Hi Shiv, thanks for letting me share my PMP test lessons with PMP aspirants. The PMP lessons learned from your site were great guide for me to prepare for my PMP exam.
Initial preparation
My journey to get this prestigious credential started as early as November of 2014.
However, due to various personal and professional commitment I could not devote quality time to prepare myself for the exam. I first attempted PMP test in the month of April 2015 and I failed it. It was evident to me that I was under-prepared. I could not take many of mock PMP tests and this contributed heavily towards my result.
Soon I joined a new company in a new role that certainly increased my responsibilities as well. So I had the renewed resolve to get my PMP credential.
Also Read: My 7-Step Simple PMP Test Prep Plan, by Rakesh Dharmani, PMP
The final push
It is only in October that I realized that the PMP test eligibility expiry date is not too far and I need to think about it. And then started my real preparation. Sometimes having some kind of deadline helps you focus on the task and get it done. In a way I’m thankful that I had this time restriction to get the certification done. It helped me take necessary action.
Also read: How Alan Lin simplified his PMP prep by treating it as a Project!
My PMP test preparation
I read PMBOK once when I prepared for my exam in the month of April. Rita’s book was the supporting material I had gone through.
I think that my experience has really proven why going through lessons learnt by others is so important.
Looking at the experience of other PMP students I could see where I needed to improve and understand how to tweak my strategy. I wanted to make sure I won’t fail to integrate my all the factors important for successful PMP exam into my prep plan.
While preparing for my second attempt at PMP test I did not again get time to go through PMBOK but this time I depended on Head First PMP heavily.
Trust me this one of the amazing PMP materials available out there and it is worth investing in this book. Reading through HeadFirst book was more like going through an interactive session. I could visualize all the parts and the processes, ITTOs etc explained in the book very vividly, which helped a lot during the exam.
This time I extensively practiced mock PMP tests to master the art of time management, at which I was very inefficient during my first attempt of PMP exam. I tried the 7-day free trial of Cornelius’ PMP Simulator and Oliver Lehman’s mock PMP test. Also, the exam simulation offered by Simplilearn (since I earned my contact hours through them), Edwel’s mock test and all the questions listed in Rita, and Headfirst.
I did not memorize any ITTOs, rather I got a better clarity how logically the inputs, outputs and tools & techniques interact. I understood the logic of the formula and why and when I need to apply them.
Shiv’s reference material from PMESN was a boon for me since I have a very busy schedule. For 2 months I studied everyday at least two hours no matter what professional or personal commitment I had.
The Exam day!
Finally came my exam day. I reached Prometric’s test center 1 hour earlier. Since test slots were available they asked me if I wanted to start early, and I agreed. Throughout the exam I kept one thing in mind – the time constraint, and this made me nervous.
I finished barely ten minutes before the time and had a quick review of the questions that I was a bit apprehensive about.
Finally the exam and the survey ended. I held my breath and prayed as the screen was fetching the result. I could remember I almost shouted with excitement, “Yaaay I am a PMP!” when I saw the screen with the congratulatory note. The proctor then came running to me trying to get me calm down. :-).
I passed just a day before my exam eligibility expired!
Also read: How Bich Phuong Dang got a mentor and passed her PMP test.
Finally,
I wish all the best to the PMP aspirants. Please stay focused and go for it. Trust me, all hard work seems worth when you finally get this much coveted credential. I realized it when my CEO came to congratulate me upon hearing about my achievement.
I am happy being the first PMP of the project managers’ team in my organization. With this I was able to motivate other 3 managers to plan for their PMP credential.
All the best,
Debistuti Banerjea, PMP
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