Certified: The CRISC Prepcast

Welcome to The Bare Metal Cyber CRISC Prepcast. This series helps you prepare for the exam with focused explanations and practical context.
As you stand twenty-four hours away from exam day, it’s time to shift from input mode to readiness mode. At this stage, stop cramming. The learning phase is over. You are not absorbing new material—you are reviewing what you already know. Focus on summary sheets you’ve created. Look at your visual aids and self-made flashcards that reinforce key terms and distinctions. These are reminders, not lessons. Next, confirm all your logistics. If you are testing in person, double-check the location and make sure your identification is ready. If you are testing online, run a system check, verify your appointment time, and prepare your workspace. Tonight, prioritize your physical and mental well-being. Get good rest, stay hydrated, and avoid high-stimulation activities. Allow yourself to decompress. Most importantly, begin to reframe tomorrow. It is not a study session. It is a performance. You are walking into the test with tools you’ve built, patterns you’ve practiced, and decisions you’ve rehearsed. Trust in your readiness.
The morning of your exam sets the tone for everything that follows, so approach it with care. Create a calm, structured routine. Avoid rushing, chaos, or last-minute decisions. Eat a balanced breakfast that gives you energy but does not sit heavy. Now is not the time to try a new food or skip meals. Your brain needs fuel, but not distraction. Resist the urge to panic-study. Opening your manual or flashcards now may feel productive, but it often disrupts confidence. Instead, prepare a short grounding ritual. This could include deep breathing, stretching, or repeating a calming mantra. It might be something like, “I am ready. I know this. Let’s begin.” You’re not aiming for perfection. You’re aiming to bring your preparation into focus. Tell yourself clearly: “I’m not perfect—but I am prepared, and that’s enough.” That shift in mindset will help you walk into the test with composure, not panic.
If you’re testing at a Pearson VUE testing center, be prepared for a secure, highly structured environment. Plan to arrive thirty minutes early to allow time for check-in procedures. Bring two forms of identification—both must be valid and one must have your photo. Once there, you will be required to lock away personal belongings, including your phone, keys, bag, and any notes. Lockers will be provided for these items. During check-in, expect to be fingerprinted or palm-scanned, and your photo will be taken for identity verification. Scratch paper and pencils are provided, but nothing can be brought into the testing room. You’ll be monitored by cameras throughout the exam. The testing room is quiet, but if you’re sensitive to background noise, consider bringing earplugs—most centers allow them as long as they are unconnected and not electronic. The goal is to eliminate all distractions and ensure you can focus entirely on the exam.
If you’re testing remotely through online proctoring, take a few extra steps to ensure your setup is compliant. Start with a complete system check. Your internet connection should be stable, your browser updated, and both your camera and microphone accessible. Your workspace must be completely clean. You’ll be asked to show a full three hundred sixty-degree view of your environment using your webcam. If the proctor sees clutter, notes, or a second monitor, they may not allow the exam to begin. During the test, the proctor may pause your session if your eyes wander too much or if they suspect any irregular movement. Plan hydration and bathroom breaks strategically. Online tests may limit when and how you can step away. Choose a quiet location and let others in your home know you can’t be interrupted. Pets, people, and even background noise can all be flagged as disruptions. Eliminate anything that might draw your attention away from the task at hand.
As you begin the test, remember that you are not there to survive. You are there to perform. This mindset is powerful. Don’t view the test as something to get through. View it as a professional simulation where your goal is to solve problems calmly and effectively. Visualize what success looks like. Picture yourself seated, confident, reading scenarios clearly, and selecting answers with focus. If negative thoughts appear, replace them with task-based cues. Say to yourself, “Read carefully. Think clearly. Choose logically.” You’ve trained for this. You’ve studied under time pressure. You’ve practiced decision-making in context. Now is the time to anchor yourself in what you know. Not in fear. Not in doubt. But in preparation and strategy. The exam is a structured performance, and you are ready to execute it.
The first fifteen minutes of the exam matter more than you think. They set your mental rhythm. So start slowly. If the first question is hard, do not panic. That’s normal. Stay steady and remember that the entire exam is ahead of you. Establish your internal cadence: read the question, reason through the context, select an answer, and move on. Don’t second-guess everything. Trust your initial reasoning unless something obvious tells you to revisit. Use the flag feature strategically. Mark any questions that feel uncertain or time-consuming. Come back to them later when your brain is warmed up and your pacing is stable. Aim for consistent progress, not speed. Three to four minutes per question is a solid average. And remember, don’t worry about question fifty when you’re still on question five. Focus on the question in front of you. That is the only one you can control right now.
Managing your energy across four hours is a core part of test-day success. Mentally divide the exam into three chunks of fifty questions. That way, you can create internal checkpoints and track how you’re doing. Plan short breaks between these blocks, whether the system allows them or you take brief mental pauses. Even a sixty-second stretch or deep breath can refresh your focus. If you’re ahead of schedule, resist the urge to rush. Use the extra time to review flagged questions or check your logic. If you fall behind, don’t panic. Regain your composure, adjust your pace, and focus on the next question only. Avoid spiraling. Time can be recovered, but only if your mind stays calm. Your mental endurance is just as valuable as your content knowledge. Protect it by pacing your focus, managing stress, and resetting when needed.
If you freeze on a question, you are not alone. It happens to almost everyone. When it does, use a simple reset technique. Close your eyes for five seconds. Take a deep breath. Exhale. Then, zoom out. Ask yourself three things: What domain is this question drawing from? What role am I playing in this scenario? And what is the goal of the question—assessment, decision, response, or monitoring? These questions ground you in context. Next, eliminate any answers that are clearly wrong. Even partial progress is progress. If you still feel stuck, flag the question and move forward. Trust that your clarity will return. One hard question does not mean you’re failing. Don’t let it derail your momentum. You have one hundred forty-nine other questions to answer. Keep moving. You are not lost—you are adapting.
As you approach the final stretch of the exam, aim to finish strong. Use your final fifteen to twenty minutes to review only the questions you flagged earlier. Now is not the time to rework your entire test. You’re not looking for perfection. You’re looking for clarity. Change answers only if you clearly misread the original question or misunderstood its meaning. Otherwise, trust your first instinct. Don’t let urgency push you to rush to the end. Maintain your pace. You’ve been solving problems for hours. This final push is about closing with care. Before you submit, pause. Breathe. Remind yourself: “I’ve done the work. Now I just close the loop.” Hit the submit button not with fear, not with exhaustion, but with confidence. You showed up. You stayed focused. You executed the plan. That is success in action.
When the exam ends, you will see your results immediately. Pause. Breathe again. Give yourself a moment before reading the outcome. If you passed, allow yourself to celebrate. You have earned this moment. Acknowledge the effort it took. Recognize the growth it represents. If the result isn’t what you hoped for, do not let shame take over. Reflect. Regroup. Many candidates pass on their second attempt with stronger preparation and renewed focus. Remember: you didn’t just take a test. You built a mindset. You practiced professional judgment. You learned how to think like a risk advisor. That doesn’t disappear based on a score. Whether you passed today or will pass tomorrow, you’ve already begun the journey of thinking like a risk professional.
Thanks for joining us for this episode of The Bare Metal Cyber CRISC Prepcast. For more episodes, tools, and study support, visit us at Bare Metal Cyber dot com.