Failed OSCP twice — what finally made the difference on my third attempt?

I've been chasing the offensive security certified professional certification for almost two years now, and I won't sugarcoat it — this exam broke me twice before I finally passed last month. First attempt I ran out of time with only 55 points. Second time I got to 65 but couldn't crack the buffer overflow box and panicked in the final hours. Both times I went in thinking my HTB experience was enough. It wasn't.

What finally clicked for me was slowing way down on methodology. I stopped trying to brute-force every service and started actually reading enumeration output carefully. I also dedicated three full weeks specifically to buffer overflows using structured practice material — including the FREE OSCP Buffer Overflow Questions and Answers on this site, which helped me build muscle memory on the steps. OSCP certification isn't about knowing the most tools; it's about being systematic under pressure.

For anyone else who's failed and is thinking about giving up — don't. The offensive security oscp path is genuinely brutal, but passing it feels different from any other cert. Happy to answer questions about what my 90-day lab approach looked like if that helps anyone.