| |
| |
|
Go Back | About | Contact | Web Design News | |
|
Cisco CCNA Certification: Becoming A Truly Valuable CCNA.
I've been active in the Cisco Certification track for four years, working my way from the CCNA to the coveted Cisco Certified Internetwork Expert title, and during that time I've conducted job interviews and casual conversations with hundreds of CCNAs and CCNA candidates. The CCNA is an exciting beginning to your Cisco career, but just having the certification simply isn't enough. A recruiter or interviewer isn't going to be impressed just with the cert; you've got to have some real-world knowledge to back it up. I've been down that road myself, and sat on both sides of the CCNA job interview table. With that in mind, I'd like to offer to you some tips on becoming a truly valuable and employable CCNA. Get some hands-on experience. I know the trap well; you can't get experience until you get a CCNA, and you can't get a CCNA without real experience. Well, actually, you can, but do you want to? Working on simulators is fine to a certain extent, but don't make the classic mistake of depending on them. I've seen plenty of CCNAs who were put in front of a set of routers and really didn't know what to do or how to put together a simple configuration, and had NO idea how to begin troubleshooting. There are CCNA classes that offer you the chance to work with industry experts on real Cisco equipment. Beyond that, you can put together your own CCNA rack for less than $1000 by buying used routers. Some people think that's a lot of money, but this is the foundation of your career. Treat it that way. The work you do now is the most important work you'll ever do. Do it on real Cisco equipment. The skills I learned as a CCNA helped me all the way up to the CCIE. Besides, after you get your CCNA (and after that, hopefully you'll choose to pursue the CCNP), you can always get some of your money back by selling the equipment. The hands-on experience you gain this way is invaluable. Know binary math. Do NOT go the easy route of memorizing a subnet mask chart for the CCNA exam. I know some people brag about being able to pass the CCNA exam without really understanding binary math. I've seen those people on the other side of the interview table, and they're not laughing when I ask them to do a subnetting question. They're not laughing when they can't explain or create a VLSM scheme. That chart does nothing to help you understand what's going on. If you can add and know the difference between a one and a zero, you can do binary math. Don't let the name intimidate you. Become a REAL CCNA -- learn binary math ! Run "show" and "debug" commands. No commands help you truly understand how things work in a Cisco network than show and debug commands. As you progress through the Cisco certification ranks, you'll be glad you started using these at the CCNA level. Do you need to know these commands for the exam? Probably not. Do you need them to be successul in the real world? Absolutely. The Cisco certification track has been great to me, and it can boost your career as well, whether you stop at the CCNA, CCNP, or go all the way to the CCIE. It's the skills you develop today that will truly make you a networking engineer. Don't take shortcuts or get the attitude of "just passing the exam". It's what you achieve after the exam that counts, and it's the work you put in before passing the exam that makes those achievements possible. Good luck ! Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933 Chris Bryant, CCIE (TM) #12933, has been active in the Cisco certification community for years. He worked his way up from the CCNA to the CCIE, and knows what CCNA and CCNP candidates need to know to be effective on the job and in the exam room. He is the owner of http://www.thebryantadvantage.com, where he teaches CCNA and CCNP courses to small groups of exam candidates, ensuring they each receive the individual attention they deserve. Classes are offered over the Internet and in select cities. Chris has custom-written the Study Guide and Lab Workbook used in each course - no third-party training materials or simulators are used. You're invited to visit our site and check out our CCNA and CCNP courses and study aids, and to sign up for our weekly newsletter written personally by Chris. Chris is always glad to hear from Cisco certification candidates at chris@thebryantadvantage.com.
MORE RESOURCES:
Software - Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Microsoft Great Plains eCommerce: overview for developer Microsoft Business Solutions Great Plains was designed back in the earlier 1990th as first graphical ERP/accounting system for mid-size businesses. The architects of Great Plains Dexterity - this is the internal mid-shell, all Great Plains was written on, designed it to be easily transferable between graphical operating systems (MAC, Windows, Solaris - potentially) and database platforms - initially Great Plains was available on Ctree (both Mac and PC) and Btrieve, a bit later high end version Dynamics C/S+ was available on Microsoft SQL Server 6. S is for Spying, Surveillance -- and for Software as Well Words we choose to describe things and phenomena often show our attitude towards what we say. They imperceptibly reflect our opinions and judgments, prejudices and preferences, moral convictions and beliefs. Know Linux Linux essentials:It's free for download but you have to pay a tiny bit to mail order it or buy it from a company. If you're getting Linux for more than 2-3 PCs, you can also get training and support at a small free, if you choose to have it. Where to Find Free Fleet Maintenance Software Costs of fleet maintenance software can vary widely. It is generally expected that the fleet manager will look at the needs of the company to determine what software package is best suited for their particular needs. Crystal Reports for Microsoft Great Plains - Overview for Developer Microsoft Great Plains is main accounting / ERP application from Microsoft Business Solutions, targeted to the US market. It serves the whole of vertical and horizontal market: most of the industries and company sizes. Call Alert Notifications - Free Answering Machine Software for PCs If you're online using a dialup Internet connection, you'll probably want to download one of the free call alert software applications like Callwave or AOL Call Alert that can answer, record, and forward incoming calls to your home, office or cell phone. In fact, if you run a small business, Call Wave also offers a dedicated business fax service too. Simple Solution for Php Includes - IFrames I have recently created my first Php program. I wanted to share with others some of the problems that I encountered, and how I finally overcame these obstacles. ERP Consulting: Microsoft Great Plains Partner Future Directions In the Clinton era the status quo was simple: you serve your local clients and if you want to expand your business - open offices in other business metros. Great Plains Software was granting generous margins on the software sales and stimulated local leading VARs/Partners/Resellers with so-called orphan leads - customers who lapsed in payment annual enhancement program or called Great Plains Software directly to comply about quality of service by their VAR. Getting Technical Support Help Online Sometimes your PC will start acting strange for no apparent reason or a programwhich you use regularly will all of a sudden stop working as it should. Thiscan be a frustrating experience especially if you have no idea where to go forhelp. Create ASP in Minutes DBxtra goes ASPGetting to the information hidden within corporate databases has always been a problem for all levels of an organization.IT shops are constantly being pushed to produce more while having little time to accommodate reporting requirements. ERP System of the Future: Database, Business Logic and Interface We will base our prognosis on our Microsoft Business Solutions ERP consulting practice: Microsoft Great Plains, Navision, Axapta, MS CRM. Also we've analyzed Oracle products: Oracle Financials, JD Edwards, PeopleSoft, and IBM Lotus Notes Domino. Is Software Tester a Most Infamous Person in a Software Project Team? The fact that a software tester is a most infamous person in a software project team has some grounds underneath it. This is because a software tester usually speaks of the bugs in the developer's code. Navision Customization: C/SIDE, C/ODBC, C/FRONT, XBRL - Development Options Microsoft bought Navision, Denmark based software development company, along with Great Plains Software. Now Microsoft Business Solutions offers following ERP applications: Navision (former Navision Attain), Microsoft Great Plains (former Great Plains Dynamics/eEnterprise), Solomon, Axapta. Microsoft CRM and No-Frills Cadillacs In today's business world it's all but impossible to escape Microsoft. Either you're using MS applications, developing your own, or negotiating your company's acquisition by this techno-behemoth. Microsoft Update - 5 Reasons to Update Service Pack 2 Microsoft released Service Pack 2 (SP2) for the Windows XP operating system back in August (2004), representing significant improvements in many areas, especially system security. For those people that are still unsure whether they should update to it, the following five reasons may help make the decision easier. Microsoft CRM Implementation - US Market Lessons Microsoft CRM is CRM answer from Microsoft Business Solutions. If you compare it to other traditional CRM applications, such as Siebel - you will see that Microsoft CRM does use all the resent Microsoft technologies, that means that Microsoft targets its CRM to Windows market exclusively, plus this means that Microsoft CRM is more difficult in its installation. Windows Screensavers Explained In this article you will find some background information about screensavers and their history. You will also learn how Windows screensavers differ from other programs and how you can use it to your own advantage. How to Evaluate Staffing Software If you are in the market for new staffing software, I suspect that one of the most daunting of tasks will be to sift through the many vendors that are now servicing the staffing industry.You will find many very qualified companies with good staffing software products. Intro to UNIX Shells A UNIX Shell is in simplest terms, a command line interpreter, that takes the users input and gives it to the Kernel. If you are familiar with DOS, you will remember the 'command. Great Plains Dexterity: Customizations & Source Code Programming Great Plains Software Dynamics, Dynamics C/S+, eEnterprise were written on GPS proprietary programming language and development environment - Great Plains Dexterity. When Microsoft bought Great Plains Software, Dynamics was renamed into Microsoft Great Plains, but Dexterity is still the architectural base, there were trends to move MS Great Plains to .
|
ChicagoAnimation's Acquisitions: Market Polls - 1pennyStock.com
Sponsors: Paving | VTL's | Religious Statues
