Hey all. Long time lurker here. Finally decided to participate and make a journal. Been using US/LM since version 2 was released (Oct 11th 2018).
Background Info - Age 29. Unemployed bum. Don't want to say exactly where I live but it's a small country. Got terminated from my job a couple years ago due to struggles with various mental issues (severe anxiety; depression; existential crisis etc). It was a good, well-paying job but I honestly didn't love it. Since it was a "specialized" job, I can't use those qualifications and experience anywhere else, meaning I have to re-qualify myself from scratch. Well, kinda. Many years ago I finished all but the final year of a degree in Information Technology. Before enrolling for the final year I had been accepted to train for a job (same one I was terminated from) and just never bothered to finish school. In 2017, I got fed up of just wallowing all the time and decided to finally finish. Well, in July of last year I completed the degree. Used MLS for the first semester with good results. Finished with first class honors overall. That was a big morale boost and I wanted to keep the momentum going.
So in August decided I wanted to learn and specialize in Networking so I decided to pursue CCNA certification (the most popular networking cert). According to my research, it's recommended to take the certification exam in two parts (ICND1 and ICND2) if you're a networking newbie like myself, instead of the single composite exam which is super difficult and meant for more experienced folk. So that was my plan. I enrolled for a small class in a college taught part time by a Network Engineer. That was a mistake. The class moved along at breakneck speed and I was barely able to keep up. Got demotivated and started wondering if networking is really for me lol. A lot of my fellow students had jobs in the field and were understanding the material, making me feel inferior. Also, the class was not structured in such a way such that ICND1 material would be taught first followed by ICND2. Our teacher said there wasn't enough time to do it that way. It was really demotivating to be reading "chapter 1 - what is networking?" at home only to come to class and have in depth discussion on "RIP" and "BGP" routing protocols. In the end, I just turned on the voice recorder in class to record the sessions and go into a daze until it was over. Well, that class finished in December and I hadn't really learned much. Should have self-studied from the start by reading the official textbooks, which is how most people seem to do it. However since class ended I've been doing nothing but wallowing again.
You guys might laugh at this given what I typed so far but my main goal on USLM is to actually become a network engineer. Even if I manage to get off my arse and get certified, the IT field is sooo saturated in this country that it would be a borderline miracle to find an opportunity. Plus, I don't have relevant work experience, which trumps everything. Yet another demotivating factor. I just want to get my foot in the door somewhere as a tech and work my way up. Probably the biggest reason I'm using US/LM - for the potential opportunities it can manifest. BUT - Gotta execute. Gotta get certified. Gotta read chapter 1. Got to follow the instructions of the sub! Oh boy have I not been doing that. I have been really naughty regarding sub-use lately. Twice I have gotten frustrated and closed VLC before the first loop was even over. Convinced myself I needed a break for a few days.
So this is where I'm at now. We'll see how things go from here...
This is how my goals are written by the way:
1. Main long term goal is to be a successful network engineer who enjoys his job.
2. Sub-goal of the one above is to become CCNA certified by the end of May 2019 (this one might be a little over ambitious for me, but we'll see) and get my foot in the door somewhere.
3. Sub-goal of the one above is to study for at least a few hours every single day.
Of course there's a lot more areas of my life I'd love to improve (fitness, making friends etc) but I'm keeping my written goals to what I want most right now.
Background Info - Age 29. Unemployed bum. Don't want to say exactly where I live but it's a small country. Got terminated from my job a couple years ago due to struggles with various mental issues (severe anxiety; depression; existential crisis etc). It was a good, well-paying job but I honestly didn't love it. Since it was a "specialized" job, I can't use those qualifications and experience anywhere else, meaning I have to re-qualify myself from scratch. Well, kinda. Many years ago I finished all but the final year of a degree in Information Technology. Before enrolling for the final year I had been accepted to train for a job (same one I was terminated from) and just never bothered to finish school. In 2017, I got fed up of just wallowing all the time and decided to finally finish. Well, in July of last year I completed the degree. Used MLS for the first semester with good results. Finished with first class honors overall. That was a big morale boost and I wanted to keep the momentum going.
So in August decided I wanted to learn and specialize in Networking so I decided to pursue CCNA certification (the most popular networking cert). According to my research, it's recommended to take the certification exam in two parts (ICND1 and ICND2) if you're a networking newbie like myself, instead of the single composite exam which is super difficult and meant for more experienced folk. So that was my plan. I enrolled for a small class in a college taught part time by a Network Engineer. That was a mistake. The class moved along at breakneck speed and I was barely able to keep up. Got demotivated and started wondering if networking is really for me lol. A lot of my fellow students had jobs in the field and were understanding the material, making me feel inferior. Also, the class was not structured in such a way such that ICND1 material would be taught first followed by ICND2. Our teacher said there wasn't enough time to do it that way. It was really demotivating to be reading "chapter 1 - what is networking?" at home only to come to class and have in depth discussion on "RIP" and "BGP" routing protocols. In the end, I just turned on the voice recorder in class to record the sessions and go into a daze until it was over. Well, that class finished in December and I hadn't really learned much. Should have self-studied from the start by reading the official textbooks, which is how most people seem to do it. However since class ended I've been doing nothing but wallowing again.
You guys might laugh at this given what I typed so far but my main goal on USLM is to actually become a network engineer. Even if I manage to get off my arse and get certified, the IT field is sooo saturated in this country that it would be a borderline miracle to find an opportunity. Plus, I don't have relevant work experience, which trumps everything. Yet another demotivating factor. I just want to get my foot in the door somewhere as a tech and work my way up. Probably the biggest reason I'm using US/LM - for the potential opportunities it can manifest. BUT - Gotta execute. Gotta get certified. Gotta read chapter 1. Got to follow the instructions of the sub! Oh boy have I not been doing that. I have been really naughty regarding sub-use lately. Twice I have gotten frustrated and closed VLC before the first loop was even over. Convinced myself I needed a break for a few days.
So this is where I'm at now. We'll see how things go from here...
This is how my goals are written by the way:
1. Main long term goal is to be a successful network engineer who enjoys his job.
2. Sub-goal of the one above is to become CCNA certified by the end of May 2019 (this one might be a little over ambitious for me, but we'll see) and get my foot in the door somewhere.
3. Sub-goal of the one above is to study for at least a few hours every single day.
Of course there's a lot more areas of my life I'd love to improve (fitness, making friends etc) but I'm keeping my written goals to what I want most right now.
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