Re: Passed CCIE R/S

Congratulations on your achievement!

On Mon, Oct 29, 2012 at 8:40 PM, Jose Jara <jjarafiz_at_gmail.com> wrote:
> Hi mates,
>
> I passed the CCIE R/S lab the past week and I would like to share with you
> a bit of my journey, and hopefully it will help or motivate others to pass.
>
> My journey started at the end of 2010 when I was working in another country
> doing network support ( Czech Republic and I'm spanish) for AT&T. My
> approach was to start with more theory but not 100%, so more like 80 or 90%
> and some mini-labs to understand the technologies. After 2 months I was a
> bit tired and the reason was that I was not very motivated in that job, so
> I decided to move again to Spain and concentrate on CCIE. Back to Spain in
> january 2011 without a job but highly motivated with the idea of the big
> thing (CCIE), I decided to go to a bootcamp and I chose Narbik's Bootcamp.
> During 3 months I studied full time and I improved a lot, with a bit of
> luck I got a job at Telefonica for Network Design. My first day at job was
> the first time I met a CCIE (my boss). Now, I laugh but at that time was a
> bit scared to talk to a personality like a CCIE :)
>
> - Bootcamp: Regarding the bootcamp I was going to attend, unfortunately was
> cancelled. However, Narbik offered me a discount to attend it in Herndon
> (april 2011) and I went there. The bootcamp was superb and I met there Paul
> Borguese (really nice guy) and other members of GS like Darby Weaver and
> Andrew Lissitz, cool guys. We did two Mock Labs of CCIE360 and I scored 75%
> in the first one, surprise for me as it was easier than I thought and
> around 50% in the second one. The most important thing I learned in this
> bootcamp was not from the protocols/technology standpoint, was more about
> how to learn/attack a technology. I learned with Narbik to "divide and
> conquer", be very specific, and that what separates a CCIE from a
> beginner/intermmediate engineer is that a CCIE knows how the protocols work
> and can give/manipulate the protocols to achieve a desired behaviour. Also,
> I broke mental barriers talking to another guys and seeing that the expert
> level is doable with hard work.
>
> I changed my plan, and my program now was more relaxed putting more effort
> on understanding and to master the core topics (one by one). The summer of
> 2011 was intense as I did some migrations windows for a big customer during
> weekends but I continued my plan. I was working with another CCIE and it
> helped me as I was comparing myself with her, I saw how I was reaching the
> level. I covered the core topics by october-november 2011 and I thought
> that a good idea would be to do the bootcamp again.
>
> - 2nd Bootcamp: I attended the second bootcamp in november 2011, in Milton
> Keynes. BTW, the retake is for free. I enjoyed a lot this bootcamp as I was
> much better prepared. I remember the OSPF Filtering part as one of the most
> interesting. OSPF is a protocol that I love and I became an addict of OSPF
> filtering from that day. However, I saw that still I have to cover the
> security/IP Services part and, after that, go for troubleshooting before my
> first Lab
>
> Initially in my plan, the idea was to go for my first attempt at the end of
> 2011, even though I had to pass the written first. Finally it was delayed
> as, fortunately, I got a new contract directly with Telefonica. So, I got a
> bit relaxed for 1-2 months but I was back on track on january 2012. Now,
> the idea was to study the parts of the blueprint that I have not covered
> yet and attack the written, then, do tshoot labs and go for the lab. I
> passed the written on feb 2012 and schedule my lab on July 2012. Until july
> 2012 the plan was to focus on weaknesses, and the last weeks to do the
> tshoot workbook of Narbik.
>
> Also, one month before I subscribed to INE ALL-Access-Pass for One month.
> Brian Dennis videos are my favourites from INE. Some posts of Lapukhov in
> the blog are also superb. It is one thing that I recommend, to include more
> than 1 vendor, but be careful as you can get confuse.
>
> - 1st attempt: I did my first attempt on july 2012. I remember that I was
> damn nervous, just too much. The exam was a big disaster and I could not
> think properly. I could resolve just 8 tickets out of 10 and before the
> config part I was sure that I have failed. The config part was very tricky.
> However, the result was not than bad: PASSED TSHOOT, FAILED CONFIG.
>
> After the first fail, I focused on weaknesses and the plan was to give
> another try in september, as during the summer I had to work less hours.
>
> - 2nd attempt: went to the lab again in september. I started very well and
> I have resolved 8 tickets in 1 hour 20 min. They looked very easy. I got a
> bit relaxed and it took me some time to resolve another one and I did not
> have time to resolve the last one ( my fault...). The config part was not
> so bad and finally I had doubts in 2-3 questions and overall I thought I
> passed. However the result was FAILED :( I just missed 2 tickets and failed
> with 73 % in tshoot and passed the config. As I thought that I resolved 9
> tickets I went for a reread but unsuccessful :( I thought that I would
> never pass the exam. I said to myself that I was going to give another try
> in 1 month and if I fail again, I will take a big rest of at least 6
> months.
>
> - 3rd attempt: 22th october. I was a bit more tense than in my second but
> ok. It was a bit better to have some pressure as in the previous attempt I
> was confident in the tshoot part that I was going to pass and finally
> failed. This time I resolved all the tickets and I had 10 minutes for
> verification. The config part was ok too and I verified everything lot of
> times. I thought that I was going to pass but, after the experience in my
> 2nd, who knows!! but finally PASSED!!
>
> I think that one thing that it has helped me a lot is to divide the
> technologies one by one and to focus in one aspect. Then, increase the
> complexity and think "What If I change this...." In that way, you may end
> up creating your own labs which I think it is definitely better to follow a
> rigid structure of XYZ labs. I would like to do an analogy with something
> that I know much better than this : weightlifting. I have 18 years of
> experience and have competed in powerlifting/other sports.
>
> When you train for a powerlifting contest, your goal is to increase the
> total weight lifted in one competition. The lifts are the squat, bench
> press and deadlift. You make a plan of 12/16 weeks, trying to peak at the
> contest with max lifts. In your plan, you train the lifts by separate in
> different days and you add special exercises to focus on your weaknesses to
> improve your lifts. Also, as the date of the contest is near you increase
> the intensity but the volume goes down.
>
> In my opinion, the preparation for a CCIE should be similar. Focus on your
> weaknesses, dividing the technologies, as the exam is near work more on
> accuracy and have some rest. I think that sometimes we overcomplicate
> things and rely more rigid on plans/structures etc... than thinking and
> understanding. That was one of my faults during the initial part of my
> preparation.
>
> Hope this helps, Good luck to everyone :)
>
> Jose Jara.
> CCIE #37132
>
>
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-- 
Regards,
Joe Astorino
CCIE #24347
http://astorinonetworks.com
"He not busy being born is busy dying" - Dylan
Blogs and organic groups at http://www.ccie.net