RTFQ: Learning to Trust What You Know
I struggle often with self-doubt. I rarely feel prepared for something — even when I actually am. Sure, there are moments in life where you *can’t* be fully prepared — like becoming a parent for the first time. But there are also situations where you can absolutely overprepare and still feel uncertain.
A good example is this course I’m doing. I’ve just finished a mountain of 3-hour lectures — at least 30 of them. That’s a serious chunk of time. And by the end of it, my head felt completely scrambled. I didn’t feel like I understood anything. But that wasn’t true. The knowledge was there — it was just disorganised. Floating around, unindexed, messy.
RTFQ – Read The Flipping Question
Today, for the first time in this course, I actually put my knowledge (or at least my ability to *find* knowledge) to the test — and I came out with 90%. It felt like relief, pride, and excitement all at once. Funny enough, I even took a screenshot.
It was a 20-question technical mock exam with an open-book policy. At first, the process was slow. The first five questions took me a while as I learned how to navigate the IET On-Site Guide. But once I had that in hand, I moved through the rest of the exam much faster. That experience taught me something valuable: it’s not about memorising everything. It’s about knowing *enough* to know where to look.
One thing the tutor keeps repeating — maybe too often for some — is “RTFQ.” Read. The. Flipping. Question. The first time I heard him say it, I thought it was a bit harsh. But the more I’ve studied, the more I realise he’s right. And it’s not just about literally reading the question. It’s about understanding what you’re reading — the meaning behind it — and how it applies to what you’re doing and what you know.
That’s the soft skill nobody talks about. This is how you become a safe electrician. An effective one. A legal one. You don’t cut corners. You don’t guess. You reference your books. You work by the standards. And honestly, I think that’s kind of cool.
The Road Forward
If I’m being honest with myself, I’ve still got a long road ahead. But today felt like progress. Real, tangible progress. I’ve got another five mock exams to go before I tackle the real deal. The plan is to space them out — maybe one or two per week — and aim for the real thing in the New Year.
After that? Hopefully, I’ll move on to the practical training around April, once my annual leave resets. That’ll be the next chapter.
For now, I’m learning to trust that I *do* know what I’m doing — even if it doesn’t always feel like it.
Mock Exam Progress
- ✅ Mock 1 – Completed (90%)
- ⬜ Mock 2 – Not yet taken
- ⬜ Mock 3 – Not yet taken
- ⬜ Mock 4 – Not yet taken
- ⬜ Mock 5 – Not yet taken
- ⬜ Mock 6 – Not yet taken
Goal: Complete all mock tests before sitting the real exam in the New Year.