The Wrong Exam, the Right Lesson
I have been working on another professional certificate for quite some time, for a topic I want to learn, but not closely related to my job. Since moving to Taiwan, the progress has been slow. Life has been full, work has been demanding, and the certificate kept moving forward—just not very quickly.
Recently, I decided to pick it up again as a small experiment: could AI help me speed up my learning?
The learning experience itself is probably worth another post. This one is about the exam experience.
Today, my kids were busy with their language class, so I decided to use the time to take one of the exams. I logged in, started the test, and quickly realized something felt unfamiliar. The content did not quite match what I had been reviewing.
At first, I thought maybe I had simply forgotten more than I expected. So I kept going.
As the questions continued, the topics grew increasingly distant from what I had just studied. Some of the material felt only remotely familiar. Eventually, I realized what had happened: I had clicked into the wrong exam. Instead of taking the exam for the class I had just completed, I was taking the exam for the next class—the one I was planning to study next.
Fortunately, I managed to get through it and pass. In the end, I completed the class in one day.
It turned out to be a blessing in disguise. If I had followed my original plan, I probably would have pushed myself week after week to go through every detail carefully before taking the exam. Instead, this mistake forced me to move faster, trust what I already knew, and finish the work.
That does not mean I am done learning the material. I will still go back and review the class content, but probably in a more relaxed and reflective way. Passing the exam is one milestone; truly absorbing the ideas is a different journey.
The best part is what this accidental shortcut gave me back: time.
With the work completed, I was able to go to Taipei with my family to celebrate birthdays and our little one’s graduation. That felt like the real reward.
Sometimes a mistake does not slow you down. Sometimes it pushes you forward.
And occasionally, taking the wrong exam helps you get to the right place.
