From “Am I Ready?” to “Above Target”: My PMP Journey, Strategy & Lessons Learned

Getting my PMP® certification was a challenging but rewarding journey. I decided to pursue it to strengthen my project management skills and complement my engineering background. After weeks of studying, practice, and persistence, I took the exam online on August 29, 2026, and achieved Above Target in all three domains.

Since I took the exam after the July 2026 update, I experienced the newly revised format, which introduced updated domain weightings, a longer four-hour testing time, scenario-driven questions, and AI-related content aligned with the PMBOK® Guide – Eighth Edition. The exam is weighted 33% People, 41% Process, and 26% Business Environment, with 180 questions, two scheduled 10-minute breaks, and 240 minutes to complete the exam.

Throughout this blog, I’ll share my personal experience and journey with the PMP® exam. Keep in mind that everyone’s background, experience, and preparation approach is different, so what worked for me may not necessarily work the same way for you.

PMP® Requirements & Path to PMP Certification

If you’re thinking about taking the PMP®, the first step is to make sure you meet the eligibility requirements. If you have a bachelor’s degree or higher, you generally need at least three years of experience leading and managing projects. This experience can come from your professional career, academic or research projects such as a PhD, or a combination of both. You also need 35 hours of formal project management education, which can be completed through a boot camp, in-person training, PMI courses, or online platforms such as Udemy.

For me, the process was fairly straightforward, and I would break it down into four steps:

1. Check your eligibility

2. Complete the 35 hours of training

3. Submit your application

4. Register for the exam and start studying

You can find the latest eligibility requirements and application details directly on the PMI website: PMP® Certification – PMI

My Preparation Approach

Based on my experience, and having prepared mainly with sample questions from the previous exam format, I found that the new PMP® exam is less about memorization and more about understanding concepts and developing the right project management mindset. Most questions are scenario-based, including case studies, charts, and drag-and-drop questions, with the majority being multiple-choice scenarios that often include two or more seemingly reasonable answers.

In general, I found it important to think like a project manager rather than simply look for a technically correct answer. A good approach is to understand the situation first, gather the necessary information, analyze the problem, identify the root cause, and then determine the appropriate response rather than immediately jumping to a solution. I found this approach consistent with the principles outlined in the PMBOK® Guide and highly relevant to real-world project management.

The exam covers predictive (traditional/waterfall), agile, and hybrid approaches, so I focused on understanding the principles behind each rather than memorizing processes.

Core PMP Mindset Principles

One of the biggest parts of preparing for the PMP® was understanding the project management mindset behind the questions. There are many principles to learn, but the following are the ones I found most useful during my preparation and that I believe are also valuable in real project delivery.

1. Understand before you act
   Don’t immediately jump to a solution. First understand what is happening, gather the relevant information, and identify the actual problem.

2. Be proactive, not reactive
   Try to identify risks and concerns early and address them before they become bigger problems.

3. Find the root cause
   Treating the symptom may solve a problem temporarily. When appropriate, use tools such as 5 Whys or a Fishbone (Ishikawa) diagram to understand what is really causing the issue.

4. Collaborate before escalating
   Try to work with your team and stakeholders to resolve an issue first. Escalate (not as a first option) when it goes beyond your authority or requires a higher-level decision.

5. Lead by supporting your team
   A project manager is not there to micromanage every task. Support, coach, facilitate, empower the team, and help remove obstacles.

6. Communicate openly
   Keep the right people informed at the right time. Problems should be communicated and managed, not hidden.

7. Follow the right process
   Use the appropriate project processes, governance, contracts, and organizational policies instead of taking shortcuts.

8. Manage changes properly
   A request from a stakeholder does not automatically mean the project should change. Understand the impact and follow the appropriate change-management process.

9. Engage stakeholders early
   Understand stakeholders' expectations, concerns, and needs from the beginning rather than waiting for problems to appear.

10. Focus on value, not just delivery
    A successful project is not only about meeting scope, schedule, and budget. Think about the outcomes, benefits, customer needs, and business value the project is supposed to create.

11. Empower the team
    Give people ownership of their work and involve them in decisions that affect them whenever appropriate.

12. Adapt your leadership style
    There is no single leadership style that works in every situation. Adjust your approach based on the team, project, organization, and circumstances.

13. Use facts and project information
    Avoid making decisions based only on assumptions. Look at available data, project documents, metrics, and stakeholder input before deciding.

14. Build quality into the work
    Quality should not only be checked at the end. Preventing problems and continuously improving the process is often more effective than simply finding defects later.

15. Understand conflict before trying to solve it
    Conflict is not always a bad thing. Try to understand what is causing it, encourage communication, and work toward a solution rather than immediately imposing one.

16. Tailor your approach
    There is no need to blindly follow one methodology. Choose and adapt predictive, Agile, or hybrid practices based on the project's needs and context.

17. Keep learning and improving
    Projects rarely go exactly as planned. Capture lessons, review what worked and what didn't, and use that experience to improve future projects.

For me, the most important takeaway is that these principles are not just for answering PMP questions. They are useful ways of thinking when dealing with real project challenges, teams, stakeholders, risks, and decisions.

What I Studied and How Much

Preparation time will vary depending on your previous project management experience and exposure to projects. I would recommend focusing on understanding the concepts and developing the right mindset rather than simply trying to reach a certain number of study hours.

It is possible to prepare for the exam within a few weeks, but passing the PMP® and becoming a good project manager are not necessarily the same thing. The certification can test your understanding of PMI's recommended approaches, which may sometimes differ from how projects are handled in practice. For me, preparing for the PMP was also an opportunity to reflect on these differences and adjust my thinking where needed.

Before starting your exam preparation, you need to meet the 35 hours of project management education requirement and have your PMP® application approved. There are many options, including boot camps, PMI courses, and online platforms. I used a David McLachlan course on Udemy and found it useful for building the fundamentals. Andrew Ramdayal is another good option. I would recommend choosing one instructor whose teaching style works for you rather than taking multiple full courses.

Once my application was approved, I registered for the exam and set a target date. I found having a fixed date helpful because it gave me a clear timeline and kept me accountable.

My focused preparation took less than one month, while working full-time and managing other commitments. I estimate that I spent around 50–60 hours in total, including approximately 20 hours on my Udemy course. I watched the course at around 1.5–2× speed, which worked well for me.

I also used YouTube to reinforce concepts and practice situational questions. PM Aspirant was particularly useful for PMP mindset and scenario-based questions, while David McLachlan provided helpful videos on PMBOK® concepts, PMP preparation, agile, and sample questions.

Overall, I did not try to memorize the entire PMBOK® Guide. I focused on understanding the concepts, practicing scenarios, and learning how to approach questions from a project manager's perspective. This approach worked well for me and contributed to my Above Target result.

Resources I Used

One of my favorite resources was PM Aspirant, where you can find a variety of useful PMP® materials. In particular, I found the Project Management Process Group and Knowledge Area Mapping Game very helpful. I recommend trying the game a few times, it’s a good way to become familiar with the processes and their relationships.

I also used some sample questions from PMP Exam Prep: Questions, Answers, & Explanations: 1,000+ Practice Questions with Detailed Solutions by Christopher Scordo. The questions are based on older versions of the PMBOK® Guide, so I would not use them as my primary preparation resource for the current exam. However, if you have extra time, they can still be useful for practicing questions and reinforcing fundamental project management concepts.

These were the main resources I used during my PMP® preparation.

Andrew Ramdayal

• 35 Hours of PMP® Training: Andrew Ramdayal’s PMP® course on Udemy

• Andrew Ramdayal – YouTube Channel

PM Aspirant

• PM Aspirant – YouTube Channel

• 42 PMP Mindsets Explained | The PMP Exam Mindset Framework

• 150 Agile Review and Questions for PMP Exam

David McLachlan

• David McLachlan – YouTube Channel

• The Complete Project Management Body of Knowledge in One Video – PMBOK® Guide 8th Edition

• The Complete Project Management Body of Knowledge in One Video – PMBOK 7th Edition

• The PMP Fast Track – The FASTEST Way to Get Up to Speed for Your PMP Exam

• Complete Agile Course in 15 Minutes

Written by: Hadi Mokarizadeh, PhD, EIT, PMP | Linkedin