CCIE Distractions

Back when I passed my CCIE written last year I had the momentum behind me and felt that I would be able to study for and take my first attempt at the lab in only a few months.

Since then I have realised more than ever how much of a full-time commitment the lab can very quickly become.

Between work and personal commitments it soon became all to easy to just put the lab studies on the back burner for another day however we all no that tomorrow never really comes…

I’ve said it before but now more than ever I want to knuckle down and get through the studies.

A few weeks ago I took advantage of an offer over at Cisco Press that allowed me to get my CCIE reference library stocked up for less than half the price it would usually have cost which has been a big help. For those wanting to know the books that I bought on the offer were:

Routing TCP/IP Volume I, Second Edition
Routing TCP/IP Volume II
Troubleshooting IP routing protocols

I already had the first title in PDF format that I have been working through but sometimes felt that it was better to have a hard copy as well.

One other factor that I think has been holding me back is that I made the decision to go through all the INE Volume 1 labs one at a time and working my way through, for me personally this hasn’t really worked, I think mostly because you find yourself going through things time and time again that you consider very basic and that don’t really challenge you.
I realise that in the lab it’s not all going to be mind boggling challenges and that there are going to be plenty of sections that require the same mundane tasks that I am berating however at this point I think the better path for myself would be to dive into the Volume 2 labs and then come back to any Volume 1 labs that I feel I need to brush up on.

If anyone else has some other tips on how to stop yourself from getting distracted then please let me know, sometimes I wonder if I have a mild case of ADD when it comes to these things.