Are You Ready To Pass The PMP, On The First Attempt, Without Leaving Home?

After my interview giving tips to pass on PMP with Master of Project Academy, a school from the USA that I studied, I have received a lot of connections on LinkedIn asking me for mentoring. I am always open to help anyone but decided to create this article to share more tips with any PMP aspirants, especially in these scared times, when everybody is staying at home. I am going to reveal all my secrets entirely for free, as I know how painful this journey is, and I wish to make you get the PMP earlier than me, during your quarantine. I do not know if you know that I have become PMP in my first attempt with a high score, so I think I created a great plan to get the PMP, and I am going to share it with you. I believe that by sharing love, we will receive love from the universe. 

I divided this article into topics to be more organized and transparent, making it easy for you to understand everything. 

1- ) How long did you study for the PMP exam?

I had never studied the PMBOK before signing up for the 35 Hours PMP Preparatory Course at the Master of Project Academy, which means I didn't take an MBA in project management at a university in Brazil (which most people do here).

My first step was to take this course. In the class, I learned in a very didactic way, with videos and available examples, which facilitated my understanding of project management. All my questions were quickly answered by the support team. I have also read the PMBOK 6th Edition while I was doing the PMP preparation course, as it is the basis for project management. I verified that I become a much better project manager at GM South America while I was preparing for PMP, then improving my working results. 

Also, I am Brazilian, and my native language is Portuguese. I chose to take the entire course in English, and study all the materials in English, as I could improve my English language skills while acquiring the title PMP. This made my preparation much more complicated than if I had chosen the Portuguese. 

So, I consider that it took approximately 6 months to start my studies and pass the PMP. As I studied while working, I put my dedication during my lunch, rest time, free time, and weekends. Due to quarantine caused by COVID-19, I was able to enhance my efforts.

2- ) What was the biggest struggle when preparing for the PMP exam?

My most considerable initial challenge was the English language, as I had to check the dictionary with regularity to acquire new vocabulary and understanding. 

After understanding all the 49 processes, INs, OUTs, Tools & Techniques from PMBOK. I had to place a bunch of energy into practicing answering questions. I found this pretty challenging.

But the most challenging was making decisions exceptionally speedily. In the exam, we need to answer each question in a maximum of 1.2 minutes. This is extremely hard, as PMP questions, on average, are very hard to answer! It's like a marathon, you won't be the finalist if you practice for only 1 week. You need to prepare a lot. Sweat your shirt to stand out and have a chance to win. This analogy is similar to the PMP preparation process. 

3- ) What was your step-by-step preparation plan for PMP certification?

The phase of acquiring project management knowledge

I have gotten the PMBOK 6th edition for free by signing up as a PMI member. Then sign up for 35 hours PMP preparatory course, which is required by PMI to get the PMP. I recommend the online course of Master of Project Academy.

While studying the preparatory course, follow the agenda and guarantee you understand each content. If you have questions, reach out to the support team, ask in forums, or search on Google. You must master each part of the project management knowledge! I have read the PMBOK 6th edition while I was doing the classes. I wholeheartedly advise creating a summary of each content explained in the chapter. I adopted a mind map by Mind Meister to create my PMBOK summary. You can create one mind map for free. It helped me in the memorization of PMBOK content that I am going to explain further. Additionally, I have been using mind maps for a long time, as I was influenced by humanity genius like Leonardo da Vinci and Aristotle, who used it a lot.

After complete the learning of each knowledge area, answer questions at the end of each chapter. 

After you complete the 35 hours PMP preparatory course, it is time to answer the 200 questions without being worried about 4 hours. I am sure that you will not be able to answer everything within 4 hours in the first attempt and achieve an approval score.

Now, it is time to plan reviews to memorize your mind maps containing the PMBOK summary. 

I had applied a long-term memorization method that I've learned with Renato Alves, Brazilian memorization champion. It is a validated technique to store any content in your brain and never forget about it. 

Let me explain this memorization method to you. After you learn and being able to explain the PMBOK content to you. You will have to explain it to make sure that you really understood it, or the method will not work completely. Then it is time to review your mind map or summary of the content. My suggestion is to prepare a specific review for each knowledge area of PMBOK (cost, schedule, stakeholders, etc.). Do not spend more than 30 minutes for each review, and do it with 100% focus on it - turn off mobile notifications and close your office's door. Review it between 3 or 4 times a day. Each review must be done after 5 hours or 6 hours maximum after your last review. Repeat the review process for 4 days in a sequence. This will save the PMBOK information in your long-term memory. Following an example of review: 7:00 AM, 12:30 PM, 6:00 PM, 11:00 PM. It means that you have to review 16 times each knowledge area summary. It is hard, but hard work pays off!

Now, it is the phase of connecting each of the 49 processes and understanding the most recurrent question in the PMP exam. Carefully read the entire PMP preparation book by Rita Mulcahy 9th Edition and watch the YouTube video from Ricardo Vargas that he is teaching the connection of all processes. Both contents helped me understand how to connect everything, and what types of questions are more likely to be on the PMP exam. 

After you have a deep learning of PMBOK content, it is time to solve all questions from many books.

The phase of practicing answer questions

Phase 1 - Low-speed Answering

You may need more than 1.2 minutes in the beginning. Please answer all the questions from the books that I used to study:

• Book PMP Project Management Professional Practice Tests by Vanina Mangano, Kim Heldman;
• Book PMP by James L Haner;
• Book PMP? Examination Practice Questions: 400 Practice Questions and Answers to help you Pass, Third Edition;
• Book PMP Exam Practice Test and Study Guide, 9th Edition by CRC Press;

I got these resources through the website https://www.oreilly.com. You can sign up for a free trial period and answer as many questions as you can during the open period. 

Phase 2 - High-speed answering

Now, you should be working on getting the exam answered for 4 hours, but you can answer some small questions quizzes during this period. In this phase, I am confident that you can answer most of the questions by 1.2 minutes. Find below the resources that I used and their priority for you. 

A) High priority

You may use this resource only when you can answer questions using 1.2 minutes. Answer all questions of the paid simulator provided by www.project-management-prepcast.com. Answer as many questions as you can. The ones that you make a mistake reflect, and understand in detail why you made a mistake and which answer is the correct one. For questions that you are not 100% sure of the solution, flag it, and spend some time reviewing and understanding why you had this question and how you should have thought. I highly recommend this PMP simulator. It has excellent content and complements your studies. The simulator has a very rich explanation for each question, each possible answer, and teaches you the correct way to think when doing the PMP exam.

You should use this simulator after you complete answering questions of medium and low priority sources described below.

B) Medium priority

• All 200 questions of free simulator provided by www.pmexamcoach.com;
• All 200 questions of free simulator provided by www.certchamp.com.

C) Low priority

• All questions of free simulator provided by openpm.org;
• All 300 questions of free simulator provided by www.oliverlehmann.com.

You can schedule the PMP Exam when you get reliable results, usually more than 80% of the rate in your latest 4 hours tests. Find below some of my historical data. I got a 93% score in my last exam test at PM Prep Cast. After that, I scheduled that PMP exam and got it in my first attempt. 

4- ) How similar were the questions in the real PMP exam when you considered?

They are similar, but not identical, meaning that phrases or wording used on the real PMP exam may be different, but the concepts used or root question was the same as PMP exam simulators. At points during the exam, I would have to re-read the question and think about what it was really asking. Therefore, as part of my PMP pass tips, I would recommend you to re-read the questions if you did not understand what is asked clearly.

Another advice is to seek to carry out the maximum amount of simulations possible. Remember that the more questions you answer, the more likely you are to pass. Because answering the questions with quality demonstrates that you have mastered the PMBOK.

A success indicator is your score; if you score above 80%, you have an excellent chance of PMP approval.

5- ) How many sample PMP exam questions did you practice before the exam?

Besides the 125 PMP sample questions and 200 questions PMP sample exam provided as part of the Master of Project Academy course, I took ten other sample exams of 200 questions with 4 hours duration. But I answered hundreds of questions separately, without worrying about the time of books and websites.

6- ) Do you have any recommendations for future PMP candidates?

Just 5 things:

1. Do not be overwhelmed by the PMBOK material, break it down into smaller digestible pieces that you can understand and retain. (Similar to the decomposition technique used for WBS creation);
2. Work to enhance emotional intelligence because the anxiety will increase a lot at the end of preparation. You need to understand that the journey is long, and you need to be very determined and be a very dedicated person to overcome all challenges;
3. Answer as many questions as you can. The ones that you make a mistake reflect, and understand in detail why you made a mistake and which answer is the correct one. For questions that you are not 100% sure of the answer to, spend time reviewing and understand why you had this doubt and how you should have thought. I highly recommend the PMP simulator at PM Prep Cast. It is excellent;
4. Make a summary in mind map format for you to visit temporarily and follow a memorization method, this will facilitate the long memory retention of information;
5. Get Certified! In today's world, it does not matter how skilled you are in project management, if you do not have the certification, employers will not look at your resume.

7- ) Do you have any tips for the PMP exam day?

• Formulas memorization: I have developed a methodology to carry them out, with 100% success. You have to put it on your calendar for an appointment called "Write the Formulas on a Sheet" every two days. When the time comes, you go there and write all the PMBOK formulas you memorized, the ones you forget, open the reference formulas sheet, and learn. As the days go by, you remember everything;
• Be calm;
• Read each question carefully;
• Keep an eye on the race clock and always make an assessment if you are late and how late. If necessary, skip long questions or more difficult ones. You need to work to answer the 200 questions in 4 hours;
• Mark any question you are not sure of for review and come back to it later;
• Use the tools to emphasize the words so that you can highlight the essential points of the question. Use the tool to cross out the answers so you can eliminate the wrong answers and focus on the correct ones and make a well-informed decision;
• Practice the tests with noises from your neighbors, streets, and dogs. In my simulations, everything was silent because I used an earplug (this is allowed in the face-to-face test). However, due to COVID-19, PMI started offering online testing at home, and therefore, we were unable to use anything (since it could be understood as cheating). On the day of the exam at 9 AM, all the noises in the universe happened during my test (neighbors singing, sound cars passing on the street, dogs barking, predators at work ... etc) that deconcentrated me and reduced my performance a little. Or another recommendation is to schedule the PMP exam for silent hours, like 2 AM, 3 AM, 4 AM, for example. It's also important to consider a time when your internet speed is stable, as well as;
• Utilize the four hours you are allotted for the test to double-check your answers.

8- ) If you would give 3 tips to your close friend about PMP certification, what would you recommend as part of your PMP Pass Tips?

Some memorization is essential, but understanding is critical. From my point of view, the PMP exam tends to assess whether the candidate can solve with quality and technical basis all the main challenges of a large project, based on the best practices of project management given by the PMBOK 6th edition.

Carefully read the entire PMP preparation book by Rita Mulcahy 9th Edition, it will help you understand how to connect all processes, what types of knowledge are expected in the PMP exam.

Take lots of practice exams and, most importantly, learn from your mistakes.

9- ) My final words

I know that it is tough to get the PMP, you will need to put much energy to achieve it. But I am sure that you can get it done if you follow my steps above because I did it. I developed this approval plan to get the PMP, and now you have it for free. Please use it and enjoy it. I am honored to help you to succeed in your PMP preparation.

Please write a comment if you need any additional information. I hope that this knowledge helped you and I would lovely to answer everyone. Help these tips to come to other guys across the world that are preparing for this tough PMP certification, so please give your thumbs up if you liked this article and leave your comment,

I wish you good luck, and I am cheering up for you.

Sincerely, Thiago.