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Wednesday, December 3, 2008
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The No. 6 reason smart IT professionals fail certification exams: Second Guessing Themselves

 

Continuing on my theme that we can "make our own luck" to a certain extent, I want to touch on one of my main weaknesses when it comes to taking any type of standardized test including Microsoft exams. I am a big victim of second guessing. I look at a question, I get a gut instinct answer and I should be happy. I'm not. I look at it. I read more into it. I assume that they might have meant something different than I originally thought.

Thankfully, I don't do that anymore. I am constantly fighting those urges though. I think it is human nature to be unsure of what we think we know. Even the most confident among us will sometimes wonder if they are doing the right thing. When you are dealing with an exam that you may have all kinds of preconceptions built up in your head, well it is easy to see how they could "get you".

So how do I fight these urges? It is simple. If you read my post on time management, you saw that I tend to go through each exam twice (as best I can) so that I can answer the ones that I think are easier first. Well, rule number one, unless I see something in the exam further on, that shows me that I am ABSOLUTELY wrong with an answer, I will not look at those again under any circumstances.

With the other questions, I do almost the same thing. I go back to the ones I have marked, answer them as best as I can and just move one without looking back. It seems like a dumb suggestion. I am sure that a lot of people think this is obvious.  Well, if you feel that way, I am not talking to you (just kidding, I am talking to everyone, it's just that sometimes what I say doesn't help you). For those of us who are constant second guessers, leave the second guessing at the door to the exam room. It will save you a lot of grief.

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