Setting Goals and Creating a Study Plan

When we are trying to achieve an end goal it is important to create a focus plan to achieve that goal. For myself, achieving industry certifications in the Information Technology field are among these goals. Establish an understanding of how well versed you are in the subject matter of the topics of the goal. I am a visual learner, but some may learn better from reading material or by experimenting, if possible, with the subject.

Now that you have a goal, it is time to find out how you can review material on the subject matter. For this writing, I will use the example of my own journey of achieving the IT Certifications CompTIA A+, Network+, and Security+.

I am fortunate to be a computer hobbyist from the late 1990’s to present day. For these IT certifications, understanding subject matter certainly varied from topic to topic but some topics were easier to learn due to my foundational understanding of computers. The first stage is to know how well do you sit in the material? Or how well do you think you sit?

Once you have a general understanding of your knowledge baseline for the material, it is time to find material to study. For example, the entry level CompTIA certifications mentioned I used a video resource from Professor Messer (professormesser.com) on Youtube for each certification. This resource is very helpful for someone like myself that is primarily a visual learner. For those who learn best from reading material, I also used a series of publications called Exam Cram (Amazon.com) which is endorsed by CompTIA. I also used the CompTIA CertMaster Learn from the CompTIA website (comptia.org) for each exam.

I now had a wealth of resources to study the topics for each of these exams. But where do I start? There is just so much material and resources? You need to set a reasonable, but strict, goal or DEADLINE for yourself. If you do not meet your own goal, you are not going to offend anyone, you are only setting yourself back. How badly do you want to pass that class or gain the industry-recognized certification?

Setting deadlines creates urgency, it is the same if you are in university or a trade program. You must meet deadlines, or you fail. This stuff actually works, but if you are just trying to enhance your portfolio and are only accountable to yourself or your family, you then need to set these deadlines on yourself.

Some may find a daily, weekly or monthly goal works best for them. For me, I like to set a deadline to achieve the ultimate end goal. Trial and error, try each kind if you are unsure which is best for you. It is a biased opinion but I suggest trying set the timeline for the end goal first and then minor goals along the way.

It took me several months to achieve CompTIA Network+, whereas CompTIA A+ Core 1 and 2 took me one week each. Knowing your baseline is important. Write down your goal, some studies suggest using a traditional notepad rather than electronically. Use what works best or try both.

Are you prepared for your last step, the final exam? Do not OVERUSE practice tests, you will start to just memorize answers. If you miss a question on a practice test, review the related material to the question and understand why you missed the question.

When you think you are ready, go take that exam! Did you grant yourself a reasonable amount of time on your goal? Did you pass but miss your goal by just a few days? That is ok, you now know how strong you really are.