How To Study For Any Cert Exam

This question has been coming up a lot recently, so here’s my guide on how to approach studying for cert tests:

My recommendations, for studying for ANY cert:

 - Read the Exam Outline.

 - Stand in front of a mirror. For each line of the Outline, give a 5-10 minute lecture, at a 5th grade (or 70 year-old) level on how that thing works. DO NOT SKIP THIS STEP. It seems goofy, but it works.

 - Highlight the lines where you CANNOT reasonably explain the subject. These are the ones you need to study. Cross out the ones you are able to deliver—you know those already. Study smart, not hard.

 - Find content on the specific portions you need help with. Repeat the lecture step when you think you’ve learned a sufficient amount.

 - Only THEN use practice questions to suss out the areas where you miss something. This is the true purpose of practice questions—not to gauge if you’ll pass, but to uncover the areas you need additional work on.

 - Restudying those portions. Repeat the mirror step.

 - Take more practice tests. When you’re hitting high 80s, low 90s, you’re ready.

 That’s it. That’s how to study and pass.