In life there are many paths that individuals take to be successful.  Some of which are very easy, and carefree.  While others can be very daunting and stressful from time to time.  I would say that journey to being a Cyber Security professional is a very challenging and rewarding career path.  Being a cyber security professional is like playing with a Rubix cube, if you don’t like a good puzzle or game of chess you should never start down this path.  My reasoning for this is because every path you take in this career will land you with a new challenge or riddle you may need to solve.  And, very little times will it ever come with an easy answer.

I have been in the Cyber Security arena now for almost 20 years.  And, while I consider myself seasoned, I have also come to the conclusion that is only in the government sector of things.   But thankful I have found a way to collaborate, and work with an outstanding group of individuals that allow me to share what I know, and learn a lot from them as well.  Who is this group of individuals you are probably asking yourself, well let me tell you about them.

About a month and a half ago I joined Joe McCray Jr.’s Intern Program called “The Security Rookies”.  I have known Joe for many years, and have had the opportunity of talking with him, and taking several of his classes.  So when I heard he was putting together this program I was all in.  Who could pass up an opportunity to learn something new, contribute what they know, and build relationships with colleagues across the profession.  I have had the opportunity to be a team member and a project manager and thus far, have gotten to work side by side with some of the brightest people in the business, mentor new recruits, and gotten to collaborate on an effort that Joe has that I think will aid in revolutionizing generations to come in the Cyber Security Profession.

My path to becoming one of the best starts with learning from one of the best. An old proverb I was taught as a child, but got chopped up over the years-” When the student is ready, the teacher will appear, and when the teacher is ready, the student will appear, in hopes that every student will be studious in the learning process to be better than their teacher” (Author Unknown) As a r00kie in Joe’s r00kie program, I opted to be on the video team for (2) main reasons. First, given the content of the program, I will be learning another part to add to my evolving IT career. Secondly, it allows me to learn yet another skill set often forgotten about in IT. IT meaning Information Technology ahs as many or more sub-sectors than being a doctor. There are all types of specialized  fields of IT. As a Network Administrator graduate, I quickly found out that there are many specialized parts to this field. Hardware, software, infrastructure, security. As an IT professional, do I feel like a r00kie in this program, YES. The interaction with my fellow r00kies is a really humbling experience. I went from being top of my class, and a valued source of knowledge to my underclass mates, back to a student seeking knowledge from more experienced individuals, who are willing to share that knowledge, while we all strive to excel and better our respective knowledge in this industry. More to come…..