After a rough night - 4 hours of interrupted sleep - I got up and kept the routine I had rehearsed in the previous day: a light breakfast, lunch at 12h30 and a 30 minute review inside the exam center.
I prepared for one year, incorporating several processes into my daily work. I read Rita’s book on my commute time. Later I watched entirely the PMP Prep Podcast and, finally, I glanced at the PMBok. I answered all the 1500 questions (and all 9 exams) in the PM Exam Simulator, my marks were lower at the beginning (71%) and higher at the end (83%).
Although I could easily complete the mock exams in 3 hours, the exam took me the whole 4 hours to the very last minute, with only three washroom breaks. As most questions were situational with several plausible responses, I had to use ponderation and my trust quickly evaporated: I did not know FOR SURE if my answers were right. Then, following a great advice I read somewhere, I smiled all through the exam thinking about my kids and wife and that joy kept me motivated.
My lessons learned from the actual exam:
* Almost all questions are scenario based, formula and critical path questions are very direct and easy,
* It ids different from the PMP Exam Simulator's questions, but the experience of practicing through all of them is REALLY important
* Keep you plane flying: get your own way of enabling all your capabilities, not only the rational but also your emotions - and that’s where you get your best judgement on situational questions.
“I bear the wounds of all the battles I avoided.” (Fernando Pessoa). I performed ‘Above Target’ on all Domains. The exam is a challenge that makes you grow and that I had a true necessity of.
