How to Become a Successful CCIE?

Many CCIE aspirants remain confused about dos and don’ts that must be followed by them in order to successfully clear their CCIE Lab exam and achieve the tag of being world’s most demanded and prestigious IT professional, a CCIE. Students spend hours of their precious time managing their schedule for theoretical and lab sessions. They forget to realize that there is more to CCIE certification than just acquiring training for written and lab exam. Following points must be kept in mind while going for a CCIE certification in any of the track available:

1. Self-actualization

As the word signifies, releasing one’s ability to pursue a particular thing or realization of one’s maximum potentiality. Similarly one first needs to decide that he/she actually wants to become a CCIE certified engineer or not? Next ask yourself “Do you possess the capability and patience required to prepare for CCIE written and lab exam?”, “Are you financially prepared to bear the brunt caused due to the expensive nature of CCIE written and lab exams and its fees?” Once you are able to answer questions like this including several others, you then are fully prepared to take the CCIE training seriously.

CCIE as a track is tough and requires utmost dedication on aspirant’s part in terms of proper dedication while practicing in labs for long hours, no social life as you cut yourself from the entire world and just focus on your CCIE training and nothing else for many months to come.Despite being expensive due to its fees being high one needs to not only invest in a good training resource but also requires to invest in apt and great books for self-study, home labs (if preparing on your own and not in an institute) and many other reliable yet expensive materials. Self-actualization plays a significant role in determining your potential and zeal of becoming a CCIE certified professional/expert. It is always recommended to go through blueprint of the relative CCIE track before taking up the course in any training institute or before you start preparing on your own. Blueprint of the relative track will tell you about the detailed topic coverage in syllabi of CCIE track chosen or taken. The written and lab topics along with weightage of which they appear in exam will allow you to decide how to start preparing for your exam and how to make a future plan for the same. It will also tell you the areas you know and require only brushing up along with highlighting the areas you need to focus on (topics which are new to you) from day one of your training.

Also to note that individuals who have 3-5 years of experience of working with Cisco products and technologies will know 50-70% of the syllabus beforehand, leaving you to prepare just for the remaining 50-30% of the syllabus.  Freshers on the other hand can also achieve the tag of being a CCIE with proper dedication, hard work and training. Self-actualization plays a major role in your journey to become a CCIE. This is the very first step to be taken while preparing for CCIE Lab exam.

 2. Lower Level Certifications – Your Savior

Experts always recommend to go for lower level certifications if one aspires becoming CCIE certified professional that is Associate -> Professional -> Expert. Say if you wish to achieve CCIE Routing & Switching certification then you must first go for CCNA R&S (Cisco Certified Network Associate), then CCNP (Cisco certified Network Professional) and then take up CCIE R&S for CCNA will make you familiar with the basics of routing and switching technologies including troubleshooting whereas CCNP will give you more detailed insights about the R&S technologies preparing your base strong for CCIE level certification.

These lower level certifications will offer major benefits as learning in detail about track technologies one at a time, starting from lower to medium to high level gives major boost to your knowledge and expert skills altogether.

 3. Lab Practice

No matter how much you study if you do not practice enough then knowledge gained remains good for nothing. CCIE aspirants’ are expected to have in depth theoretical and practical knowledge of the relative track’s technologies and for this one must always join an institute which offers or provides 24x7 lab access to its patrons for unlimited practice on Cisco devices. This will enable CCIE candidates to implement the technologies learnt while understanding actual working of networking scenarios that occur as you work in topmost companies of India and abroad.

Another option can be setting up of a home lab if you don’t possess the amount of time required to join an institute which offers 24x7 lab access. Home labs can be built either by purchasing few devices or even renting them out according to one’s need and financial condition. With this you have the much required access to labs and can practice at your own convenience and schedule as you get all the control to test variants for existing IOS commands. Home lab is a good option with minimum of 6 routers and 4 switches if individuals are preparing or wanting to prepare for CCIE. One major factor which needs attention here is that getting enrolled in an institute or setting up of a home lab will not have major difference in the cost to be paid for getting the training or purchasing/renting the devices and paying their bills on monthly basis.

Candidate should have in-depth knowledge of CCNA + CCNP if they wish to go for CCIE level certifications. What we want to emphasize here is that being certified is not important or mandatory. What matters at end of the day is knowledge you possess about a relative track and its technologies. Giving exams for CCNA or CCNP is not necessary, what’s required is apt knowledge and exposure which comes through genuine training and real mentorship. So always lay stress on acquiring knowledge rather than obtaining mere paper certificates (certifications) because all that matters is continuous Lab practice and sincerity required for you clearing your CCIE Lab exam in first attempt.

 4. Clearing the Lab exam is a win!!

Aspirants must clear the relative Lab exam before achieving the tag of an active CCIE. Based on experience and research clearing a written exam for any CCIE track means nothing until and unless candidate has cleared the lab exam successfully. This is because the topics covered in written and lab part of each CCIE track differ completely from one other. Clearing the written exam is only a prerequisite which must be cleared in order to become eligible for taking the CCIE Lab exam. It serves only as a precondition which upon successful fulfillment allows the candidate to be able to register for lab exam.

So pass the written exam only to be able to register and sit for the CCIE Lab exam!! There are several locations worldwide where students can appear for CCIE Lab exams. There are 5 seats of CCIE R&S Lab exam available in Bangalore, India whereas students post completion of their CCIE Security training might have to fly over to other countries other than India as there’s only 1 seat for CCIE Security V4 Lab exam in India.

5. Speed Matters!!

Your speed while taking the Lab exam matters a lot. It can make or break your career at once. It’s important to be familiar with each and every technology listed in blueprint of the respective CCIE track. Pick up each and every technology, learn about how’s and whys of it, one at a time slowly yet steadily. Make sure that before you move or jump onto another technology/topic you become well versed with previously taken up thing. There might be situations where one gets stuck in certain lab scenarios, in spite of leaving them and jumping onto another, sit and solve your problems one by one because if you leave your problem unattended or jump to some other scenario such actions might cause serious repercussions for you on the day you take your CCIE Lab exam. Your typing speed will decide how much time you spend on each trouble ticket o task during you CCIE lab exam. To be on safe side practice so hard during your training period that you complete the 8 hours lab exam in 6 hours and then spend rest of your time verifying your solutions. This will make sure that you pass the lab exam without any fail. Many students fail not because they don’t have knowledge but because they lack speed, and it all depends on number of hours you spend each day in your lab. There’s a famous saying, “a warrior who sweats more in practice bleeds less in war”. This saying is directly applicable to all CCIE R&S, CCIE Security, Collaboration and other CCIE tracks.

Once you become familiar with scenarios and flow of the lab, try and increase your speed which will benefit you during your actual lab exam. If you are fast while solving problems of your lab during the exam then no one can stop you from becoming a CCIE lab certified professional.

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 6. Being Presentable

Having knowledge about technicalities of course is a great thing but not being able to put across your knowledge so as in order to showcase your employer that you got skills they require is a big turn off as companies search for skilled networking professionals who can manage their networks extremely well. Representation of your hard learned knowledge becomes a necessity as companies seek for individuals who can not only showcase their talent practically but can also depict themselves as a valuable asset for the company simultaneously. Network Bulls offers presentation skills classes along with CCIE course training in Gurgaon because we believe that presentation of one’s knowledge has a huge impact on his/her career.

 7. Technical expert

CCIEs above all must possess sharp technical skills in order to distinguish themselves from the crowd of uncountable. Knowing in depth about your chosen CCIE track becomes a prerequisite as it forms basis of your employment, wherever you get a job or in whichever company you acquire it. If a person is not technically sound then he/she is of no use to the company. For gaining deep knowledge of the course experts always recommend to read as many as books possible as it will give aspirants broader insight to varied differences/opinions on same technologies stated by different authors.

 8. Impressive Communication Skills

Companies hiring CCIE experts not only want technically sound individuals but also require people who can represent their company globally. People with an active CCIE certification plus good communication skills add numerous positive points to company’s benefit. Such candidates are always preferred over candidates with not so impressive communication skills and profile. Tracks like CCIE Voice/Collaboration requires individuals to speak or directly manage company’s VoIP process with various people at different geographical locations worldwide. CCIE Voice/Collaboration is all about strong technical and communication skills, all in one package.

Communication skills can be improved and developed by participating in various group discussion activities which will enable individuals to speak their mind using power of words and sentences putting across their views as an expression or argument via their speech rather than actions.

 9. Learning together is fun!!

Think of CCIE as a battle which can’t be won alone. Search for CCIE groups or forums online where you can get an opportunity to meet other CCIE aspirants and individuals who have already done CCIE and now are successfully working with elite technocrats of the world. One can get to learn lot of things while discussing about technical topics in such forums.

Archives of such forums serve as an important tool for individuals who have recently joined these kinds of forums as they help them in gaining knowledge or useful information from the topics discussed in past. One major plus point of joining CCIE discussion groups is that you get to know about your weak points and whenever you get stuck at certain lab scenarios, you have people to solve you confusion and suggest you the best possible solution to that particular problem.

10. Ask Questions

An important aspect while learning is to ask questions. If you get confused about certain topics during your course of study, be bold enough to come up and ask questions clearing your doubts about the topic(s). Make sure that you put across your query in an understandable manner so that the person answering your problems knows the exact solution to questions quoted. This way you will be able to clear you fundamentals including high end concepts easily making a strong base for yourself leading towards being an ultimate successful CCIE.

Always remember to be a knowledgeable CCIE rather than being just a CCIE!!

Be a CCIE with difference. :)