The Obstacle Is The Way - A Success Story
There are a bunch of things that we love here at Prepineer…but of all of them, hearing of the amazing transformations that occur in people’s lives because of our program is near the top of them all.
I do want to say up front, that we are nothing without our amazing students…and that our amazing students have everything they need, regardless of it they use Prepineer or not, to get anywhere they want in life.
Progress in life comes from action…and action is a choice.
Every success story we hear leaves goosebumps on our arms, but the stories of those who pick themselves up after falling short on the exam before are extra special to us.
These students show what being resilient really means…and the good news is, you can do the exact same thing.
Ashley Sullivan had been beaten down by the FE Exam twice prior to joining Prepineer. Deep, debilitating scars appeared within due to these past failures, but at the end of the day, she never gave up hope.
I love sharing stories because they are so inspiring, so today, I wanted to share Ashley’s, using her own words, and what the journey was all about for her.
"The impediment to action advances action. What stands in the way becomes the way" - Marcus Aurelius
Ashley’s Prepineer success story begins at the end of January of 2015.
At that point, she was rally back from her second failed attempt of the FE Exam.
The first attempt was 14 months back, when she was a graduating Civil Engineering student at Texas A&M.
October 16, 2013
It was a brisk fall morning in the east central Texas city of College Station, and Ashley was sitting for her first attempt of the FE Exam.
She was confident, as a graduating senior, she was well entrenched in the material that would be covered.
The exam kicked off, and she went to work.
There were some ups and downs during the exam as she experienced problems she didn’t even realize she would be working. This tripped her up a little, but continued to push through without missing a beat.
The exam ended, she walked out, semi confident she did just fine, but also pestered by the all to common voice in the back of her mind…”Did I do good enough to pass?”
After waiting 13 weeks (oh the joy of the old pen and paper exam), she received her results.
Obstacle Number 1
The results hit her like a brick wall…Fail.
Oh no.
When the dust settled, she dug in to the diagnostics to see where things went wrong, and how, or where she needed to focus more time moving forward.
This left her more than a little confused.
Areas she thought she was strong in, ended up being the areas she most struggled on come exam day.
"Don't look back, you're not going that way"
Ashley got back up, brushed herself off, and started pushing towards the exam once again.
It was early 2014, and she had a couple months to prepare.
She put in the time, hit the books, and focused on areas she fell short on in the previous exam. This was a good approach, she was confident with just having taken the FE Exam, that she would benefit from her previous studies.
The day finally came.
May 29, 2014
Ashley sat down at her computer.
There were a lot of changes that occurred since the last time she took the exam. No longer was it pen and paper, but now it was given at a standardized testing center, on a computer.
This was different, but nonetheless, knew that she put the time in and was ready to roll.
The exam started…then ended, and she walked out confident but pestered by the old friend of hers “Did I do good enough to pass?”
Obstacle Number 2
It only took a few days this time to receive her results.
Silence precipitated around the room, and one single mouse click later…Fail.
Chaos ensued.
She opened up her diagnostic, only to notice that the format had completely changed, the grading scale revised, and the amount of confusion exponentially increased.
Is this the end?
The story can end here.
It does for many who just give up on their dreams and aspirations to become an Engineer.
It’s hard to argue what the stats are saying…
- 65.9% of those who will have to retake the exam will fail.
Ashley had failed twice…so what does that mean?
January 2015
The odds were stacked against her, yes, but there was one thing that she never gave up on…and that was Hope.
Our actions may be impeded…but there can be no impeding our intentions or dispositions. Because we can accommodate and adapt. The mind adapts and converts to it’s own purposes the obstacle to our acting. – Marcus Aurelius
Let’s be honest, many of us are paralyzed when it comes to taking action towards our goals. Obstacles creep up, times get challenging, and we sit their frozen looking ahead at all the obstacles that “could” occur.
This doesn’t have to be the end, it can be the start to a new beginning…a new perspective on how we actually “can” reach our goals.
Ashley did it…and I am telling you, you can do it to.
I’ll let Ashley wrap it up in her own words.
As I told you on the phone, I often get discouraged by my impostor syndrome tendencies. My whole life, really, I’ve been a terrible test taker. However, that seems to be the main way we, as a society, measure intelligence. It has never been a hindrance until the FE Exam.
Just to be clear, I know I’m not dumb. I’m confident in the fact that I’m an asset to my company and I am certain that I bring qualities to my team that very few engineers possess.
But, every once in a while, I have a little tinge of doubt telling me I don’t deserve what I’ve earned. And that tinge of doubt is rooted in my failures to become an EIT.
After I failed the test for the second time, I made excuses about how I didn’t have the money or time to take it again.
I had myself convinced there for a bit that what I was telling myself was the truth…But honestly, I was just scared.
I didn’t want to fail again.
Then I found your website EngineerInTrainingExam.com (recommended by my colleague Anali). As cheesy as it was, I found the introduction page encouraging.
There are only a handful of my coworkers that know about my temporary failures (and even fewer classmates), so to read a reassuring, empathetic message was so inspiring. It reignited my confidence through teaching me motivation. It reminded me of what I kept trying to remind myself, it’s not a matter of “if,” it’s a matter of “when.”
Originally I started by just watching the YouTube videos and then took part in the 12-part EITE Academy Course.
Immediately I was less anxious.
The overwhelming amount of content I needed to pick back up and study suddenly seemed conquerable.
Through my academics, I found it rare to find a teacher who could truly teach without condescension. You have that capability to transcend this stereotype, delivering value, assurance, with a caring, empathetic hand.
What I really like about Prepineer is that you cater to different types of people. There’s stuff for your visual learner, audio learner, there’s a community for your group learners, you have a progress bar for those who like to physically check things off of a list, etc.
Prepineer truly grasps that there is more than one way to approach the same goal.
Engineers are stereotyped and categorized into the same “boring, analytical, black and white” group, but we don’t all think that way. So, I like the way the lessons are diversified and there are different avenues to approach each subject.
The whole program feels very authentic and personal. From my experience, that sort of “belonging” feeling you get from a product only comes from a passionate creator.
Prepineer has succeeded in turning a mountain of an engineering exam into a molehill and I believe you can do that with the PE, too. I’m truly excited to see it flourish from the ground floor up.
Ashley came in to Prepineer determined to regain and conquer the goal she set out to conquer, despite the previous 2 failures.
Then 3 months later, on Tuesday, April 28, 2015, I received this personal message:
Justin,
Good news… I PASSED THE FE!!
Thanks to you and the Prepineer team’s continued support and encouragement, I felt empowered to tackle this challenge that had stumped me twice before. I truly feel that Prepineer, the webinars, and the online community equipped me with the resources and coaching I needed that made surmounting this obstacle not only possible, but—dare I say it—easy.
I can’t express my gratitude enough.
What an oh so sweet moment in Ashley’s career.
She had struggled mightily to conquer this obstacle, but persevered, and made it a thing of the past.
This encompasses the wisdom that was laid down almost 2000 years ago…
"The obstacle in the path becomes the path. Never forget, within every obstacle is an opportunity to improve our condition" - Marcus Aurelius
And improve she did…
Your Next Steps
So if you haven’t already, here’s what you should start doing and thinking about after reading about Ashley’s story:
1. Stop letting the obstacles ahead (or behind) control your direction. Be bold, step out, and tackle your goals with passion…that’s what you are put on this earth to do.
2. Take to heart Ashley’s words of wisdom and know you are not alone when it comes to being overwhelmed. Being overwhelmed is normal going in to his exam, 95% of the students I work with admit to some level of this emotion…it’s natural.
3. Let Prepineer help you achieve your goal of becoming a Professional Engineer. We have built a program that works, combining world class content with a thriving community of support. I personally invite you to Try Prepineer for 7 DAYS FREE. Click here to get started!
