My Journey to the CompTIA Security+ Certification - Do's and Don'ts

I finally got it.

The thought of getting the certification is always much easier than actually putting in the work I must say.
I planned to do the certification for a while now.

To give you a brief background, I finished my Bachelor's degree in Cybersecurity & Analytics last year and I am currently interning as a Cyber Consultant.

Why is this relevant?

Well, it gave me a reason to pursue the certification.
The first inspiration came from my studies, and that's when I decided to go after the Sec+ cert.

Since I am in an environment where I see the purpose behind getting the certification, it was easier for me to define my "Why".

Defining the reason behind your pursuit is crucial for staying on track, and that's one of the many lessons that I took away from this process.

Studying for the exam was interesting because once you start working in the corporate world, you realize that just getting the work done is not enough. You study to understand, not to finish an assignment like in university.

And the cert gave me a proper overview of what's out there and the acquired knowledge helps me throughout my internship.

Let me give you some advice on what you SHOULD and SHOULD NOT do when getting the Security+.

Preparation and Study

So the overall preparation for this exam took me around 4 months. But hold up, this wasn't non-stop studying.
It was an on-and-off relationship.

I studied over the summer by actively reading the 601-Sec+ Book provided by CompTIA.
I read every page and made notes.
Additionally, I used Anki, an app that helps you remember your material by using active recall and spaced repetition.

Once I finished with the book and used active recall on the app, I moved on to practice exams.

I started with questions on the Internet that were completed for free, such as https://www.examcompass.com/comptia/security-plus-certification/free-security-plus-practice-tests

And that's when it kinda hit me. I had no idea. I couldn't answer most of the questions.
I didn't know how to use this knowledge and connect the dots.

I might have studied the material, but I sort of memorized it and didn't understand the purpose of most concepts and how they could be applied in real-life situations.

As you can picture, realizing that I should have used a different approach from the beginning, my motivation was slowly coming to an end, and with finishing my Bachelor's and pursuing a Master's in Business, I kind of lost focus.

All of a sudden the certification wasn't a goal anymore, but it was rather something in the back of my head that was always messing with me.

"What about your certification?"
"Why aren't you studying anymore"
"Didn't you tell your parents that you were going to get it by the end of the month?"

I knew that I spent a lot of time studying for it and I quit as soon as it got hard.
But hey, it's all lessons if you draw the right conclusion from it.

Fast forward, I got accepted for a cybersecurity internship, and that's when I knew that I had to finally sit down and get it.
I told myself that I was going to get the certification before I'd start my new position, which, of course, did not happen.

During the first weeks of my job, I was thrown into an environment with many experts, having many years of experience and all sorts of certifications.
Now there was no escape anymore. I had to get it done.
I wanted to get it done.

Being involved in projects where all the concepts and terms were coming up that I would have known about if I had studied for the certification was a big enough incentive.

To understand what was going on, I had to understand the fundamentals.

The Resources that I used

So as I continued to seriously study for the exam, I didn't just try to memorize what I was reading. I tried to actually understand it and get help by using a few resources:

• Dion Training - Online Course on Udemy
 ○ https://www.udemy.com/course/securityplus/
• Dion Training - Practice Exams
 ○ https://www.udemy.com/course/security-601-exams/
• Mike Chappelle - Training Exams
 ○ https://www.udemy.com/course/security_plus_practice_exams/
• Professor Messer - Practice Exams
 ○ https://www.professormesser.com/sy0-601-success-bundle/
• O'Reilly --> Pearson Vue - Practice Exams
 ○ https://learning.oreilly.com/library/view/comptia-security-certification/9

These are the most important resources.
Basically, everything I used.

Oh, and the Book by CompTIA, in case I had to look up or revise certain terms: https://www.amazon.de/-/en/Mike-Chapple/dp/1119736250

Honestly, if you're a visual learner, like I am, you will get a lot from the Dion Online Course on Udemy.
He explains it pretty well, and taking your notes and revising them every couple of days is so important.
That's what makes it stick, by using spaced repetition.

Additional Tips That Helped Me Succeed

Take practice exams

Even while I was doing the online course, I started doing the practice exams. They cost a couple of bucks, but honestly, can't complain. They are so incredibly crucial for succeeding in the exam.

Doing the practice test will give you a feeling of how it is in the real exam, even though they are a bit harder than the real one. Also, they provide you with a clear explanation for every question, and that made me understand the material so much better.

But, since they are a bit harder, you will maybe feel a bit more unsure and frustrated, but trust me, that's okay.
It will prepare you even more.

I failed every single exam and at first, I was getting around 50-60% on Dion and Chappelle exams.
Before taking them, I thought I was confident in most topics but that just really showed me how delusional I was.

And that's something you can take from it, don't be delusional. Try every exam that is out there, even if it costs you money. You will rather want to spend $15 bucks for a couple of exams than another $370 for failing the exam.

After trying one exam after another and always going back to my notes and adding term explanations I didn't know or understand before, I got better and better over time.

I had to reschedule my exam 4 times, because each time I added new information, I thought that now I knew everything. Wrong. Next exam, I got 60% and missed questions where I usually knew the answer, but just didn't really focus.

Don't rush yourself

At some point, you'll get tired of taking all the exams and studying more and more. You just want it to get over with.

But take your time!

Pressuring yourself to take the exam won't bring you closer to your goal.
There really is no rush.

Rather take it 1 or 2 weeks later and succeed, than force yourself to take it as soon as possible and fail.

Focus on the Questions

This one is a biggie.

I failed so many practice exams because I lost focus.

If there is one thing that you take from here then it's this:

Read the question slowly and carefully.

You will have 90 or 80 questions, and most questions are a paragraph long.

It's completely normal to lose focus but bring yourself back and don't just skim some of the questions and think that you understood them.
I did that so many times and when I was looking at my mistakes, I couldn't believe what I was doing.

If you are familiar with the terms and concepts, most times you will find the answer immediately while reading the question, since the definition is mentioned in there or you'll.

Again. Take your time and read slowly and carefully. It will save you a lot of time and frustration.

Take a glimpse at the provided answers before you read the question

What also helped me is looking at the possible answers and then reading the questions.

It would give me an insight into what the question was about and as soon as some keywords were mentioned, I knew which answers to cancel out and which ones to consider.

When To Take The Exam

After I postponed the exam for the 4th time, I still failed some practice exams and I wasn't really sure if I was ready.

Then I did some research and read in some subreddits that other people had taken the exam, also only reached 60-70% in the practice exams (especially Dion and Chappelle Exams) and still passed the real exam.

A nice quote that I took to heart:
"You never feel fully ready".

And that's so true, but still, please feel confident in the areas that you studied for.

I took the exam because I took so many practice exams beforehand, and in the end, I passed some of them and I knew that a couple of days or weeks ago, I would have never been capable of doing that.

You should take a look at the resource section that I mentioned above. Take these exams!

The Exam

So when I was finally taking the exam, it started with a couple of performance-based questions.

And I gotta tell you, I don't know if it felt so because I was nervous and felt like I had forgotten some of the things I'd learned, but they were hard.

Also, the interface wasn't the best, and sometimes the instructions weren't so clear, so it took me a while to figure it out.

Luckily, you can just "flag" a question and review it at the end of the exam.
I recommend you do that if you're not sure.

Because if one performance-based question is harder than the other, you quickly doubt if you'll make it.

That was the hardest part, and the rest of the multiple-choice questions were similar to the practice exams.
But still, a bit harder than I expected.

I think the performance-based questions made me a bit unsure of succeeding and that kind of set the tone for the rest of the exam.

So don't underestimate the exam, even if people say ist easier than the practice exams.

Since I spent a lot of time on the performance-based questions, I lost a lot of time, even when I thought that there was enough time for the exam.

Anything I wasn't sure about, I just reviewed at the end of the exam, and that helped.

When in doubt, just come back to the question later and you'll have a clearer mind.

Sometimes you can get trapped in that little shock state where you don't know if you pass or fail and focusing on the easier part will give you the required confidence.

Conclusion

I know that there are some people on YouTube saying how they managed to study for the exam within 2 weeks and pass, but honestly, if you are a newbie or even don't have much background in Cybersecurity, there is no way.

And even if, accept it and don't let it affect you.
Because once it gets tough to study or you're having a hard time understanding the material and passing the practice exams, things will get frustrating really quickly.
You might even start to question how others can pass it in that short amount of time and you don't.

Been there, and trust me, that will get you nowhere and only hinder you from moving forward.

So even if you only take 2 things away from this article then it's this:

--> Take A LOT of practice exams, you will see why

--> Read every question CAREFULLY and FOCUSED, you will avoid so many unneeded mistakes

Getting a certification like this just makes you undertake more of the industry in general and might even reveal which area you want to go towards.

Furthermore, it's a great motivator to continue studying for other certifications and get an idea of what's out there.

Good Luck!