We get it; you’re so determined to become Project Management Professional certified that you want to optimize everything you can to achieve that goal and earn your PMP as fast as possible.
That’s a fantastic goal! And when you properly prepare yourself and set your mind to it, you might even surprise yourself with how quickly you can get there.
But it’s also important to remember that to earn your PMP isn’t a casual walk in the park or an easy-breezy exam you can take lightly. Instead, this is a certification that tells your future employers and associates that you are a highly qualified individual who can manage projects, large and small, and getting to that point will require dedicated focus to prepare for the PMP exam.
The PMP exam is 180 questions and just under four hours long, and it is an extremely challenging exam, so it’s crucial to take your journey there as seriously as possible.
Don’t let that scare you – you can do it. With some effort, you can go from “zero to PMP hero” in 1 month! We’ve had many Velociteach students tell us they knew nothing of the PMP (didn’t even know the meaning of the 3 letters), took our 4-day class, studied after class, sat for the exam and passed all in 1 month!
As we said, this is a wonderful opportunity for you, and Velociteach is here to help. So let’s talk about what you can do to earn your PMP as quickly as possible.
Setting Realistic Goals
Have you ever set out to accomplish something only to realize that you’ve set yourself up for failure? Sometimes our dreams can be just a bit bigger than our plan.
And it’s healthy to push to extend your grasp; however, keeping that reach within realistic expectations will help maintain healthy and positive progress.
Velociteach.com has a plethora of options for anyone trying to earn their PMP.
- Self-study resources including the best-selling book, audio, and guides for DIY Students.
- Self-paced, online courses and simulated practice tests written by PMP-certified, real-world project managers.
- A four-day boot camp class led by PMP-certified instructors which includes everything above plus a bounty of study materials, support from the Velociteach team, and a money-back guarantee.
If you’re interested in taking advantage of our four day class, then Velociteach will keep you on track with our tried and tested curriculum, study materials, and support from your instructor and the Velociteach team. This option allows you to dedicate specific days for the course and follow-up studies and tackle your PMP exam preparation in a shorter amount of time overall.
We’ll talk more about the right plan of action for you in a bit, but let’s say you’re interested in teaching yourself using our resources.
If that sounds like you, it’s important to take a look at your calendar and map out what and when you’ll be studying.
Scheduling
The focus of this article is about how to earn your PMP as quickly as possible, but you must take a realistic look at your schedule. You aren’t going to start studying for this and cram everything into your head in a couple of days. You certainly wouldn’t want to, and you probably wouldn’t retain much! There is simply too much material to cover that fast.
You probably already have a schedule full of responsibilities, from work to personal responsibilities. Take a look at your calendar and identify times you can set aside to study.
If your desire is to go from “zero to PMP hero” in 1 month, you’ll need lots of time dedicated to that effort on your schedule. Be realistic in your approach.
Having an organized calendar that tells you when and for how long you’re studying will keep you on top of your game by removing distracting questions like, “Should I be studying right now?” or, “It’s been a few hours, am I done?”
Focus
We live in a truly wonderful age. With technology, we have just about anything you could ever want with just a click of a button:
- The latest movies and television shows.
- Endless online content.
- Online stores of literally any kind.
- Constant News stories.
- Videos about sad cats that are now happy.
- New pictures of your family and friends.
- Music videos from today and your childhood.
- New recipes to try out for dinner.
- Messages to and from anyone you want.
This list could go on, but we think you get the point: There are so many options for what you could be doing that you aren’t studying.
The temptation to flip through apps and distract yourself is there at all times, and distractions slow us down from achieving our goals no matter how entertaining they are.
So what do we do?
Remove The Distractions
We’re all so used to being constantly “plugged in” to the internet and the world around us that removing yourself from all of it can feel strange. But trust us, it can be a huge help.
Putting your phone on airplane mode and even leaving it in the other room while you’re focusing on class or studies can seriously help you pay attention to what’s in front of you.
A step further would be disconnecting your computer from the internet, if that’s a possibility. Obviously, this wouldn’t work if you were taking an online course, but this might help those of us struggling not to see what the YouTube algorithm has in store for us during study periods. But, if you are reading through our exam-prep book, grab some highlighters and pens, and close your laptop.
Removing the distractions like this, even just for a while, really helps to remove that temptation. If you have access to so many possible distractions within your pocket, it may feel much harder to resist them than if you had to get up and walk across the room.
Take Practice Tests
Practice with high-quality sample questions. It may have been a dozen years since you have taken your last standardized test, and that fact amps up the anxiety! One of the keys to success we hear from students: take practice tests. Simulating the actual exam will get your senses alert, back in tune with the rigors and time constraints of this PMP exam.
We offer some of the most effective, highly-rated practice tests on the market. All of our questions are aligned with the current Exam Content Outline from PMI. And, our online PMP exam simulator is extremely popular with all customers… from the DIY, to the student who attends the four-day bootcamp. After passing the actual exam, many of our students tell us that our practice tests were a key to their success, and closely matched those questions on the actual PMP exam.
Being Mentally and Physically Prepared
Have you ever sat down to study and just feel antsy or unsettled? As if you can’t bring your mind to focus on the lesson in front of you?
This might be because you didn’t take time to mentally and physically prime yourself for studying, and you’re asking yourself to abruptly shift gears, which doesn’t always go so well.
Using a calendar when you’re studying is a huge help but try taking a few minutes before studying to shift away from whatever you were doing beforehand.
Put your phone down, take a few deep breaths and think about what you’ll be studying. Put yourself into the proper mindset to focus on your topics for that session and out of something that might distract you.
If you go from streaming a show right into studying, you might end up wasting a chunk of time just thinking about the show. A dedicated shift break between things helps carry you smoothly into a focused study session.
Know How To Take A Break
We know it might sound counterintuitive, but research has shown that students retain the most information from studying and working when they divide their time into 45 to 60-minute blocks, taking breaks in between.
We all know that feeling of pushing through the study materials and spending all night trying to read, and suddenly you find yourself slipping through a paragraph and having to re-read a sentence.
Your brain can only stay completely focused on something for so long, not to mention your eyes getting strained or tired.
Taking short, five to ten-minute breaks throughout your studies, every hour or so, will help you avoid the mental fatigue people might associate with studying.
You may reward yourself with scheduled breaks to check email, dabble in social media, take a walk, or grab a snack; just remember to take a minute to shift back into your studies. Set a timer and find that study rhythm that works best for you.
The Right Courses
We promised we would come back to this!
Velociteach has several great options for all learners because we know everyone takes in information differently.
PMP Class
How can I earn the PMP as quickly as possible? This class is your best choice.
Our PMP 6th Edition Plus Agile Exam Prep Class includes:
- Four days of training led by a PMP-certified instructor who can relate the PMI content to real-world examples and answer your questions.
- The best-best-selling book The PMP Exam: How to Pass on Your First Try by Velociteach CEO and renowned PMP, Andy Crowe.
- Study tool kit with a quick reference guide, a flashcard app, and over 8 hours of audio files.
- 35+ contact hours of PM education and experience you can use to apply to take the PMP exam.
- Practice Tests! Highly effective exam simulator that includes over 1100 questions, answers, & explanations – all aligned to the current exam. Includes all the latest question formats, too.
We don’t want to toot our own horn too much, but professionals and students highly rate the effectiveness of these classes. We’ve been perfecting this class for nearly 2 decades, and we’ve optimized the class to prepare you as much as possible for your PMP exam. A common quote from students after class: “I cannot believe how much I’ve learned in 4 days!”
DIY
Can’t take off four days of work to attend that much class at once? We completely understand. If you’re a hard-working individual trying to balance work and education, then we’ve got online courses available to take at your own pace.
The Complete PMP Exam Prep Bundle includes over 35 hours of online education as well as 1100 practice questions in a simulated exam environment. This bundle includes instructor narrated lessons, formula sheets, exercises, exam tips and more, all designed to prepare you for that rigorous PMP exam.
This bundle is made up of 4 courses that can be purchased individually as well. Each are offered in subscription lengths ranging from one week to six months, so you can set your own pace.
In Conclusion
It’s possible to get PMP certified in 1 month. How quickly you can earn your PMP is up to you and your schedule. Here at Velociteach, we are passionate about providing you with all of the tools and education you’ll need to pass.
Whether you fit your studies into your free time or take advantage of our four-day Bootcamp course, helping you pass and earn the PMP is our number one goal.
Remember, our CEO literally wrote the #1 book on how to pass on your first try.