#CyberSecurity #CareerComparison #SelfGrowth
Hey friends! 👋 How many of you have found yourselves scrolling through LinkedIn and feeling like you’re lightyears behind your peers in terms of certifications and internships? 🙋♀️ It’s so easy to fall into the trap of comparison, especially in a competitive field like cybersecurity.
Here are some tips on how to stop comparing yourself to others and focus on your own journey:
– Remember that everyone has their own unique path and timeline. What works for someone else may not be right for you, and that’s totally okay!
– Set realistic and achievable goals for yourself. Focus on making progress at your own pace rather than trying to keep up with others.
– Limit your time on social media platforms that trigger comparison. Consider taking breaks from LinkedIn or unfollowing accounts that make you feel inadequate.
– Celebrate your own achievements, no matter how small they may seem. Every step you take towards your goals is a win!
Remember, your journey is yours and yours alone. Stay focused on your growth and progress, and watch yourself flourish in your own time. 🌱💪 #SelfLove #CybersecurityJourney #StayPositive
I think you answered this yourself. STOP looking at other peoples accounts. You don’t know how they got it, for all you know they already had connections with the company they were interning for and just got a free pass in and know as much as you do.
Also your literally 20 years old, I didn’t get my A+ until I was 21 and didn’t get a decent IT job till recently when I turned 22. Don’t look specifically at the people who have progressed insanely fast, but open your eyes to the people who also are where you are at as well, and become friends with them as those are the people that will motivate you as you work together to both achieve goals at the same spot. You have so much potential and are insanely capable at getting them done. If you need any help with studying for A+ too feel free to send me a message, always happy to help.
I would agree with what is already said here. Don’t compare yourself to them. Don’t look at them.
Everyone moves at their own pace.
I have friends that are in more solid IT careers than I am, but they also have gotten the certs or knowledge they needed to get where they are. It’s best to focus on yourself and your career’s future. Grind the certs, grind school, and keep an eye out for opportunities in the future in the form of internships and jobs.
Seek professional therapy or coaching; self comparison to others often come from place of insecurity and getting professional help is one of the best ways to deal with them.
Don’t use LinkedIn. Full stop.
Hey OP, congrats on starting school!
When I started in IT, I did the same thing. For reference I’ve been in IT about 8 years To be honest, it was sort of hard not to, at least subconsciously. Sometimes I’ll still catch myself doing that but it’s much better.
Your journey is your own. Not everyone who seems “ahead” of you now, will still be “ahead” of you in 5 years. You learn at your own pace. What matters is that you keep doing it, and take all the opportunities to learn and expand your skill set that you can. So long as you’re improving yourself, even if that’s a few minutes a day of just reading the latest vulnerability for example, you are progressing.
Progression is what’s important and so long as you’re better than you were yesterday, you’re doing great.
Same boat. 28m I graduate in May of 2025 for my associates in cybersecurity as well. I don’t have the money or support to finish my bachelor’s. I have my Comptia a+, net+, sec+, studying for linux+, and hope to have CySA+ soon.
And do these certs make me feel ahead of everyone?
No, not at all. I’m 28, I should have been done with this year’s ago, I don’t have experience AND won’t be getting my bachelor’s after my associates.
I read all day about how an AS is basically a high school diploma, and it’s worthless, and how the IT market is shit right now, blah blah blah.
And I feel terrible and hopeless. But I, like yourself, should not be comparing at all because it will make me feel worse.
I just gotta know, I’m doing the best I can, and atleast I have some education.
Plus, I’m getting old 🙁 and I still feel 20.
Comparison is the thief of joy.
So I just try my best to drown the noise out.
Becuase you know what? I saw a guy in their 20s on this sub get a whole ass cybersecurity job with only his a+, no school, no experience
While I’m reading that cybersecurity is NOT an entry level job. Here I see a guy with bearly any credentials getting in the field
So everyone’s situation is different. Make the best of yours and know you’re not in the same boat as the rest of the world. No one is.
You are also doing better than a lot of people. And one of the most important life skills i learned as someone that struggled in many aspects of adult life from substance abuse to self esteem issues and so on. You never compare yourself to others, compare yourself to who you were last year. Momentum is important. You completed your first semester of college, are you now better off than last year? your self doubt can’t even deny that. When you do that you gain momentum. I like to draw portraits, when I feel like I suck I pull out a drawing I did my first year and compare. It’s awful in comparison and now I am confident in how far I have come.
LinkedIn is so bad for your mindset keep that in mind!!!
Your walking a different path one that might not have as many short term benefits.
However certs expire and lose meaning.
Degrees don’t.
Compare yourself with nobody else except yourself.
Compare today with yesterday, did you do everything you can to accomplish your goals, is there anything more or better that you can do?
Set a goal for yourself and track what you do as you work towards accomplishing it.
Want an internship? Set aside 30m-1h each day to apply for internships, look for ways to network with people, and do things to build your resume. Repeat it, and never give up.
Want a certification? Same thing. Make 1h-2h per day to study for certifications, then do it. Be consistent.
If you can look back and say, “Damn I’ve been doing all I could. I just gotta keep doing it.”. It should eventually pay off.