From: Cliff Moseley (cliffmoseley@hotmail.com)
Date: Thu May 29 2008 - 22:45:31 ART
It's my turn to talk about this long road to passing. I joined this mail list
back in 2002 in order to study for my lab. I tell you what, even though you
may not have passed your exam yet, the amount of knowledge that you are
attaining will stick with you for years. I took my test twice in the Spring
of 03 and unfortunately did not pass. I put it on the shelf for several
reasons 1) I began consulting and realized there is a ton of stuff to learn in
business and also how contracting works 2) I unfortunately had run into CCIEs
that were not helpful and struck with God complexes.
Let me harp on my past two points since some of you may not understand what I
mean. Part of becoming a CCIE is more than just passing the test, you
honestly need to have the work experience associated with it. Experiences
meaning the ability to assess an unfamiliar situation, ask the right
questions, work with others as well as educate, and the ability to even
research the situation if it is extremely complex. I ran into CCIEs that
jumped the gun and did not do these things....ASS-uming was one of the reasons
why they were unable to produce positive results along with the God complex.
A lot of these people make very bad names for themselves and wind up talked
about amongst the contracting world.....trust me, you don't want labeled as
one of the A$$hole CCIEs in this industry......you won't find a job. Luckily
I ran into those CCIEs that had the positive qualities I mentioned previously.
This inspired me to begin my studies again.
First off everything I studied for in 02 and 03 stuck with me. When I began
studying again I found myself remembering most of everything or I found myself
saying, "Oh yeah I remember that". This definitely put me ahead of the game
in regards to 'starting from scratch'. Of course I had to cover all the new
things and command changes which was mindboggling at times, but I worked
through it. The only materials I used were Cisco books and Dynamips using
InternetworkExperts Labs 1-10 and 11-20. I got to the point that there was no
reason to actually configure most of the sections b/c I had done it so much it
wouldn't have mattered. So instead I would just copy and paste, frame-relay
for example, just to minimize my time. Repetition is important and your way of
thinking is crucial. Also take a class. I took a class at ASM Educational
Center in Rockville MD with Narbik Kocharians 3CCIE. This dude knows WAY too
much and he is a hell of reference. You'll realize how much you actually know
and don't know. Make sure, and this is critical as well, that you think you
can pass the lab before you take the class. Narbik will cover tons of
information in a short period of time and its crucial that you already know
what he is talking about so you pick out the things that you may not have
heard or our not clear on. Also have your questions ready. Before my first
day I already had concerns I wanted to throw at him from all of my studying
and lab scenarios which he totally cleared up!! After that class I knew more
than enough to pass the exam.
CCIE #20908
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