A career in Cyber Security or Information Security is a rewarding one. From entry level to senior – being the master of your own career is intimidating. It requires an ability to continuously self-motivate, even in the most difficult of times.
Show me how dedicated you are to your dreams by showing up on your worst days.
Roxy
Sometimes things do not go our way or are out of our control, but there are a few techniques you can utilize to propel your career (at any level or industry).
The first step to building a career is to build a relationship/foundation with your manager
When I first started my career in security I had a great boss who advocated for me from the start. He pulled me from Software into Security. He was very aware of what I was working on, not because he micromanaged, but because I told him. I stopped by his office 2-3 times a week to just chat. I built a foundation with him early on so he always knew what I was working on and what I was doing to improve things at the company. Didn’t know it at the time that I was building a support system simply by talking to him. Because I had built this foundation early on, he began to be very transparent with me. He would talk to me the way someone would talk to an old friend. He told me that if I wanted to make more money and move up that I would need to leave. Most bosses would be reluctant to let their high performing staff go but he actually encouraged it. When I brought him my offer for a well known bank and 30K increase, he was so proud. To this day it left such an impression that transparency is now the way I run my team. A tip if you do not have a consistent manager or are new – document what you do. In an excel sheet or Word doc (anywhere!), sync with your manager for 1:1’s or pop in his/her office. Keep this sheet updated at all times.
The next way to push your career forward is to say ‘Yes’ initially so you can say ‘No’ later
Gain experience in anything and everything during the early to mid-level phase in your career, there is value in the “hustle.” Additionally, this will show the business that your level of passion and talent for your role is extremely valuable which may result in not considering you during company layoffs. Do not say ‘Yes’ to everything prior to following the first rule of “building a foundation with your manager.” If you are saying yes to everything and no one knows that you are doing the work – that will likely not lead to a promotion and growth, just burnout and anger. Once you are at the level you want to be at, this is your chance to selectively choose where you want to spend your time – your chance to say “No, I do not want to take on that extra task.”