I am starting my studies for my CCNA, any advice?

The best advice I have for you…find a way to fall in love with the technology that spans a vast ocean of information, connecting everyone together. A quick summation of a few things I have picked up along the way:

As you start down this road with a focused goal of earning your Cisco certification I highly recommend reading James Clear ’s book, Atomic Habits, https://www.amazon.com/Atomic-Habits-James-Clear-audiobook/dp/B07RFSSYBH/ref=sr_1_1?crid=16XAGC7O3FOHX&keywords=james+clear+atomic+habits+book&qid=1661990572&sprefix=james+clear%2Caps%2C106&sr=8-1.

Every day spend a little time learning something new in the field. Cramming the material, or test dumps, are for suckers that aren’t going to get anywhere in life! ?? (Highly recommend watching Professor Brian Harvey on why not to cheat, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMloyp6NI4E&list=WL&index=1)

As with any certification focus your studies on the Exam Topics, taking note of the action verbs (explain, describe, configure, verify…). If you understand these topics by the time you sit for the exam, you should be well prepared to pass: https://learningnetwork.cisco.com/s/ccna-exam-topics?ccid=ccna&dtid=website&oid=cdc-ccna-exam

See it, do it, teach it…

1. find someone who can show you how a particular technology is implemented, a few good places to start:

• take David Bombal ’s Udemy course, The Complete Networking Fundamentals Course, https://www.udemy.com/course/complete-networking-fundamentals-course-ccna-start/, one set price to own the course.
• watch the free youtube course by Jeremy’s IT Lab, https://www.youtube.com/c/JeremysITLab. I haven’t watched it but I hear good things.
• watch the CCNA playlist on CBTnuggets, https://www.cbtnuggets.com, I grew up on Jeremy Cioara ’s original course, the OG godfather of short 5-10 minute topic-based CCNA video trainings. Highly recommend anything Jeremy has out there and all of the CBTnuggets catalog of updated training, offered through a monthly subscription.
• read Wendell Odom ’s CCNA 200-301 Official Cert Guide (OCG), https://www.amazon.com/CCNA-200-301-Official-Guide-Library/dp/1587147149/ref=sr_1_5?crid=Q5IUAAL6KFNG&keywords=ccna&qid=1661985335&sprefix=ccna%2Caps%2C252&sr=8-5
• For extra credit and advanced studies, read the Requests For Comments (RFCs, rfc-editor, https://www.rfc-editor.org) the standards’ track that undergirds the internet, published by the Internet Engineering Task Force ( IETF ).

2. go build a lab. Challenge yourself to work through all the different variables and possibilities (so you know you really understand it),?

• packet tracer, like you will use with Bombal’s course is a great place to start your journey, consider the following options, but only once you have finished this course…
• virtualization, there are many other options out there like GNS3, EVE-NG, etc that you can get into in order to overcome the limitations of packet tracer, getting closer to the Command Line Interface (CLI) of the switches you will work with in production.
• hardware, there's the age old question of the need for hardware as a network student. I can’t explain it better than to say there is something about following the path of the packet through your lab network—tracing cabling and running the appropriate “show” commands that is invaluable to your studies. If you do not have access to devices that you can configure, implement, and troubleshoot in your day job I highly recommend finding a few cheap Cisco switches and routers on ebay, budget $200-300 for (4) devices.

3. then teach it. See if you understand the material enough to explain it to coworkers, your spouse and kids (maybe not too much—haha), or a friend traveling down this certification path with you. Do not do it alone, find a group of people you can connect with…. People you can share war stories with, seek quick advice, or run through the labs with.

There are many discord channels and podcasts out there with invaluable mentorship and guidance. Some favorites: The Art of Network Engineering https://artofnetworkengineering.com,?Cisco Study Group https://discord.gg/4dk26pTB, Routergods by Humphrey Cheung https://www.meetup.com/routergods/?_cookie-check=KOUe7cMhupi1_JQi

There are many ways to get to where you are trying to go. Fall in love with the process and all of the intricate details that go into building stable and robust networks. A common phrase I keep in the back of my brain from an old CBT video by Jeremy Cioara, “competence begets confidence.” The more you do the drills; the more you understand the material; the better you are with the underlying fundamentals; the quicker you will begin to pick up different topics and see how there is an underlying tapestry that interconnects all of the many technologies in the Information Technology field.

Stay humble, do good things, may you have the best of luck in your journey and don’t forget to leave the light on for the next generation that comes behind you.