How to become a CCIE

February 10, 2006

I have just completed writing down an article ‘How to become a CCIE: Cracking CCIE Security Labs’ and I have sent it to various study forum.

In summary, there are only 12 easy steps to become a CCIE:

1. Start with the self-assessment, check the CCIE Security lab blueprint and verify your current skill level
2. Use other certification as steeping stone, for CCIE Security I recommend to take CCSP and CCIP, not CCNP
3. Build your home lab, with several routers and 1 PIX firewall at minimum
4. Passing written exam doesn’t mean anything, so just pass it with any way and register for your lab
5. Read a lot, no single source can make you pass CCIE lab, so you must spend lots of time with Cisco website, RFCs, Networkers, Ciscopress books, study forum, CCIE workbooks and any related links on the Internet.
6. Build your speed: practice, practice, practice. Keep repeating the same thing until your fingers, not only your brain, memorize how to configure Cisco security technology.
7. Join the community, you can’t fight this battle alone. Create small study group.
8. Learn how to ask, to the study forum and during the real lab to the proctors.
9. Understand the Lab questions, you need to know what Cisco expects from your answer.
10. Trust no one, trust no solution: You should not trust any of your resources (books, Cisco website, workbooks etc) until you prove it by yourself in your lab.
11. It’s all in your mind, CCIE is completely a mind game. You will pass if you believe that you can pass.
12. The journey must be fun. It is only an exam even it’s really hard and you will not have social life at all during the journey, but at least you should enjoy it.

Hopefully this will help all CCIE candidates to prepare for the exam
Read the complete How-to here.

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5 Comments »

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  1. hehe gratz for ur double CCIE
    may i follow ur path ^^ , ur blog here always courage me even i’m not even CCNA but i’m curently work at cisco partner. i’m interested on security and CCIE Security is my first Goal…
    Good luck yah !
    God Bless U !

    Comment by Miraz — February 11, 2006 @ 12:32 pm

  2. btw, ccna dulu atau cissp dulu sih?
    *minta pendapat*

    ps: kemaren udah imel ttg hal ini, gua minta sarannya ya…

    Comment by Azil Adi Permana — February 14, 2006 @ 3:54 am

  3. Hi, i really like your kind of writing and i apreciate your informations about CCIE certification. I’ currently on the way to CCNP certification. I have a very solid background about Linux und Windows, about 10 years of experience. I’m LPI Level 1 and 2 certified and also an MCSE for 2000 and 2003. I have worked with different Firewalls like Symantec Raptor, Checkpoint FW1, iptables. But i think i will not go for the CCIE Security, because i think the study materials a better for the CCIE R&S and for me i seems like a more solid and wider qualification as a cisco engineer. That’s what came out for me, reading things about the certification path regarding cisco. Nevertheless i read that a part for the CCIE security is a good knowledge of Linux/Windows.

    Comment by Fu — April 14, 2006 @ 9:41 am

  4. om ceritanya pake bahasa indonesia donk biar ngerti
    sekalian om kalo bisa kirim ke email donk cerita tentang masa depan orang yang ndah menyelesaikan cisco
    gi ngambilnih
    ke belakang nya kok makin terasa berat yak

    Comment by abu — May 16, 2007 @ 4:02 pm

  5. Your Written is very wonderful. In cisco Certification i have completed CCNP and VOIP. Now intented to go for CCIE your article give me very imprtant basic point i hope it will help me to Clear CCIE exam.

    Comment by Naveedahmed — November 29, 2008 @ 4:53 pm

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