Hello everyone,
I am Ganesh DG I work as Product Manager at Ford Motor company. I have been performing roles of Project Manager for the last 8 years. I have a total experience of 13 years. I always had the dream and thought of becoming a PMP, but I always considered this to be a complex affair and procrastinated it every time.
This time when I was in Ahmedabad, after seeing reviews of ProThoughts online, I made up my mind to give it a try. I told myself that I will attend the class and if I am motivated enough then I will pursue it.
Classroom:
A major portion of me getting inspired to do my PMP is our trainer Mr. Saurabh, he made us feel the PMP was an interesting subject. I still remember many examples that he quoted during our classrooms. In fact, when I was preparing I was surprised by how I was easily able to recollect the examples he gave during our classes.
The 4 days of classes was a smooth sail, lots of things to learn, many topics just flew over my head. But the most important element of these four days was the camaraderie that we all classmates built together. During the chat sessions, we were having a discussion about each other’s work, we realized how each one’s organization was unique, which resulted in additional knowledge again. My lunch with Hardik, Saurabh Sir, Aman, Leena, and Ravi ensured I also got to know about their workplaces.
My Preparation:
As usual, once the classroom sessions were over the ghost of procrastination hit me as well. Poor Rita’s book was kept aside for a good two/three weeks. Then few more things happened, my organizational rotation to Chennai go finalized, this sent my preparation plans into backburner. But thankfully regular chats in the groups among us students, helped me stay in touch with the subject. Additionally, having left my friends back at Ahmedabad and having spent the last few days of my stay in Ahmedabad with utmost fun, ensured that I was in the mood of gloom when I came to Chennai.
But once I got settled down in Chennai (which was a good month after the last of the four days), I decided to take my preparation further.
I still remember the golden words of Mr. Saurabh, he said: “Dedicate yourself to PMP and I will promise you will fall in love with this journey”. I decided to put my laziness to rest and get inspired by Saurabh’s words and took up studying again.
Study Schedule:
I ensured I spent a solid two hours daily studying the book and PMBOK. The more I covered the more confident I felt, the teams were motivated as well. Especially Ravi and Hardik who ensured the group was active always would post questions that helped me read a brisk pace. Finally, once I finished the book I had unfounded confidence in me. Then I finished the PMBOK as well, my confidence grew further. I took a few more mock tests and grew in confidence.
I dedicated myself to this course last month before the exam, I cut off every other thing other than work. Remaining all the time was dedicated to PMP, and I actually loved it. The words of Mr. Saurabh were always ringing in my years “Dedicate yourself to PMP and make the journey memorable”, and man he was true when he said that.
The last leg of the marathon:
Two months had passed since I started studying and my mocks ensured I grew in confidence. I wasted no time in booking for the exam and got mentally ready. I equipped myself by reading many forums about PMP. One common advice was to be confident. Once I booked my exam, I ensured I physically visited the exam center and made myself comfortable. Then finally the day of the exam arrived, as advised by many I did not study during the last 24 hrs before the exams to keep my brain uncluttered. It worked pretty well.
The exam questions were no doubt very tricky, in many cases I was not 100% confident of answers. I just went by my gut feel thinking what would a PMBOK trained Project Manager to do, this approach helped a lot. Finally, the moment of truth arrived when I completed 200 questions, I clicked on submit (then did few reviews) and finally I could not believe my eyes when I saw the message “Congratulations” flash on the screen. My hard work for the last two months, my family’s wishes, my friend’s belief in me and Mr. Saurabh’s advice finally gave its fruits. I was pleasantly surprised to have scored AT in all the 5 domains.
I would tell all friends even now, dedicate yourself to PMP, I am sure you will fall in love with the journey.
I was in love with the PMI exam bug that I continued to pursue PMI-ACP later and finished it with just 7 weeks of studies, the momentum that PMP had gathered was bearing fruits even later. I would thank ProThoughts for this program, for helping me meet a trainer as wise as Mr. Saurabh and also for helping me gain good friends whom I wish to stay in touch for a long time.