TOPIC: PMP Exam - Lessons Learned - Just before the New Year eve - Passed My PMP (on 12/31/2016)

Happy New Year everybody!
I got my NY present by passing the exam and I want to share my experience. Disclaimer: I'm sharing my subjective opinion and lessons learned, I do believe other ppl may have totally different experience. Here it is.
PART 1
1. To pass the exam I had to train two separate skills:
a.PMBOK material knowledge and
b. ability to quickly understand the question.
The second one (b) is challenging - it is not only because of my English is not my mother tongue, but you have to know how to stay focused on a 2nd, 3rd and 4th hour of the exam yet quickly catch the question key words.
So... here are Tools and Techniques (BTW Rita's book was a help):
On the exam:
a)monitor yourself and once you find you're not in focus (if you are suddenly thinking NOT about the question OR reading the same sentence more than once, OR losing the meaning of words, etc) - deep breath(!) and smile(!). It works very well. As well small stretching (see below).
b)Use computer tools: mark key words and phrases of the question (find how to do it on a drive test before the exam starts), make sure you see the situation - what phase, what process group it is about. Eventually it is not that hidden.
c) eliminate anything which can disturb your focus - use restroom in time (it will cost you 5 min, but the "benefit" is higher). Use earplugs (they should be available in the test center, but better bring your own). Setup your chair once you are at your test desk.
Before the exam:
a) Practice quick reading and understanding. Practice deep breath and smiling. Practice keeping your focus and get rest of 20 sec or 30 sec break. PrepCast simulators are helpful with that.
b) drink (was not allowed during the exam to us - to use the locker), eat piece of chocolate (it helps my brain ... I think))
c). assure you know the location of the restroom. I hardly found it luckily BEFORE the exam, otherwise it would be VERY stressful and no deep breathing and smiling would not help .
d) find if you can use small body stretching (neck, shoulders, legs) without bothering others - to use periodically on the exam.

* Feedback to PrepCast - if you can add the feature to mark the text - it will be a great help.

Dear Lev Kaufman,

Congratulations on passing your PMP exam! It definitely sounds like an excellent self-made New Year present.

Many thanks for sharing your success and lessons learned with us. Valuable feedbacks like yours help all our forum users in their preparations for the exam. I especially liked your suggestion of practicing deep breath and smiling. It’s a pretty unique one and I’m sure it could benefit prospective PMP aspirants.

Another useful advice you have provided, is to get yourself familiar with the test center BEFORE the exam date. Looking for a bathroom in the middle of the stressful test could be even more stressful. Some test centers allow “test drive” before the actual exam date. So let me take your advice and "stress" this again for our readers - please make sure you are familiar with the test center BEFORE you take your exam. For those who want more details, please check out the link below:

www.project-management-prepcast.com/free...prepare-for-pmp-exam

We also highly appreciate your input of adding a “mark text” feature to our simulator. We carefully review all new features and improvement suggestions coming from our customers and try to implement them in the upcoming releases.

Dear Lev, thanks again, and enjoy your brand new PMP credentials in the New 2017 Year!

P.S. Don't forget the next step - earning your PDU's to maintain your PMP credentials.

Thank you Stan.
Hi all,
Here is PART 2 of my lessons learned:
1. My 'quick reading' was not quick enough... I had NO time to review the questions which I've marked (and they were about 30-40). I was lucky enough to have questions answered though..
2. I think the option to mark keywords was a great contributor, because it visually helped to 'read' the situation (what process group it is about, what process, what project stage, etc). When you do 'test drive' - learn how to properly mark the words - I found it during the exam.Click on a small icon, which appear after you've marked the text next to it - then the mark stays , otherwise it will disappear with the next mouse click.
3. Another great feature - is quick strike-through of 'wrong' questions by right-click of the mouse. Use it (carefully).
4. I do not recall any too short or too long question.
5. Relatively long questions I've started to read from the answers, like 'bottom-up' (anyway you'll need to read them, therefore it is not a time wasting action). Sometimes it helped with quicker finding out the 'unnecessary' parts of the question or what is EXACTLY is the question about.
Good luck!

*Feedback to PrepCast
- try to add this strike-through feature to your simulator
- add calculator (not sure you have it, just in case I missed)