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4 min read · Cybersecurity · Career Advice

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Prefer watching? This post is based on my YouTube video.
Cyber can be a big mess of articles, videos, news, and learning new things every single day. All of this can be so overwhelming, and I’ve been there before. Stressed out of my mind hopping from new trend to new trend. In this post I’m going to walk through how I try my best to stay afloat in the thrashing waters of cyber.

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1. News consumption

I don’t consume news at all, at least through traditional methods. There are pros and cons to consuming news. Cyber news (like any news) can oftentimes be twisted and inaccurate. Think about when a company admits to a ransomware attack: imagine how many layers of legal jargon and loopholes they go through to tell you the least amount of information possible. Then news outlets will take that limited information and spin it in whatever which way.
Regardless of how you view news, take it with a grain of salt.

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2. General content consumption

This is where I get most of my updates from in the cyber world. Whenever I consume content, it is from creators who I trust, like Tyler Ramsbey and John Hammond, to name a few. These are people who are in the field actually doing the work, who can create organized videos on hot topics. Converging their coverage and my opinion is my main point of learning for new cyber topics and news.

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3. Learning new things (keeping up)

When you’re new, it feels like everybody is pushing you toward a new platform:
  • TryHackMe
  • HackTheBox
  • HackSmarter
  • Bugforge
  • etc.
It can be hard to know what to pick, and it can feel like if you aren’t doing all of them, you are missing out and not keeping up. The reality is you shouldn’t really care what platform, or platforms, you choose to learn on. Try them all, and pick whatever is most comfortable to you. The bottom line is that you are learning, regardless of where it happens.

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4. Cyber work and output (using the learning)

  • Getting a job and using your skills.
  • Getting skills but not being able to use them (ethical hacking, for example).
  • Cyber passions don’t typically directly translate to cyber needs (i.e. learning ethical hacking but working as a SOC analyst).