Tag Archive - update

One Year Anniversary: CCIE #26721

August 16, 2011 in Blog, Featured with 3 Comments

One year ago today, I was sitting in the Cisco CCIE lab in San Jose, CA, typing away at a terminal.  It was my first attempt at the lab and, thank God, my last.  I walked out of the building in the afternoon absolutely fried and utterly nervous about the results.

The next afternoon, after having flown back to Minneapolis, I sat in my living room hitting “Refresh” on my web browser every 10 seconds.  Everything hung in the balance.  Would I pass and be done with this season of life?  Would I fail and have to go back to the lab, develop a new plan, and try again in thirty days?

Suddenly, the refresh took a bit longer…  Could it be? Continue Reading…

Checking In – Insanity Levels High

April 21, 2010 in Blog, CCIE Voice with 3 Comments

I’m checking in today. Sanity levels are low.  Insanity levels are running insanely high.

I have a new baby boy (numero dos), a hot smokin’ wife, and a daunting CCIE Voice lab less than four months away.

Being a wholehearted person has its pitfalls, one of which is that I have a hard time finding balance between my life commitments.  Outside of family time, wifey time, and the occasional Lost episode or Bible study, all my remaining time has gone into CCIE study.

I am on track to have IPexpert’s Vol1 workbook done by May 10th.  I’ve also ready the majority of material that is testable on the CCIE lab.  Now, whether I remember it all is debatable.  In fact, the picture below captures the massive tome that I have created thus far.

Perhaps one day it will be for sale, but today it is mine alone and the harbinger of my nightmares.

CCIE is love you have a love-hate relationship with you.

Preparation Update: Staying on Course

April 6, 2010 in Blog, CCIE Voice with Comments Off

Hey everyone.

It’s been nearly two months since my last update. My wife gave birth to our second son on Saturday.  It’s Tuesday and I’m back in the saddle.  I can’t afford to fall behind in my study plan.

I have been working through IPexpert’s volume one technology-focused labs.  They have been challenging, but very manageable. I have a handful of the labs left before I head out to San Jose in May for IPexpert’s one week bootcamp with Vik Mahli.  I’m super pumped about that week and pray that I will get some key insights into the exam.

June will contain the five-day mock lab experience in San Jose at IPexpert’s facility.

August 16th will be my first attempt at the CCIE Voice lab. Right now, I have a little more than 4 months (131 days, 3166 hours) to prepare.

My biggest frustration has been knowing how much I need to know. I understand that the CCIE exams are expert level exams.  I understand my job is to prove that I am an expert in voice technologies.  However, even an expert needs to refer to documentation.

I went through the CUCME System Administrator guide this morning and had to stop after a few hours.  It was overwhelming to see the number of supplementary features that could be on the exam.  I’m going to try to understand and lab the key features and rely on my familiarity with the documentation to refer to in the lab.

Until next time…