Cody Lee Cochran

Is cybersecurity still a smart place to stake your future? Lately, I’ve been hearing this question a lot from college freshmen to 25-year veterans. And I get it. The market feels confusing right now. Bootcamps and universities promise a fast path to six-figure, remote jobs. But when new grads hit the job boards, they find “entry-level” roles demanding three years of SIEM tuning, a CISSP, and cloud incident response experience. It doesn’t add up. So, should you still get into cybersecurity? Sure. But do it with clarity and intention. Saying “I want to work in cybersecurity” is like saying “I want to work in medical.” Great, but do you want to be a nurse, a surgeon, a billing specialist, or a physical therapist? The same is true in cyber. Are you interested in GRC, cloud security, application security, threat intel, or OT security? Do those roles exist near you, or are they only in-person in major cities? Do they hire entry-level, or will you need related experience first? Are you prepared to meet the actual requirements? I understand the concern. Tier-1 SOC work is being absorbed by MDR services and GenAI. Headlines about layoffs at big security vendors can be disheartening. It feels like automation is eating away at the foundation. But when you look at the full picture, demand is still strong. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects cybersecurity roles to grow 33 percent through 2033, which is three times the national average. ISC² reports over 4 million unfilled roles globally. And with every new wave of technology (AI, IIoT, cloud, new privacy laws) comes new risk. Someone still has to manage that risk. The roles are changing, not disappearing. Repetitive tasks are shrinking, but strategic roles like cloud architecture, AI risk governance, and OT security are expanding. So what should you do? Learn AI - now! If you’re a mid-career professional, leverage what you already know. Coming from finance? GRC and model risk might be a great fit. From manufacturing? OT security labs are hiring. Pair your domain knowledge with a targeted certification such as Security+, AWS, Azure, PMP, or CISM. Then build a public portfolio project that shows hiring managers what you can actually do. If you’re a student, don’t rely on a CS degree alone. Join competitions. Take internships. Build labs. Post your code, demos, or writeups to GitHub, YouTube, or LinkedIn. Employers want evidence, not just a GPA. And yes, a baseline cert like Security+ can help. Everyone, regardless of background, benefits from building a T-shaped profile. Get broad exposure to networking, scripting, and security fundamentals. Then go deep in one high-demand area such as cloud IAM, app-sec, or AI threat modeling. Contribute to your local OWASP or ISSA chapter. Share what you’re learning. Let your network work harder than the job board algorithms. #Cybersecurity #InfoSec #CareerPivot #CyberCareers #AIandSecurity #CloudSecurity #OTSecurity #GRC #ZeroTrust #SecurityJobs #FutureOfWork

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🚨 "You're overqualified for help desk work." That's what Sarah's friend told her when she considered taking a $35k help desk role after getting her cybersecurity degree. Fast forward 8 years... Sarah is now a Principal Security Architect at a Fortune 500 company, earning well into six figures. Her secret? She ignored the advice and took that "lowly" help desk job anyway. Here's what happened during those first two years that changed everything: → She learned how users ACTUALLY behave (spoiler: nothing like the textbooks) → She saw firsthand how systems fail in the real world → She developed pattern recognition from thousands of tickets → She mastered the art of explaining technical issues to non-technical people The breakthrough moment came during her 18th month when she noticed a pattern in password reset requests that led to uncovering a social engineering campaign targeting their organization. That discovery got her promoted to the SOC team. Then to incident response. Then to security architecture. "Every 'glamorous' cybersecurity skill I use today," Sarah told me recently, "has roots in something I learned while resetting passwords and troubleshooting printers." The cybersecurity industry has convinced people that help desk → desktop support → system admin is somehow "beneath" them. But here's the reality: Every CISO, every pen tester, every security consultant worth their salt understands that technology is only as secure as the humans using it. And you can't protect what you don't understand. 💡 The fastest path to cybersecurity isn't around the fundamentals—it's through them. For those already in cybersecurity: What was your "unglamorous" starting point, and how did it shape your expertise today? For those trying to break in: What's holding you back from taking that first IT role?

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Why IT professionals are ditching federal jobs for contractor roles. 𝗙𝗲𝗱𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗹 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗼𝗱: 1+ years of minimal job protection, lower pay, slower career progression. 𝗚𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿: Higher compensation, actual contract security, rapid skill development. The IT contracting sector is exploding in AI, cybersecurity, and infrastructure. Companies desperately need talent and will pay for it. That “secure government job” narrative. Yeah, that’s not a thing anymore. #AI #GovTech #CareerGrowth

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The next wave of RMF jobs is coming from the cloud, and most people aren’t ready. In the RMF space, cloud is becoming a massive topic. A lot of private sector companies want to offer their services inside the federal government space, but before they can, they need an DoD Provisional Authorization (PA) based on FedRAMP and DoD Impact Level requirements. That means the cloud RMF process is no longer optional it’s essential. If you learn and adapt now, you’ll be ahead of the curve. Because when these companies need professionals to secure their systems, they won’t have time to train from scratch. They’ll look for people who already understand the process and can deliver. Stay ready, keep learning, and position yourself for the new RMF market that’s taking shape. #RMF #CloudSecurity #FedRAMP

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IT & Cybersecurity Candidates: Quick Pro Tip! As a tech recruiter working with defense, federal and government clients, I can't emphasize this enough: Always highlight your security clearance level AND certifications front and center on your LinkedIn profile and resume! Why? Because when roles require active clearances or specific certs like Security+, CISSP, AWS, or Azure, it becomes a non-negotiable filter in the hiring process. If we don’t see it, we can’t move you forward – even if you’re fully qualified.

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