Week 25 - Pre-Test Anxiety

 

Well, this is it.  Tomorrow I find out if I am able to turn all of the experience and study into the correct answers on the exam.  I would say, “Wish me luck,” but it is not about luck at this point.  I won’t call it “skill” either, but if it were just about luck there would be a lot more PMPs out there.

I had a run in with pre-test anxiety earlier this week.  I started to get stressed out to the point that I could not study, and if I tried, I could not remember what I studied.  I am not going to go through a litany of stress relieving techniques, but I will say that sometimes you just need to step away for a little bit, clear your head, and then get back into it.  The key is getting back into it, and the longer you delay the harder it will be.

Am I going to do more studying today?  Contrary to advice in exam prep books I have been studying, I will.  I am going to practice Earned Value a little – EAC is the formula that will likely cause me the most trouble.  I am going to review contract types a little.  And I am going to take a practice exam.  To be honest, I could study the next 12 hours straight and still not feel highly confident, but that is just me and taking tests.

At this point, I really can’t expect to learn anything new that I will still remember tomorrow, so it is really about taking a relaxed approach to studying and reviewing what I already know to keep it fresh in my mind for tomorrow.  Perhaps the most important thing I can practice today is my memory dump sheet – the first thing I want to write down before I start my test, tomorrow morning.

After writing about this for the past several months, I better pass.  I would hate to have my next entry be about failing the exam.

There I go, creating more stress for myself.

Wish me plenty of sleep tonight and a clear head in the morning!