Great initiative! Studying for the CISSP is a lot like scuba diving: safety protocols dictate you never go down alone. Having a "dive buddy" doesn't just keep you from getting lost in the depths of the 8 domains; it provides critical support when the exam pressure rises.
For this retake, the best approach is to adopt an Incident Response mindset. You’ve already experienced the "incident" (the first attempt); now you are in the Lessons Learned phase. By analyzing which controls failed and reinforcing those gaps, success in the "Recovery" phase is guaranteed.
Here is a proposed "Order of Battle" for those looking for a study partner:
Action Plan (Lessons Learned)
- Gap Analysis: Review your previous score report. Don't waste time on what you already know—focus heavily on the domains where you were "Below Proficiency."
- Mindset Calibration: Shift from "Engineer" to "Manager." The CISSP isn't testing if you can fix the cable; it's testing if you can decide if the risk of replacing that cable is acceptable for the business.
- High-Pressure Drills: Run practice questions in sets of 50 to build the mental stamina required for the CAT adaptive format.
Study Buddy Dynamics
- The "Why" Method: It’s not enough to pick option A. The exercise is to explain to your partner why A is correct AND why B, C, and D are technical distractors but not the ideal administrative answer.
- Whiteboard Sessions: Explain complex processes (like SAML flows, BCP steps, or SDLC phases) to your partner as if they were a client. If you can't explain it simply, you haven't mastered it yet.
- Rapid-Fire Flashcards: 15-minute "blitz" sessions on raw concepts (ports, key lengths, fire classes) to free up mental bandwidth for critical thinking during the exam.
P.S. I’m a certified Rescue Diver and I just passed my CISSP exam last week. It can be done. Believe in yourself!
