Passed the PMP on Jan 23, 2013.

Here are my Lessons Learned. Do not leave a gap between studying and test date. Go for it. Find a PM mentor or a least someone who will cheer you on. You can do it!

First Round (Jan-March 2012)
Read Rita 2x, Head First 1x, Read PMBOK 1x
Took a local PMP prep course.
Completed Rita and Head first questions.
Study groups

Second Round (November 2012- January 2013)
Rita Review 1x
HeadFirst Review 1x
PMBOK 1x through and as daily reference.
PMP eReads as additional references (PMBOK Q&A, Chris Scordo Questions, etc.)
Oliver Lehmann 's Questions
PMzilla questions
BrainBok ITTO, flashcards, and questions.
PM PrepCast (downloaded video to my phone and just listed on my commute)
PrepCast questions.
Online forums such as PMZilla.
Rajesh Nair's notes

Attitude
Deflated when I failed the first time. It was clear that I did not have enough
experience to fully understand the PMBOK. I also had a lot on my plate, the
biggest being searching for a job after a year and a half of unemployment. Total
Stress. However, after I got my new job as an IT project manager, my confidence
improved, reengaged in my studies and moved forward. BTW, I work within a PMO
and we use PMBOK best practices. Just being in this environment increased my
knowledge and confidence.

I have a lot of gaps in my experience, I knew that the odds were against me on
this exam, but I was very motivated to learn. I told myself not to feel
badly if I failed again or passed at bare minimum. I was committed to being a
good PM and I was going to keep trying.

Approach:
Processes: Understand the the purpose of the process, the ITTOs from the
perspective of what do you need to start and what do you have in hand when you
finish. Do you have what you need in place to even start a process? Where do I go
next?

Know the key terms for every knowledge area. Rita's Quick test is a good
checklist. Know the PMI-isms. Read Rajesh Nair's notes.

Assessed why I got the questions wrong, referenced the PMBOK. Asked a PMP
PM if I couldn't figure it out. Took notes, organized and reviewed my notes.

Biggest change in studying was to complete as many questions as I can everyday.

Night before. Light review, good dinner, and a good night sleep.

Exam Day

No cramming. Had a good run to get the circulation going, took my test in the afternoon.
Used my 15 minutes to do a brain dump on the formulas.

Find and read the question first and then go back and read the background. I
found it helped me to keep focus on the question and to help me weed out unnecessary information.

Test was hard as expected. Passed the PMP! Yea!

Brenda M. , PMP