Making the decision to pivot from the education industry into cybersecurity has done nothing but bless my life.
No "Plan B"
On December 18, 2020, I left my school campus for Christmas break. Well, technically, I had left for good — I submitted my teaching resignation the month prior with no “Plan B” to bring in income.
I had two desires:
It was mid-pandemic, and I decided it was best to be at home with my family.
I set out to continue studying, mostly self-study, in order to break into cybersecurity and find a remote position asap.
I was told to expect to be in the job search process for at least a year with a safety net of savings to cover those months.
One year ago, I was, literally, teaching over 150 lively, middle school students — a mix of 6th, 7th, and 8th graders — about grammar, writing conventions, how to write poetry, personal narratives, persuasive letters, and all things English Language. I was grading multiple assignments a day for each of those 150 students and having regular video meetings, tutoring sessions, and conference calls on a daily basis. I was creating lesson plans to accommodate both online and face-to-face learners….and now, I was self-studying cybersecurity.
I admit — It was hectic!!
With no prior background in IT or Cyber, I had ordered my first book on cybersecurity around August/September 2020 and started self-studying. Little did I know, cybersecurity Awareness month was right around the corner (October), and I just so happened to come across a FREE — at the time — Cybersecurity Bootcamp that was being offered around my area. It was 8 weeks long. I signed up and pursued it.
During this time, I was still teaching full-time and, now, attending these bootcamp sessions multiple days a week via Zoom.
Needless to say —
I was overwhelmed!
I was hardly keeping up!
I was barely retaining the information!
….BUT I was committed!
I continued juggling teaching Middle School English and simultaneously learning as much as possible about cybersecurity until mid-December 2020 — when I would dive completely in, leaving teaching English behind. Bittersweet!! ….and exciting!
I was definitely taking a risk and transitioning into an industry that I immediately became passionate about but always considered myself less than “smart” enough to pursue.
Long story short — After leaving teaching in December 2020, I continued studying Cyber, but now I had a bit more time to devote to my learning. As I continued my learning, I also revamped my resume and my LinkedIn profile to add my new skills, established a Cyber Security network, joined and leveraged cyber security associations/organizations, utilized lots of free resources, solicited advice and coaching, and applied to all the REMOTE roles in the industry that interested me and that I felt would be a good fit.
Within one month from the time I left teaching, by January 2021, I had interviewed for a few roles AND….
Less than two months from the time I said my ‘Good byes’ to teaching English, I had accepted my first role as a Security Analyst. How amazing is that?! I know my journey has taught me a whole lot about changing careers and breaking into cybersecurity.
I love my journey.
I love growing in my role and in cybersecurity…
..and I look forward to all that’s ahead!!
A number of career changers seeking to pivot into their first cybersecurity role, as I did, ask me what I do as a Security Analyst from day to day — I will save that for another post.
Thanks for following along with me on my journey!
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