Elevating Your Career with the RCDD Designation

Ever wondered what makes an RCDD tick or how it could skyrocket your career in the ICT industry? Your favorite RCDD , Chuck Bowser, is here to answer the 5 most commonly asked questions about the RCDD credential .

This episode is a deep dive into what it truly means to hold the coveted RCDD credential and how it's not just another title, but a game-changing asset. We tackle the top queries about RCDD, from prerequisites to the transformative effect it can have on your professional life and the exciting world of crafting top-tier communication networks.

Wrap up your evening by tuning in as we explore the synergies between project management certifications like RTPM and RCDD. Experience firsthand accounts of how these credentials can propel you to new heights, and get armed with the strategies to ace that forthcoming RCDD exam. With heartfelt anecdotes and practical advice, this chapter isn't just a guide; it's a testament to the dedication and sacrifices required to excel. So, grab your study buddy, join our next study group, and let's navigate the pursuit of excellence together.

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

Thursday night 6 pm, eastern Standard Time. You know that can only mean one thing live after hours with your favorite RCDD and don't even try to pretend like I'm not. Don't even try to pretend, don't even try to. You know I'm your favorite RCD. Jane is in the house. Were your ears burning, jane, cause I was talking about you at the Bixie Conference. I was talking about you cause I'm trying, we gotta get you on the show. Still my fault for dropping the ball, but I need to get you on the show. So, welcome, welcome.

Speaker 1: 0:38

So you know we start off every show with what are you drinking? What are you drinking? And you know a lot of people don't realize this my camera's showing the ceiling there. Let's get rid of that ceiling. There we go. It's actually kind of cold in Florida right now. It is. So I'm drinking hot chocolate today. Look at my knowledge of power coffee cup. Yeah, yeah, knowledge of power. It was warm there. You know, monday, tuesday, wednesday. But then Miss Taddard's in the house. Hey, miss Taddard, love your content, love the Taddard text content too.

Speaker 1: 1:19

So I was at Bixie this week and, man, man, what I got a fan watching the live stream at 36,000 feet. How the heck are you doing that, jeff? I didn't think you could do video on the airplanes. I thought they limited that, right. Yeah, so yeah, thank you, kevin. What are you drinking? I was drinking hot chocolate. I also got my Roots to Beers Evie right here as well.

Speaker 1: 1:47

So what are you drinking? Tell us in the comments. Tell us in the comments, right? So let me see what is Michael drinking. He is drinking organic sparkling apple cider. I love apple cider.

Speaker 1: 1:59

I grew up in Maryland. We used to have a lot of apple farms and I loved the fall, because I was. You got a lot of apples, but you also got a lot of apple cider. Oh man, I really, really loved it. So the next thing we always move on to is what you know. Come on, take a guess. Take a guess. What's the next thing? Anybody, anybody. The acronym challenge. The acronym challenge. Miss Tatted, on Tick Tock, is saying she's on her third cup of vanilla iced coffee. Nice, nice.

Speaker 1: 2:30

So the subject the acronym for this week's show is SMIEE. This is an acronym that even I didn't know. I was sitting in one of the master classes and the guy popped up his name. He was R-C-D-D-O-S-P-M-O-U-S-E and all the fun stuff, and then he had SMIEE. I didn't know what that meant. I had to go look it up. Yeah, put it in the chat box if you think you know what SMIEE stands for.

Speaker 1: 2:59

I'll give you another couple of seconds before I give the answer there, right? So let me see Chuck Wilson's drinking a Morgan and Coke. Chuck, you're not a rocket buddy, you're not a rocket. And Jane is drinking sparkling water, orange cream soda, very good. Mike's taking a guess at it. He's saying subject matter something, something, nope, nope, nope, that's not it. That's not it. It stands for a senior member of the IEEE. Senior member of the IEEE, that's the. I saw that and I was like what the heck? I don't know what that acronym is. I had to go look it up. So that's what it stands for. That's the. There we go, kevin. Well, you were just a tiny bit late. I already gave out the answer. Doesn't count if I give out the answer, right? So let's go ahead and let me flip back over to graphics. Turn off that graphic, boom, kaboom. Now let's move into.

Speaker 1: 3:57

Let's talk about the next thing. You know I was at the Bixie show this week and you know that they just released the 15th edition TDMM right before the Bixie conference. And so while I was there, you know what I bought. Take a guess. Take a guess of what Chuck bought while he was there. It just came in today. It just came in today, the 15th edition TDMM. Yes, just came in today and it is so fresh so, thinking fresh, I haven't even put the pages in it yet, cause I mean, I literally went out and got it out of my.

Speaker 1: 4:34

The FedEx driver dropped it off the gate at the front yard. I literally put it up like five and 50, right, like right before, the right before the show. So the 15th edition is here. I got both the electronic and the hard copy. I usually give away the hard copy, but I'm not doing it at this time. I'm keeping the hard copy this time. Maybe, maybe I might give away a hard copy of the 15th edition later in the years. I don't know. We'll think about that.

Speaker 1: 4:59

Kind of depends how well the podcast does, right? Oh, by the way, speaking of how well the podcast does, yeah, if you get a chance, make sure you find a way to support us. Yeah, you can do it through Linktree on the thing up there in the TikTok land. You can go to the webpage. Let's talk here on the webpage and there's ways there for you can support, even also looking for corporate sponsors, because you know, going to these events like the Big C event, stuff it costs money. It costs money and when I was at the Big C event I came across of my three days, I was there 85 people who were fans of the podcast, 85 people at the big event, the big winter conference.

Speaker 1: 5:45

But that's not what I'm most impressed with or what I'm most humbled by. I'm most humbled by the number of people who came up to me and said Chuck, because of you, I'm studying from RCDD. Chuck, because of you, I passed my RCDD and the best compliment that I got happened at the awards banquet last night. So I'm sitting at my table. I was pretty much left by myself. Everybody left.

Speaker 1: 6:17

I was just kind of sitting there doing social media posts, as usual. So I was doing social media posts. George is in the house, kalen's in the house. So I'm sitting there doing social media posts and this guy comes up to me and he says you're Chuck Bowser. I'm like, yes, he goes.

Speaker 1: 6:33

I got to tell you my son was in communications. He got out of communications and he found your podcast. Now he's back in communications and he's studying for his RCDD. How humbling is that. How humbling is that? Right, I made a comment in a video I did posted today, that you know content creators get. They get stuck in the hamster wheel chasing likes. I chase impact. I want to know how I impacted your life. That's harder to measure because I don't know if you don't tell me so, if you're watching this on YouTube or LinkedIn or Facebook or TikTok. If I have somehow impacted your life because of the podcast, put it in the chat box, put it in the thing so I can see it. Okay, because that's the wind underneath my wings. That's what really really gets me going. It really does. So I will repeat this. I said it in the last live stream If you are in the 14th edition 14th edition you still have time to take your test.

Speaker 1: 7:37

All right. If you've got your application in and it's accepted, you have a year. From that point, you're good to go. If you have not put in your application yet, get it in now and get it accepted. Basically, we'll accept applications up to the end of I think it was May, if I remember right. Don't wait till the end of May to put it in and then, once you get accepted, you have 30 days. You have a year to take the test. From that point, bixie will continue to give the proctor of the exam on the 14th edition TDMM up until the 1st of June 2025. So if you're studying the 14th edition now, you do have time. You do have time. Just don't wait. Don't wait, okay. Also, let's talk K-Wing merchandise. So I got. Let's talk K-Wing shirts, wire Monkey shirts, knowledge's Power shirts. Consider buying one. It helps pay for the podcast. It really does. Right now, the podcast is, like I said, not bringing in a whole bunch of money and I need to do something to get some money coming in here. I really, I really really do.

Speaker 1: 8:43

Did you happen to see last week's episode of the podcast? Did you? Let me know in the chat box if you've seen it. It was the best episode, the biggest episode, the hardest episode that I've ever done. So I did a roundtable discussion on site in Austin Texas, three different camera views, seven different microphones. It took me 47 hours to edit that. Now, just to kind of give you a little bit of a reference A normal episode which is a normal episode which is 30 minutes to 45 minutes. It takes me usually an hour and a half to edit it. So that's how complicated that episode was.

Speaker 1: 9:30

Next week next week is going to be a really good one. I am documenting the journey of an RCDD candidate and he's like. I saw him. I saw him post in here. He's here today or here tonight. I mean, where is he? Here he is, yeah, he is definitely in here right now. So, yeah, I'm going to be documenting. So first conversation is we're going to ask, we're going to talk about why he did it, and then in a few months, we're going to talk about when he takes his exam and we'll talk about how that. So we're going to document and follow along as that because of that, right, oh, look at this, oh, my gosh, look at this. Jane is considering studying it because of me. Man, that is absolutely humbling, right. And look, here's another one. Consider studying it because of me.

Speaker 1: 10:18

That I cannot. You know, if it absolutely flatters me that people take time out of their life, whether it's in a car, driving, or if that's whatever just or time away from the kids, and they listen to me in the content, I just I can't even begin to tell you how flattering that is, because I don't. I struggle with content, I struggle with being in front of the camera and I struggle with my, my, my self-doubt. You probably do this as well. I watch my videos for critique. I don't watch them for any other reason other than to critique myself, and the sound of my voice makes me cringe and my filler words make me just like nails on a chalkboard. So when I look at my content, I just, I just my skin crawls. But so when people come up to me and say, look, because of the, the, the, what you're doing, it has impacted my life and it's helped me. That helps me get past my, my inadequacies. Right, look, jeff, work I'm. I met him at big C. He was in the third RCD study group, third RCD study group, and, and he passed his RCD and and he's living proof that the, that the study group works. Yes, I thank you so much for that, jeff, and it's good seeing you. I wish we had had dinner last night. I really really do. I really really do.

Speaker 1: 11:37

All right, we're already at six, 13. And we're going to get to the questions. Questions here, right? So I learned from last week. Last week I did the 10 most commonly asked questions about estimating and I went way over. So I kind of said, okay, I can't do that again. So now I'm doing the most five commonly asked questions that I get when somebody talks to me about an RCD program, the five most commonly questions that I get. So let me throw up the captions here so we can do this go along. So here's the first question, right?

Speaker 1: 12:08

The first question is what is the RCDD certification and why is it important in the ICT injury? You know, I know most people watching this tonight right, most people tonight, absolutely, kalen, it is because of my Lord and Savior, who gave me the talents and treasures to be successful in this industry and be successful with the podcast. It is all because of Him, it is not because of me. Thank you, kalen, for reminding me that. Buddy, absolutely. So I still come across people who don't know what an RCDD is. They don't. And I've come across people who say, well, yeah, I'm gonna study from RCDD or actually what this says. I'm gonna study for my RCCCD. I'm like, okay, well, the first question is going to be what is an RCDD? So you better know what it is right, yeah, there you go. So this question is kind of I'm still surprised with that I come across people who don't know what it is.

Speaker 1: 13:04

So the RCDD? It stands for registered communications distribution designer. And what is that? It is a globally recognized credential, not a certification credential. A lot of people get that wrong. There's a difference between a credential and a certification, big difference. A lot of people get it wrong. So it's globally recognized. It started off obviously in the US but it has gone global, matter of fact, with the awards back. Well, last night several people who won awards were in Japan and India and some other places. So it is a globally recognized certification. I almost did a certification. It's a globally recognized credential credential.

Speaker 1: 13:44

So RCDDs are considered to be experts in anything from designing to installing to certifying, to estimating ICT projects, information communication technology projects, and that could be low voltage scaling for voice and data. It could be access control, fire alarm, av. In Jeff's case, he does a lot of DAS stuff, distributed antenna systems stuff. So we have a wide amount of experience, a wide amount. Now the certifications. I did it again. The credentials is important because it signifies to the world, it signifies to your customers, it signifies to your potential employees that you have expertise in this industry and RCDs play a crucial role in making sure that that network is gonna be reliable. It's gonna work when they download those huge files. It's gonna be able to download the large CAD files for the prints, the large images for hospitals, and it's gonna be allows to communicate efficiently.

Speaker 1: 14:58

Think about how fast our world talks today. It used to be. I remember a time that in the business world, when you would call somebody, if they weren't there, we didn't even have voicemail. We didn't even have voicemail. You had to leave a message with the person up front and they would write it on this book that had multiple layers in a carbonless paper and they write the name, they get your name, your number, and then they rip that thing off and they put that in your inbox and then the other page was still there.

Speaker 1: 15:27

I am that old. I am that old and think about today's communications. Today's communication, I mean literally. You could pick up a phone, call somebody, text somebody, and if you don't get answered within 30 seconds, you think the person's ignoring you. Well, that is only allowed because people like RCDs are putting in networks. That's why that's important, right? It's also the RCDs also gonna be important because it's gonna help you advance your career. So when I was walking around the Bixie conference, the marketing team caught me and they said Chuck, do you mind if we ask you a few questions on camera? I'm like, yeah, sure, whatever, and I wanna see the video, just kinda see how I did. And so one of the very first questions they asked me is how did my RCD certification advance my career? And my response was it was like putting gasoline on a fire. It literally launched my career. All right, I started getting offered positions that weren't available to me before I started winning projects because I could staff them with an RCDD. Right, it just absolutely launched my career.

Speaker 1: 16:32

I know a lot of people like to argue our certifications credentials, good or bad, and I don't mean one, because I already know all that stuff. I get it, I get it. I get it A credential. You know it's like marriage, right, it's absolutely like marriage. Can you live with your spouse in a house without being married? Absolutely? But what does that piece of paper do? Think about it. What does that piece of paper do when you get married to your spouse? It declares to the world that you are a couple. That's what that credential does. That's what that certification does, right. And then, when somebody who has that certification credential. They got skin in the game, so they're gonna have to do things to keep that up to speed.

Speaker 1: 17:20

Second question let me flip that graphic. I'll turn on the second question. Boom, there we go. How can you become an RCDD and what are the prerequisites? What are the prerequisites, right? So the process is really pretty streamlined. By the way, if you are considering is it Jane? Let her listen up.

Speaker 1: 17:40

If you're considering pursuing your RCDD, the very first thing you should do get on the old Google machine and type in RCDD study handbook V14,. Rcdd study handbook V14. If you're gonna test on the 15th edition I haven't checked this yet, but I bet you they've got it already RCDD handbook V15. I'm like I'm gonna have to do that. Hey, somebody who's watching or listening? Alt tab over to another screen. Go to Google, type in RCDD study handbook V15, and let me know if it pulls up a document. Okay, let me know if it pulls up a document. Well, we're gonna answer this question live. I mean, that thing is a great resource and in that book I mean, in fact, a lot of this information comes from that book, right?

Speaker 1: 18:33

So the first thing you gotta do is you gotta do your application. You gotta fill out the application. It's gonna ask you for some things. Let me make some references, maybe some job history stuff like that. You have to submit that application for approval and then it has to be approved, has to be approved. You can take up the 30 days for that to happen, 30 days. Once you're approved, you are now eligible to take the test for 12 months. 12 months, all right. So now. Now you gotta take the test right. Once you pass the test, then you go into the what's called the certification cycle and then every three years, you gotta get your 42, 46 hours of CECs and one conference. Every it's 45 approved CECs. That's what it is 45 approved CECs. You gotta maintain that credential.

Speaker 1: 19:26

And the second half of that question is how?

Speaker 1: 19:29

What are the prerequisites?

Speaker 1: 19:30

How do I know if I qualify? There are three options. I'll go with option three. First, because that's the way I did it, you have to have five or more verifiable years of design experience. A lot of people get hung up on that because they say, chuck, I wasn't an estimator. Well, estimator's not the only people who design. You know, communication systems. A project manager who's having to deal with a change order might be doing some designing. Okay, a QA person. This happened to me when I was working for Hingles. I was actually the QA person at the later half part of my career at Hingles and McQuay and I got pulled into the estimation process for a very large project and I got the help of that. So again, anybody can be doing design. So that's option three five or more years.

Speaker 1: 20:22

So the other two options are option one you can qualify to sit for the proctoring of the exam if you have two or more years of verifiable work experience in this industry and you hold another certification, like, for example, I'm a Bixie technician as well as an RCD. So if I had the tech first and I had two years of experience, I would qualify to sit for that exam. But it can be more than just the tech. It could be the RTPM, the DCDC, even the OSP right. The second option two or more years of verifiable experience in the ICT design and the completion of two years of higher education coursework. Now that could be anything from like STEM or trade school. It could be a two year degree, it can even be an apprenticeship or a certification and, for example, like a JATC apprentice thing, it could even be military training. But if you go that route, you gotta make sure that you document and you send them proof of those higher, of those, that extra work, like maybe certificates or diplomas, right, some kind of a bonafide document that's gonna help you prove that you had that experience.

Speaker 1: 21:42

Going on the question number three, question number three what does that say? I really should be putting my glasses so I can read this what are the key responsibilities of an RCDD in designing and managing low voltage projects? So, again, before I talk about some of the skills you need as an RCDD, let's talk about what RCDDs do. Okay, there are estimators, there are project managers, there are I even know some superintendents and some lead technicians who are RCDDs. Right, they could also be sales and it could be somebody. Even I know of one. I know of a person who got their RCDD and they really focus on marketing. So RCDDs do the wide gamut of jobs. So, as you can imagine the skills as it go with all them, jobs are wide ranging as well.

Speaker 1: 22:31

So, number one, you have to have a, you need to really wanna do a needs assessment and you wanna understand that the requirements and objectives for whatever project it is that you're gonna be doing. It might be a small little project of five or 10 cables. Large project with, you know, thousands of cables, because you're gonna need to understand the specific requirements and the objectives of that project and you have to be able to understand and put it together what's called a design plan for it. So, doing a design plan, you're gonna do your schematics, you're gonna measure out your cables, figure out how many blocks you need, how many jacks you need, how many faceplates you need, what kind of cable, what kind of connectors, what kind of labor, what kind of workforce, right? Is it a simple cookie cutter structured cable job we can do, maybe like a lead tech and a couple of cable pullers? Or is it gonna be a POE install where they're gonna be pulling cable but also putting in equipment to control that POE system? Well, that's a little bit higher technician right. You might have to be really good with documentation. That's everything from writing requests for information, responding to requests for quotes, doing drawings, schematics, red lines, as-built.

Speaker 1: 23:51

A good project manager should also have some skillset in project management, project management. Now, the thing with that is what project management is. There was a really good class at the. I'm gonna ask the class at the conference this year where they sat down and talked about tracking your estimated costs and controlling. It was a really good class, even had hand down stuff. So I really suggest you take a good project manager class and I highly suggest I gotta ask this question this week too.

Speaker 1: 24:21

Chuck, what's the difference between the RTPM and the PMP? I did a whole video series on it. Go back and look in the history of my podcast. You'll find it. If you are planning on staying in this industry, I highly recommend you go with the RTPM. That's the project management certificate designed for our industry. So I highly recommend that over anything else. Right, the PMP is a great certification. It's a harder certification to get.

Speaker 1: 24:47

Project management is project management. You are just managing widgets. But when you come to the communication world, if you get the RTPM, it is fine tuned to our industry I like. For example, I got an F350 farm truck. I drove over to Bixie this week and back. That's why I stayed at the hotel there, because I didn't wanna drive the Crew Cab F350 with an eight foot bed back and forth all week long and had to go through two tanks of gas. Right, I'm not gonna take my power stroke to Joe Blow, who works in the garage down the street, who's never seen a diesel before. But I will take it to somebody who has expertise in it. That's what the RTPM is. They have expertise in managing projects in the actual industry, so it's fine tuned for it. Other skill sets client communications.

Speaker 1: 25:37

You'd be surprised how many people type like this and so you gotta be really good at that. You gotta be really good at team coordination, because you're gonna be dealing with the teams installing the projects. You might be dealing with teams to estimate projects. You might be dealing with other project managers together to bring all your resources together. You also have to understand budget management. How much is in the money in the project and are we in on budget, below budget or over budget? Right, you can't just go by hours. So I know a lot of project managers they say, well, I got 1,300 hours in there and yeah, yeah, yeah, we're coming under budget under 1,300 hours. Was the crew makeup the same as what was estimated? Because if they estimated a simple crew like again a couple installers and a lead tech, and you've got lead techs and a super intendant who make more money, yeah, you might come in under those hours, but your cost per crew, cost per hour, is gonna be more and you might go in the red. Good project manager knows how to track that. Our industry is horrible at creating project managers. I'll just put that out there. I'll put that out there.

Speaker 1: 26:50

Question number four let me switch this over. Question number four bing all righty. Question number four how does the RCD certification benefit your career and professional growth? I already told you what I did to mine, dude. It was like putting gasoline on a fire. It really moved fast and furious. Quickly, because now you got industry certification that's recognized globally, like I mentioned earlier.

Speaker 1: 27:18

So again, what's it gonna do? It could potentially open up doors for your career advancement. They might consider you for the program manager position because you got your RCDD. If you're a tech or a super intendant in the field and you get your RCD, they might consider you for any project manager now more than they were before. It's also gonna make you more valuable to your employer more valuable, and generally that equates to either more money or more job security, or sometimes both. It really depends on the company, because the reason it makes you more having RCD makes you more marketable and employers might even require you to have an RCDD just to be in certain positions. It's gonna expand your knowledge. You ask anybody, ask Jeff. Jeff put it in the chat box. Going through the RCD study group did it expand your knowledge, right, right? And then when you start doing the Bixie Conference stuff, it's also going because you're going to get it once every three years. Some people go more than that but you got to get it just once every three years to maintain your, your RCDD credential.

Speaker 1: 28:27

You get to network with people. I I brought somebody along with me this time to do to help me with the podcast. It was his first, his first um Winter Conference. He owns a small communication company up in Rhode Island and he I saw him giving business cards to lots of people and that was because they are being done and staying connected with the industry. So the network with people. Now again it's staying with an RCD. You got to understand you're going to have to maintain that RCDD. Those 45 CECs you can get them through um Bixie classes. You can get them through uh, industry classes, manufacturing classes. A lot of them will get that their classes recognized.

Speaker 1: 29:14

Another thing that a lot people don't really think about when you have your RCDD is that your clients will trust you more. See, most clients. You do have some clients that we work with that understand what we do, but by far the vast majority of clients do not know what we do. They don't, so they trust us. And if you have that certification, then I know that you jump through the extra hoops and you have to maintain it so you can get more.

Speaker 1: 29:41

My wife and I were just talking about this. We were talking about, um, the shirts that I wear for the show and uh, and we were talking about the show and I told her I said well, the reason I wear my shirt is is that way, if somebody happens to be flipping through and if they see the RCDD shirt, then they may stop. If I'm just wearing it like a regular act, literally right before I had this show started, I had on my my Bixie winner conference T-shirt from last year. If I had that T-shirt on, would you recognize me instantly as a as an expert in this field? Probably not. But if you come across and you happen to see the RCDD on my shirt, you might stop and say, hey, wait a minute, that's an RCDD. What do they have to say? That's what that certification will do for you, right, if you have visions of glory of moving internationally to do cabling again. The RCDD is recognized globally. It's recognized globally.

Speaker 1: 30:37

All right, let's go to the last and final question, question number five. Question number five there we go. What tips and resources can help you prepare for the RCDD exam and succeed? I want your helpfulness. Get in the chat box for those of you guys who are in gals, who are RCDDs, now, for those of you in this room who are currently studying for your RCDD, get in the chat box right now and say here's what I use as a, here's what I use to help me for my studying as a group. Let's pull each other up because there might be somebody, might be doing something and when you read that column you go that's a great idea, that's a great idea. So put you put it in the chat box right now.

Speaker 1: 31:19

What tips do you use? So let's go for the first one, right? And these are not in any particular order. Okay, they're not. And yeah, just because I'm going to go through the order that I thought I'm up in. These are not. You know the order that you need to think. The first one's not the most important. All of these are great tips. So the first one is taking approved big C approved course, if I remember right. I want to say in the RCD study handbook I think it says to take the DD 101 and DD 102. If I remember right, this is a great course to get you prepped for it, great courses.

Speaker 1: 31:51

They also just came out with a RCDD study group. Right, it's a three, two hour class, two of six hours, it's 499. I'm actually thinking about starting up a second RCDD study group this year. So keep your eyes out for that, because I may start a second one this year, because you know, chuck doesn't have enough to do, right, right? So, yeah, keep an eye out for that.

Speaker 1: 32:13

Obviously, you have to study the TDMM and everybody has different study techniques, right, some people will read X amount of pages a day. Some people will just jump and skip. Some people think, okay, well, I think the test is really on chapters three, seven, nine and 14. So I'm just going to really cram those ones down. I highly suggest you read all the chapters, all the chapters.

Speaker 1: 32:36

I know a lot of people like to use practice exams. Those people who participate in my RCDD study group get access to practice exams. Now, the practice exams that I give are not the actual questions on the test. They're just questions that we come up with and it's just to help you gauge how well your study is doing. And the good thing about the practicing.

Speaker 1: 32:57

I was talking to somebody at the Mixed Conference and we were talking about the exam and I thought I said my biggest hurdle when I went the past month went to test for my RCD exam, because it took me two times. I failed the first time, I admit it. So what happened is the reason I failed. That first one is because I had been out of school for 20 years high school. For 20 years I had forgotten how to take tests. You got to kind of retrain your brain on how to take a test. So that's the biggest reason why I failed the exam the first time. So practice exams help you get into that mindset.

Speaker 1: 33:38

I also highly suggest, highly suggest, that you get into a RCDD study group and, as Jeff said he was in study group three that we had you get to collaborate with your peers and together you come together, discuss the what's in the TMM and you actually will get more out of it. And it's accountability. It's accountability Because now you know when you go to your weekly RCD study group, you know that you're going to have to oh my gosh, I have to have my reading done. So it helps keep you hyper focused on your reading Okay, on your reading.

Speaker 1: 34:15

So there are some other resources out there as well. There's Corey and Steve. I've never done Corey and Steve. I was talking to somebody at the conference about it this week and he said he did Corey and Steve and I asked him what he thought about it and he gave me his opinion. And I don't want to give you what his opinion was because I can't verify if it's true or false and I don't want to give them a good reputation or a bad reputation just based on one person's input that I have. But I know that. I know I've heard people say that they've used Corey and Steve. I just don't know how well of a program is, but it's out there. It's out there.

Speaker 1: 34:47

You can also create your own flashcards. You know how much is a package of the three by five index cards cost? They're pretty cheap. They're pretty cheap. Bixie does have flashcards that you can download, so it saves you the time from having to do that Right. Another good thing too is if you're not in a study group, which you should be in a study group Find somebody who already has the RSDD, so that way when you read something in the book and you have problems understanding it, you can bounce it off of somebody. And I will tell you right now.

Speaker 1: 35:19

The very first chapter in the TDMM, the principles of transmission, the very first chapter, is the hardest chapter to pass, to read and understand Because it's electoral theory and most people, unless you were going through some kind of trade school or if you're in the military, most people don't know that stuff. Most people don't Also be really good with time management. Time management Because it's gonna take. It took me, took me eight to 10 hours a week of reading, studying index cards, having people quiz me. It's a commitment. And so think about that and where you are in your life right now. Did you just have a baby and is a baby sleeping all the way through the night? If that's the case, right now maybe not be the best time to try to study for your RSDD, although I know people have done it. I know people have done it and here's another tip that a lot of people don't really think about Develop some type of relaxation techniques, because you're gonna be reading through this book and you're gonna be reading things that you just don't know what's going on and you're gonna stress out of.

Speaker 1: 36:36

You're gonna be going oh my gosh, I don't know what I'm reading. I'm gonna go fail this test. Find a way my wife calls it decompressing Find a way to decompress. The way that her and I decompress is we have a spa in our backyard, so we'll go out there and we'll sit in the spa. It faces towards the west, so we get to watch the beautiful sunset in our spa, and that's how we decompress every night. And when you find that you decompress, you're gonna find that it's absolutely going to help you, absolutely going to help you.

Speaker 1: 37:05

Let's look at some comments. Let me see we'll pick up with that one. Let's see what does it say? On the verge of taking my exam and you were a huge influence and finally applying and actually applied excellent, excellent. So, michael, your episode's coming out next Monday, by the way, let me see.

Speaker 1: 37:28

All right, jeff, here is next time. I'm sure, absolutely, cause the funny thing was there was like four or five open seats at my table. You could have easily sat at my table. There was a lot of tables that they weren't completely full. A lot of tables. Last night that was back with it.

Speaker 1: 37:42

Where can you find the study group? So the best thing to do, robert, I see that you're coming here on LinkedIn Shoot. If we're not already connected as friends on LinkedIn, send me a friend request and then, once I connect, send me a message, say, look, I wanna be in the study group. The one that we're going right now is closed but, like I said, I am considering doing a second one this year. I don't I normally do one a year, but I've got a friend who wants to help me with a second one and if that's the case, then that's gonna. We'll do second one this year, right?

Speaker 1: 38:14

What does the approval process look like and what do they review? From my understanding and maybe Jeff can clarify here they review everything. If you put down that you did this, this, this, they may call that employer right Now. If you put in your application, and then there's something that Bixie might reach out and say, look, we need more information on this, this and this. You have a very short timeframe to give them back that information. I wanna say it's seven days, right, don't sit on. And, like I said it's, they will verify it. Just assume they're gonna verify everything.

Speaker 1: 38:51

So Jane says V15 is available. Excellent, excellent. Jane, do me a favor, if you don't mind, because you and I are already friends Message that link to me in the mailbox, okay? So yeah, version 14 still online. Absolutely, I pulled it up tonight. So I know it's online, luke's in the house and it will probably stay online until June 1st 2025. Because that's when they get, that's when they last give an exam.

Speaker 1: 39:19

I don't know why this one's ringing. Actually it's not my phone, it's my work phone, so we'll just shut that off. There we go. And I want to say what does a CCS qualify? I don't know, that would be a big question. I'm not sure if that would qualify or not.

Speaker 1: 39:37

Right, so this one is to study. I was able to do the reading, the team of highlighting everything that I didn't know but thought it was gonna be important to know. Then, after our study group was done, I went back and reread the highlights and the project management chapter. Yes, absolutely. So that's the beautiful thing about the study group that I run. I record them and then I put them online where only the people in the study group can read it and then that way you go back and rewatch the video to refresh themselves. Or if they can't attend one particular night, they can go back and watch it. So, like that, chuck Wilson's in the house. Chuck Wilson is four and a half miles. That way we're almost neighbors. We're almost neighbors, him and I. One day we're gonna meet up a cracker barrel in between us and have a cup of coffee.

Speaker 1: 40:23

He said your answers need to be based on what the manual is, not from your life. Oh, yes, absolutely. And that's another reason why I failed the first exam, because I answered the questions based on what I was doing in the field, what I was trained. The answers they are seeking is the answer that you will be in the actual book. Okay, if it's not in his book, then the answer that way is wrong. Absolutely, great point. Great point, chuck. Okay, you can't. You're not a member. Okay, not a member of what? I kind of lost track there. And this question coming in and says I was able to pass my RCD by reading a TDM twice, flashcards and coin Steve for quizzes and sample tests. Be prepared, gonna put everything aside and commit to it fully, absolutely. So.

Speaker 1: 41:18

When I did mine, what I did was I told at the time I was, I had small kids in the house. Well, I say small, they were seven to 14. And I told them. I said look, when daddy comes home from work at 6.30, daddy's gonna walk into the bedroom, he's gonna close the door and he's gonna study for an hour and a half, maybe two hours. Don't bother me, we'll do something fun on the weekend to make up for it. Right, and that's how I did that. I said because if dad passes this exam, he's gonna make more money and then we can do even more fun stuff. So, yes, you got a lot of time to do it. That's an actually great point. Great point, gotcha. Alrighty, we are past the 6.30 mark. I did it again. I went over the 30 minute mark. I apologize for that, but hey, I think this is important information. I think everybody needed to know it. I really did so.

Speaker 1: 42:15

Next live stream, next live stream next week I'm doing a bigsy round table conversation. I'm gonna have four or five people come in and we're gonna talk about what we thought. I'm gonna have somebody who's a brand. Spanking me was their first conference. I'm gonna have a manufacturer on there. I'm gonna have a large company that they've been there a couple of times. And then the other one's gonna be one of the participants I won't say who one of the participants of the Bigsy Cable Skills Challenge. Yeah, it's gonna be a good episode, so make sure you tune in. Next week, bigsy Winter Conference Round Table. Hope we can keep that one under 45 minutes too. I hope All right, everybody, until next time. Remember, knowledge is power.