so ive been licensed for about 3 years now and mostly just did ragchews and a little contesting here and there but last fall i started actually paying attention to what entities i was working and logging them properly and man this whole DXCC thing is a rabbit hole i wasnt prepared for

i think im sitting around 87 confirmed right now through LoTW which honestly felt like a lot until i started reading about guys with 300+ and realized im basically just getting started lol. my question is about the mixed vs phone vs digital endorsements — does it make more sense to just go for mixed first and then worry about the mode-specific ones later or should i be tracking all of them from the beginning. i have been doing a mix of SSB and FT8 and some CW (not great CW but trying) so im guessing mixed is the easiest path to the first certificate

also how do people handle the QSL situation for entities that dont do LoTW. i had a few bureau cards come in recently that filled some gaps but the wait was like 8 months which was kind of surprising even though everyone told me to expect it

yeah mixed is definitely the right call first, thats how pretty much everyone does it. get that first DXCC plaque and then the mode endorsements kind of fill in naturally over time as you keep operating. i chased phone and CW separately after getting mixed and it was a lot more fun having something to specifically hunt on each mode rather than just generically logging everything

the LoTW vs paper card thing never really goes away unfortunately. some of the rarer entities only have paper options and some DXpedition teams are better about uploading than others. i usually give it 6 months after a major DXpedition before i start worrying, and for regular stations in rare countries i just accept that the bureau is what it is. some guys pay for direct cards to speed it up which can be worth it for a hard to get one but i wouldnt bother for common entities

87 confirmed in 3 years is solid by the way especially if youre on a modest station. what are you running antennas wise

I'm kind of in the same boat as you, just started tracking seriously maybe 6 months ago. One thing that helped me a lot was using Club Log — it'll show you which entities you still need and also has that log checking tool that shows where your QSOs stand. I didnt realize for a while that LoTW confirmation and Club Log matching were two separate things that both matter depending on what award youre going for.

Also dont sleep on WAS while youre at it. I was so focused on DXCC I almost forgot I was really close to WAS confirmed and knocked that out pretty quick once I paid attention. Some states are weirdly harder to get than certain DX entities which I found kind of funny.