April Showers

It's been raining a lot this spring. Here in TestOut's home state of Utah, the rain is good for everybody and in no way a bad thing. Meteorologically and topographically speaking, Utah is generally considered to be some variation of high desert. We have mountains and forests and lakes and rivers aplenty, but also tens of thousands of square miles of arid canyon country dominated by thinly vegetated sandstone and even a few actual large deserts where there's pretty much nothing but sand.

Utah has been in a persistent cycle of drought for the past few decades, so even though there's rain and snow every year, we tend to almost never quite get what we really need. And of course after all of that drought, most of the state's reservoirs are well below capacity and the water table has gotten a little lower, with soils getting a little drier, every year. So any year that's wetter than usual, especially to the point of recharging the supply, is a relief to people in every corner of the state.

A rainy day, of course, is often resented and suffered through as the rain is actually falling. We're so innately conditioned to be bothered by the inconvenience of rain that English speakers use the phrase "a rainy day" as a metaphor for any unforeseen disruption that throws plans out of whack or causes unexpected damage to property or individuals. And don't forget the expression, "It never rains but it pours," which we use to characterize any cascading series of misfortunes.

The thing is, though, that most environments need water as much as they need sunlight. The long-term outlook is almost always that precipitation is a good thing. It's shortsighted and generally selfish to essentially wish for, in the words of the old nursery rhyme, "Rain, rain go away, come again another day." Long-term thinking is also highly beneficial for those who are engaged in IT certification. Preparing for a certification exam is a process that requires both time and patience.

If there's an IT certification in your future, then be sure that you also have a long-term plan. Read through exam objectives and honestly assess how much time you will need to either acquire new knowledge, or brush up what you already know. Pick an exam date and set aside study time each day leading up to that date. The learning and review process may prove difficult and frustrating at times. Just remember to take the long view and you'll have no trouble pushing past occasional storm clouds.