100 days to pass the CCNA

My boss’s boss called me at 6 a.m. on a Monday. The CCNA class had a drop, and did I want the seat?

What else was I supposed to say? I said yes, and less than 30 minutes later I was sitting in a week-long CCNA class with about 10 other people from my organization.

The CCNA was always the plan, just not this soon. The original order was Network+ first, so I’d have a solid foundation before jumping into a much harder networking cert.

How the class went

For the first two days I was cruising. I’ve studied for the Network+ several times without ever sitting the exam, and I have a couple of other networking certifications, so call my starting point roughly Network+ level.

Around day 3 we went deep. The final two days were kind of a blur: some concepts landed, others I was pretty lost on.

So, I have some studying to do.

The plan

The exam is scheduled for November 2, around 100 days out from the course. There’s a set window I have to test inside, so the pace is going to be intense. No way around it.

The resources:

• Network Chuck Summer of CCNA Premium
• Cisco University
• Jeremy’s IT Lab
• Neil Anderson’s CCNA Udemy course
• Cisco Official Cert Guide 200-301

The schedule:

• Weekdays: 0430-0630 study, another hour at 1500, then reading 2000-2100
• Saturday: rest
• Sunday: 0430-0930, study and lab time

This is the initial plan, and it’s subject to change.

What this site is for

As I study, I’ll post the concepts I learn here. The intention is a reference I can reach from anywhere. It may also double as a portfolio.

If you stumbled onto this site: how? You must be family, or a bot.