they are taking the lab.
>
> To actually do the work.
>
> I just spent the last 2.5 weeks upgrading an entire
> network that supports over 10,000 users.
>
> PIX Firewall Analysis and Remediation to meet NIST
> guidelines + FOS upgrade.
>
> CatOS to IOS conversion.
>
> ATM to (Metro Ethernet) SES Circuit Cutover complete
> with BGP.
>
> SSH for Secure Communications and SSH/RMON for NMS
> Alerts.
>
> KIWI for backup, alerting, and syslogging.
>
> Centralized RADIUS Authentication.
>
> SPT Enhancements.
>
> Multicast Configuration and a bit of QoS.
>
> Packeteer Pwd Recovery, Upgrade License, setting up
> Partitions and Classes for improved traffic
> management, etc.
>
> And all the troubleshooting when things go bad. Yep
> fat fingers and late sleepless nights don't work
> well
> together. Never ever take shortcuts.
>
> Had to make one call to TAC on the conversion about
> the 0x2102 config-register and proper usage of -
> timing is everything. There were other
> considerarions
> and I had found about 4 different documents on CCO
> and
> I scoured the web for caveats as well. Not well
> enough - one problem costed me problems and took
> about
> a 2-3 hour process and turned it into a 10-12 hour
> process.
>
> Had to use XMODEM for the first time.
>
> Had a few typos that cost me some time - even when I
> used copy and paste - no good if you copy/paste the
> wrong things.
>
> 82 hours last week alone and one can make mistakes
> sometimes.
>
> Change Management, Disaster Recovery Scenarios, and
> Lots of Contracts and even a bit of Purchasing.
>
> ===================================
>
> So overall Hoogen, while I find the list
> entertaining
> and it I do find the CCIE prestigious.
>
> For me, the CCIE is simply another cert and I have
> an
> entire hallway littered with my other certs - so not
> as big a deal. As long as I can do the work, Im
> content. That is my goal.
>
> I know it is marketable an even its very pursuit has
> helped me tremendously in the market and with
> marketability. I'm not in denial one bit - I know
> my
> marketability will increase a bit more after I get
> the
> CCIE finally. So it is on the list.
>
> But believe me, I love the work and whatever
> materials
> I buy or classes I try to send myself to, it is
> really
> just to learn more tips, tricks, and techniques.
>
> The lab will come eventually for me - it is a given.
>
> I'm actually not even in a rush on the matter - I
> enjoy the chase more than the kill - it is my
> nature.
>
> If I worried more about it as much as some may think
> I
> am, trust me, I have the mental capacity, I would
> have
> it by now.
>
> I also have other priorities. And I have very
> specific objectives. I am meeting them exactly as I
> need to.
>
> But not to say that I don't have the need for the
> CCIE
> or specific plans for it in my long-term goals. It
> is
> in there, too.
>
> Sorry for long response...
>
> Oh yes, and I still take the time on week nights and
> weekends to enjoy my time with my wife and our
> doggies
> (the children) - not as much of a one-minded machine
> as I may have lead you to believe.
>
> I assure you if I were that one-minded, then I'd be
> finished this quest and have forgotten most of it by
> now in pursuit of other things - like tracking
> Hackers
> and doing Forensics, Recovering Data and Hard
> Drives,
> and Incident Response - other tasks I wholeheartedly
> enjoy that I have put to the side while I "pursue"
> the
> CCIE tracks and other Cisco Certs.
>
> Some want to pass the lab, I merely want to know the
> technology better. Not so much to ask for really.
>
> I actually enjoy other Cisco Consultants coming
> along
> with me or after me and asking weird things about a
> given config and actually being able to answer the
> questions correctly and draw the proper conclusions
> from a given network. It is kind of like Forensics
> to
> me.
>
>
> So...
>
> Beat and bang on me all you like - you should
> instead
> ask questions if you were wise - you might be
> surprised at my resourcefulness and wit for solving
> problems and coming to conclusions and ultimately
> saving the day (at least in my little corner of the
> world).
>
> I may be a fool for writing too much and doing what
> I
> love - but I have better things to do than to write
> critical letters to other people - some here seem to
> enjoy flaming others more than sharing knowledge.
> Why
> is that anyway?
>
> And by the way, giving any experiences and
> especially
> detailed from any paid training or materials ought
> to
> be a good thing - SO YOU KNOW.
>
> I really wish others had been more verbose before I
> spent money on some things - I may still have
> bought,
> but I'd like to KNOW.
>
> Is it so wrong to write about Cisco Training
> Experiences on a Cisco Study List? Hmmm...
> Granted I do write a bit more than others. I guess
> it
> is my leisure.
>
> But Hoogen, if you saw how many requests for this
> info
> I get from this list and off-list, you might be a
> bit
> more thoughful.
>
> I also get tired of explaining to the lurkers that
> some people are not total jerks for being so
> publicly
> critical of others. But some on this list have
> nothing else to offer but flames. So be it.
>
> As many here know, I handle questions online and
> offline, in-person, via telephone, and email and so
> what you see on this list is really only a small
> fraction of what I do and am doing for others.
>
> Sorry my long-ish posts bore you, but you can filter
> by my name and email if you like. I assure you
> there
> are others who like to know how to go about training
> themselves and being either more educated about the
> various offerings available or simply how to conduct
> self-paced training.
>
> I actually started asking some serious CCIE
> questions
> for the group - lab type questions and of the
> 10,000+
> engineers on the list only a handful started to
> answer
> them - even privately.
>
> Today there are more people who take stabs at my
> questions and actually try to learn from them.
>
> So a poll - if you will - should I post my own study
> notes and observations of what it takes to pass the
> lab and handle each technology effectively.
>
> I have amassed quite a few considerations, and while
> they may pale in comparison to people who do this
> professionally, they are quite a few tips and tricks
> and many some people here on this list may have
> never
> even heard before.
>
> How many people here script thier base installs?
>
> How many people here script the final configuration
> of
> their labs so they can compare the results with even
> a
> diff file if nothing more automated?
>
> How many people here have compiled study notes on a
> per topic basis with references on a per-technology
> basis?
>
> How many people here have been at this long enough
> to
> consider even doing such options?
>
> Now there are a ton of CCIE's and near CCIE's and
> yep
> mostly every instructor or vendor on this list, but
> what about the little guys, the guys who are trying
> to
> get this stuff, but do not know how or simply do not
> have the means.
>
> We who have been around a while might find this odd,
> and some may take a cavalier attitude towards the
> others who have not yet walked their own steps yet,
> but others are offering other things that are close
> if
> not the real lab - why not offer the knowledge it
> takes to meet the lab on a study group?
>
> This list has been here for 9 years and for 9 years
> no
> one candidate or group of candidates have used it to
> tackle a single subject completely at once so that
> all
> may benefit. Some have tried a bit here and their
> and
> if one scours the archives, the answers are mostly
> their somewhere, but not one person has tried to be
> this methodical?
>
> Is it needed or even wanted?
>
> Instead we choose one-off questions. And some
> questions which should be FAQ perhaps.
>
> Think about it.
>
> No one says you have to read it.
>
> I promise you I am not sitting back be more worried
> if
> you do or do not read my posts.
>
> I'm more concerned about those who actually have a
> question I may actually be answering.
>
> :)
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> --- Hoogen <hoogen82@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> > Darby,
> >
> > With all due respect to the effort you are putting
> > in, take a break. You are
> > completely driving everyone crazy with the novels
> > that you write, or the
> > praises that you heap on your HU or whoever, or
> the
> > amount you spend on your
> > training to get yourself trained. HU himself would
> > have had only a doc cd to
> > train with and wouldn't have spent the amount you
> > seem to be spending on
> > bootcamps listening to IE working on IPexpert.
> This
> > is Crazy spending on
> > training.
> >
> > You don't have to quit your job, divorce your wife
> > or empty your bank
> > accounts to get that number. Life is important,
> > number isn't. CCIE doesn't
> > mean you are the Master of a technology, you keep
> > learning everday slowly
> > but steadily and achieve your goals while you
> > support your family. That way
> > you gain more joy it attaining the number and not
> by
> > dumping your wife and
> > getting the number it isn't really worth.
> >
> > James,
> >
> > James good luck for your Lab. Hope you do clear it
> > first time. Enjoy your
> > time don't take so much stress. My family was the
> > most important factor for
> > me in getting my number. And take your time, you
> got
> > to learn things
> > everyday, you don't stop learning after you get
> your
> > number neither is a
> > fact that you won't get stressed up after that
> > number, the work pressure
> > doubles up after you do get your number.
> >
> > -Hoogen
> >
> >
>
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.4 : Tue May 01 2007 - 08:28:35 ART