My CISSP Journey

Okay...!! So, before you start reading this Article, let me straight-out few things:

1.?The sole purpose of writing this article is to share my experience and journey while preparing for CISSP.

2.?Maybe you’re going through the same emotions as I went through while preparing for CISSP and through this article, I just wanted to say that you’re on the right track and it’s normal.

3.?I believe everyone has their own way/style of approaching any challenge. There is no right or wrong way.

4.?I don’t recommend you follow the exact same path as mine and suggest you decide your own path.

5.?You’re your best teacher. No one knows you better than you yourself. So, DECIDE for yourself.

6.?If you don’t like reading like me, then only refer to the last 2 sections of this article.

7.?Last but not the least, I’m not a professional writer, so, if this article doesn’t comply with the writing rules, then please accept my sincere apologies.

A little about me (totally optional, you can skip it):

My name is Anchal Johri, I started my professional career in 2016 in Information Security domain as a Security Risk Analyst and currently I’m the part of Cyber Defense Center team in NCR Corporation.

Coming straight out of college, I was too shy and introvert to even talk to anyone. My company is a MNC which gave me the opportunity of interacting with multiple people around the globe.

I was lucky enough to get very supportive and encouraging colleagues and seniors during my career who opened me up and made me who I am today.

With that said, I still consider myself as an introvert but with improved version. I’m also a big procrastinator and a lazy girl who always wait till last day for any work.

Believe me writing this is a very big deal for me. If you know me then you know that for me, writing this article is no less than giving CISSP exam.

When I decided to go for CISSP:

My seniors shared about this exam with me when I was in my initial days of my career and then I decided that I will give this exam when I get my security basics clear.

I don’t want to give the exam just to earn the certification, I want to make sure that I understand how security works before applying for this exam.

In 2021, I completed 5 years of my professional career and thought maybe now I can start preparing for this exam.

But as I told you above, I’m a big procrastinator, so, it took me 1.5 years to finally appear for the exam on 19th Jan,2023.

Did I prepare for the whole 1.5 years?

Well..what do you think?

Obviously not.. How can you expect a procrastinator and a lazy person to study this much?

In late Sept 2022, I decided to give the exam before the end of 2022 and thought that 3 months would be enough to prepare for it.

My manager and my team supported me throughout my preparation time.

I’m a kind of person who needs a constant push for doing something.

Danish Ahmed who is my colleague/mentor/friend played this role to daily motivate and push me in doing it. Otherwise, I might have stopped or further delayed it.

Along with sharing some useful resources for preparation, he used to daily ask me questions like:

“How’s your preparation going?How much you have done? On which chapter you are? “

I am very grateful to him for helping me remain dedicated to my preparation.

How I actually prepared:

In September 2022, I contacted Prashant Mohan, CISSP, CCSP , whom you all know as a renowned author of Memory palace and Cirrus. These two books are his contributions to the community for CISSP and CCSP aspirants. Well, I have the privilege of calling this guy as my friend and mentor. He even helped me before to prepare and successfully earn SSCP certification in 2020.

This time again he mentored and guided me to prepare for CISSP. Prashant’s constant guidance helped me opt for the right resources to prepare for this exam.

He also added me to a Facebook group which is led by Luke Ahmed ?? : CISSP Exam Preparation - Study Notes and Theory.

Being a part of group, where all people are working towards achieving the same goal will help keep you motivated and engaged.

I remember the nights of my preparation, sometimes when I decides to give-up and pick up my phone to distract my mind for some time, any new post on this group brings me back to my study material.

People sharing their achievement stories and multiple questions keeps you engaged and motivated.

I highly recommend you joining this group or any study group of your own choice.

Between Sep-Dec,2022, I studied in bits and pieces but not dedicatedly/regularly.

I completed CISSP LinkedIn course by Mike Chapple and started reading the Sybex Official Guide.

In December, considering where I stand with my preparation, I decided to give the exam in mid-January instead of December and finally registered it for 19th Jan,2023 (else I would have delayed it further).

I took leave for 2 weeks in Jan before the exam date and studied with all my capacity.

As you know, CISSP preparation material is infinite, so you need to decide how much is enough for you to learn before you appear for the exam.

With only 2 weeks left for the exam, I know that I was not able to complete the whole Official Sybex guide. I needed something which will cover all the topics for CISSP exam and will fit in my 2 weeks schedule. So, I opted for multiple video courses which my mind understands better than reading a book.

My schedule for those last two week’s includes studying for 8 hours every day and sometimes even more.

I used to practice questions in between on the mobile apps and watch practice question videos on YouTube.

Do NOT worry if you fail in the practice exams. These questions are not at all going to be in the exam. So, do not feel demotivated but focus on the topics or domains where you’re mostly failing in the practice tests.

There is NO fix percentage for practice tests that will ensure that you’re ready for the real exam. Just keep practicing...!

I completed the decided CISSP courses 3 days before my exam.

This is the very first time in my life where my preparation for any exam got completed before the exam and I get the chance to revise the course.

Before this, all my life, I have given exams by studying just a night before the exam. I know this is nothing to be proud of but yeah that’s my way.

Emotions, feelings and Imaginations:?

Now let’s talk about some things which I think people who have given CISSP might relate and if you’re preparing for it then probably, you’re going through it.

During the last 2 weeks of my preparation, I felt plethora of emotions and feelings. I have imagined a lot of scenarios in my mind from passing to failing to even re-appearing for the exam.

Some days I used to think, how I’m going to react if I was not able to pass the exam and sometimes, I used to think about writing an article if I pass, which luckily, I’m doing today.

I used to imagine the moment how I will react when the exam ends, and the proctor will hand over my result to me. This I can bet everyone preparing for the exam must have imagined once.

2 days before the exam, I panicked and got cold feet but to my surprise, I didn’t think of rescheduling the exam. I wasn’t sure that I have covered everything that is needed for this exam but I knew that I will not able learn anything more about the topics I have covered as part of my preparation and that I’m ready to give the exam with what I’ve prepared.

For the revision part, I referred to 3 resources: ?CISSP Exam Cram Series by Pete Zerger, vCISO, CISSP , How to think like a manager book by Luke Ahmed ?? and Memory Palace by Prashant Mohan, CISSP, CCSP . I completed these just 1 day before the exam.

One more thing, I booked the evening slot for my exam and have watched a lot of videos where they advise not to schedule in evening as it’s normal phenomenon for our body to start feeling tired during evening.

My mind kept constantly thinking what if I have scheduled at the wrong time.

But as I am not a morning person and in those last 2 weeks, I used to study the whole night and go to sleep in morning. This schedule might helped me go through it without feeling tired.

The D-day experience:?????????????????????????????

On the day of my exam, I woke up at 9.30am and there were some topics in my mind which I need to revisit, I did that and got ready for exam.

I reached exam canter at 3.30pm as my exam slot was 4-8pm.

After all the formalities, my exam started and at 72nd question with 107 mins left for the exam to end, I took my first break.

I was not sure if I’m going to pass and thought that I will definitely receive more than 125 questions. I was worried that I’m taking too long to respond to questions and might get short of time.

But luckily, as I pressed next on 125th question, my exam ended.?

I was scared that I might not be able to pass, but when the proctor gave me the result, the look on her face was relaxing and she whispered passed.?

I didn’t believe on what I hear and read the result 3 times to make sure I’m reading it right.??

Believe me that piece of paper with the words “Congratulations, you’ve provisionally passed CISSP exam” is worth all your compromises.

Resources Used for Preparation:

1.?Sybex CISSP Official Study Guide 9 Edition (It’s a MUST book for you)

2.?Memory Palace by Prashant Mohan.(It’s a MUST quick refresher guide. You can also reach out to Prashant Mohan, CISSP, CCSP on LinkedIn for guidance)

3.?How to Think Like a Manager by Luke Ahmed (Again a MUST have book. It has 25 tricky questions with the explanation which really train your mind for CISSP exam)

4.?CISSP Course by Kelly Handerhan on Cybrary.( It will prepare your mind for the exam)

5.?CISSP Exam Cram Series by Pete Zerger (MUST watch before 1 week of your exam for a quick referesher)

6.??Mike Chappel CISSP Course on LinkedIn (It will give you a high-level understanding of the topics you have to prepare for CISSP)

For Practice Questions:

1.?Sybex Official CISSP Official Practice Tests, 3rd Edition

2.?CISSP – ISC2 Official Mobile Application. (Available on Google Play Store and Apple Store)

3.?CISSP Practice Test Mobile Application by ABC E-Learning. (Available on Google Play Store and Apple Store)

4.?Free CISSP study questions of the Day by IT Dojo ( Good questions to go through)

5.?CISSP Practice Questions from Destination Certification

Study Groups:

1.?Facebook: CISSP Exam Preparation - Study Notes and Theory (Being a part of any group where everyone is dedicated towards achieving the same goal, keeps you motivated throughout your preparation time)

Things to Remember:??

1.?There is no right or wrong time for giving the exam.?

2.?Do not listen to other’s who spent weeks/months/years for the preparation. Believe in yourself. When you feel that you are ready means you’re ready.?

3.?I’m a firm believer that people learn from their own mistakes/experiences and not from the experience of others.

4.?Get guidance, suggestions and advise from people who have passed the exam but do not blindly follow their path. Make your own path.?

5.?Always start with collecting the study material and then choosing the one’s that you’re going to use to prepare. You cannot study everything.

6.?Do not expect straight forward questions in the exam like:What is 2+2? The correct answer is 4. You can never be 100% sure if the answer you have chosen is correct. The key is to select the best answer in context to the question.?

7.?Cramming will not work in this exam; you really need to understand the concept. This is where your work experience plays a big role. That’s why ISC2 requires 5 years of full working experience in minimum 2 security domains as a pre-requisite for CISSP.?

8.?Try to speak to at least one person from your family/friends/colleague/any CISSP holder/person preparing for CISSP and share your feelings, fear about this exam. It really helps. Feel free to reach out to me on LinkedIn if you need to talk to someone.

9.?I have been advised to take break during your exam and I think it really helps as your mind and eyes get few minutes away from the screen.

10.??Lastly, if by any chance you’re not able to succeed, take the time to acknowledge your feelings (feeling sad is normal) but also promise yourself to not stop until you succeed. So, vent out, pick yourself up and work towards achieving your goal.?