getting into cyber cheatsheet

This sheet is broken down into particular parts, each part serves to help inform the aspiring cybersecurity professional and help them prepare for a career in cybersecurity.

"Luck is what happens when preparation meets opportunity" - Seneca 

1. Find your passion

2. Building Your Network

3. Studying and Training

4. Tailor your profile and CV

5. Additional Resources

Cybersecurity is a massive field with lots of different facets, from GRC to IoT Penetration testing the number of roles and career paths are mind-boggling. There are roles that are more competitive than others which may make it difficult to get a foot in the door in that particular area, an alternative route may be advisable.

With all this said, finding your passion will help you align your studies, your job hunting efforts, your courses, and certifications which will ultimately make the challenge of finding a role less abrasive.

I have included this website to showcase the vast amount of roles available and it is interesting to see just how wide the scope is.

50 titles job seekers should know about: here

You may even find that your passions change halfway through your journey, which is perfectly normal. perform proper prior research and preparation to ensure to move is as less stressful as possible.

Building your network within cybersecurity helps you connect with different businesses, professionals, and roles, this will be very beneficial to your efforts when finding a role as it brings visibility to your endeavours, skills, and professional profile.

LinkedIn

LinkedIn is without a doubt the best place to connect with industry professionals and a place where you can showcase your skills, it acts as a shop window to you as a professional and gives you a platform to market yourself.

1. Ensure you include as much relevant information on your profile; skills, experience, certifications, and courses.

2. Include a profile picture and change the default banner to something that describes you, remember the banner is at the top of the profile it needs to draw people in and paint a picture of who you are. 

3. When connecting with new people be sure to introduce yourself and let them know why you connected, this will help build professional relationships which can be beneficial for your career and efforts.

4. Engage with the community; comment on posts, like posts and join in meaningful discussions this will help nurture an organic network.

5. Post content that is engaging, relevant, shows your skills and passion.

6. Be selfless, help people when you see people asking for it, be an ally to others.

7. Connect with recruiters, a large number of jobs may never see a job board and will be handled by recruiters whether it be an internal recruiter or external recruiters connect with them, they can give valuable industry insights and guidance on your efforts.

Interestingly a survey was conducted which concluded that in 2016 85% of roles were filled via networking, whether this holds true to today is another question, however commonly most roles in cybersecurity are found via networking, this is from personal experience and from discussions with others.

Discord

Relatively new to the cybersecurity scene is the use of discord and the communities that are hosted on there, now there are many different servers you can join and they all have different focuses. Here are a few servers to get you started.

Cyber Job Hunting - Cyber career advice.  

Cyber Mentor Dojo - Finding mentorship in cybersecurity.

Certification station - Study and certification help.

Security Blue Team - Blue team focused server.

Blue Team Labs Online - Official BTLO Discord.

Unofficial RangeForce - Unofficial RangeForce server.

Unofficial INE/E-learn - Server dedicated to students of INE.

BlackHills Infosec - Server - A community with good resources.

TMHC (The Many Hats club) - A cyber security community.

Infosec Prep - Cybersecurity study community.

TechVets - Veteran only run community, required to sign up via the website

If you run a server and would like it listed here please reach out to me on LinkedIn

A lot of the battle is about networking and ensuring you stand out from the crowd, but what is the best way to do this in an online world? One word "Marketing" you need to market yourself as a professional as you are a product.

When you walk past a shop what do you see covering the windows? Impactful messages and visuals designed to draw customers in, now let's apply this to the Cybersecurity professional how can they market themselves?

Well, there is no easy answer for this one but it is a journey of learning and trial and error.

Firstly, improve your LinkedIn profile and secondly learn a little bit about marketing and use this to your advantage when networking and promoting yourself.

Steps to improve your profile on LinkedIn: here

Career advice to market yourself: here

CV/Resume

How many times have you sat there editing your CV and readjusting it? I have spent countless hours on my CV making sure it was up to a reasonable standard.

I have had the pleasure of speaking to many recruiters and hiring managers and have accumulated a list of tips and advice that could prove useful when building your CV.

Note: this may vary by region

• Keep it relevant - Make sure what you put on your CV is relevant to the role you are applying for and is relevant in describing you as a professional.
• Keep it brief but impactful - Ensure you do not go on a tangent too much but ensure you get the information across.
• Add a personal statement - Adding a personal statement may help explain briefly who you are and why you could be a good fit.
• Don't leave gaps - Having gaps of employment is common and it is perfectly normal, you should tell them why, spin it in a positive way, maybe a "study break".
• Be honest - Don't put things on your CV that you are not able to talk about, you will get found out.
• Add stats -  If you have achieved something back it up with statistics, don't just say you did, say how much.
• Make it keyword friendly - If you plan to put your CV on job search websites ensure that you get the relevant keywords into the CV, this will make it easier for recruiters and companies to find you.
• Add certifications - Even if you are studying towards a certification, put the expected date of completion down and of course include current and valid certifications.
• Add key skills - depending on the job you are applying for listing relevant key skills is advised
• Keep it concise - Make sure your CV is neat, easy to read ,and friendly on the eye, hiring managers don't want to be hit with a text wall. 
• Format it - Make sure you keep a consistent format, this helps to keep things tidy. Think margins and font sizes.

While this list is a good start, it is certainly not everything and the way you approach your CV/Resume differs from region to region, additional research may be required.