The PMP® Exam is a test of project management practices

Going into the PMP exam, it is always helpful to know that the exam is designed by experts who want to determine that you thoroughly understand the methods, processes, and principles of project management and how you would apply them in a given situation. Therefore, most of the exam questions revolve around a real-life scenario, and they are based on the PMBOK^® Guide. That is why the PMP exam is a test of real-life project management practices, tools, techniques, and principles described in the PMBOK^® Guide.

However, it does not mean that you are required to memorize the content of the whole PMBOK^® Guide.

Instead, to succeed on the exam, you will need to have a lot of hands-on experience in project management and relate it to the theory in the PMBOK^® Guide. That's why a minimum of three years/36 months of unique non-overlapping professional projects (five years if you don't have a bachelor's degree) is a prerequisite to taking the exam.
Your real-life experience of managing projects in your industry will make everything much more straightforward. In addition, many situations in the questions will be familiar to you because you have lived through them.

So here is my recommendation: Study the PMBOK^® Guide 2-3 times. And please note that I say "study" and not simply "read". Begin applying the principles described by the guide on your day-to-day projects and also relate them to your previous projects. That way, you will see how these principles work. Doing it this way will make you a better project manager and help you pass the exam instead of just mindless memorization.

Check out this YouTube video for additional tips: