Beginning to Run
The next phase of your journey is to get a lab date in the diary and focus. To get a lab date, you must have already passed the CCIE written qualification exam. This is something that could have already been completed in advance or could be tackled after you’ve honed your skills by working through the lab scenarios. The precise timing of your lab date should be both realistic and at the same time challenging. We’ve all delayed organizing the contents of our garages just that one extra month, only to find another excuse when the time comes. Having a lab date not too far out gives you incentive to prevent your studies from going the same way as your garage.
It’s time to think about the big picture. You should be able to perform technology-focused labs without getting into too much trouble, but don’t be disturbed if you find that you need to continuously reference your notes for a reminder of a certain command or solution. Sometimes you are presented with challenges whereby there is only one road to take, one solution to a problem. Identify these areas and ensure you have the ability to recall all necessary configuration commands. Challenge yourself when you are lying in bed counting sheep; can you recall all those commands that were necessary to register an MGCP gateway? The goal behind this idea is to free up more time for troublesome areas by becoming a master of the more trivial things you are asked to perform in the lab.
Begin to perform end–to-end labs that are most probably contained in your workbook as this knits together everything that you have practiced in the preceding months. Integrating technologies together versus tackling them in isolation might pose separate challenges that you will have to deal with. Begin to formulate a strategy that works for you, bearing in mind any inter-dependencies between the various technologies. For example, you have to ensure you have a working underlying infrastructure before you move onto any of the applications and you must have a working CallManager before you tackle IPCC Express.
The name of the game is keeping your skills sharp whilst picking up speed; accuracy first, speed a close second. Eight hours will feel like eight minutes on the big day and you haven’t got time to admire the view. Don’t expect to have a perfect day in the lab since this is not going to materialize unless, of course, you don’t happen to be a part of the human race. Pay specific attention to what troubleshooting commands/techniques you found useful and how you achieved resolution. Don’t just evolve a plan that involves configuration. Create a plan for verification.
As you approach “T-minus one month,” look for any additional resources out there, some of which might be free. Join study groups, if you find that you need more human interaction. Believe me when I say that when one person explains a solution to another person, two people have an increased understanding of that solution. Attend any Virtual Lectures that training vendors like IPexpert produce. Monitor and participate in CCIE-Voice focused forums such as the “Online Study List”. The idea is to gather new ideas from other sources and build lab scenarios based on your observations.
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