Cybersecurity jobs are flooding the market but getting your dream cybersecurity job can come across as a daunting challenge. Building connections, updating your resume, preparing for the interview, getting career counselling, and so much more needs to be done to get that one job you have been eyeing for the longest time. Here are a few tips that you can drink down like mantras if you want to excel professionally and become what you have always wanted to become.
Attend seminars and career fairs
Attending seminars, workshops, job fairs and other career expanding opportunities is a sign of a go-getter. (Not to mention that having attended workshops and seminars looks great on your CV and tells the employer how dedicated you are to your profession.) The more networking and job-seeking events you attend, the more likely you are to widen your pool of choices and come in the eyes of various employers. You’ll not only gain insight and useful knowledge about your field, different employers and companies but you’ll also know what’s hot and in-demand in the job market currently. You can also consult career counsellors for this purpose. They not only have connections with employers but are also updated with the latest trends and needs in the job market they cater to.
Compelling resume, rich CV, sharp interview
Your resume is what pitches you to an employer before you go for an interview and sell yourself by making a great impression. Make sure you are sharp on all these aspects. Have a compelling resume that makes the employer interested in your service. Next, make your CV extensive, credible and rich with experience and qualifications. The more medals you have, the more people will want you. And once you have bagged an interview, consider it your one and only golden chance to impress and impact the employer in a way that they can’t refuse you. Be prepared and convinced in your skills and talent and make sure you showcase your truest, most confident self in the meeting.
Practice your skills regularly
Practising your skill regularly is an extremely important habit that you need to cultivate in your life if you wish to excel professionally. There are plenty of ways that you can practice and sharpen your skills online or offline. For example, if you have a Certified Ethical Hacker certification or a CPENT certification, and you want to practice your penetration testing skills, you can consider platforms like Hack the Box. You can also enter tournaments or bug bounty challenges to give your skills some sharpening. There are many other ways you can practice what you know. Teaching someone else what you know is a great way of testing your knowledge’s depth and core strength.
Network with peers
Networking is the holy grail for professionals. Employers, HR professionals and people looking for professional partnerships often scroll social networking platforms like LinkedIn to get a good look at prospective candidates. Having an active and professionally rich profile on LinkedIn, Twitter and other platforms (where people of your industry hang out) is a must in your to-do list. Not only will you remain visible and present in people’s minds but you can also use these platforms to connect and build your own community by sharing your thoughts and expressing thought leadership among other qualities.
Apart from the above mantras, you should also consider upgrading your cybersecurity knowledge by either becoming a specialist in your field or learning about more security dimensions. For example, if you are an ethical hacker, you can deepen your expertise by taking advanced penetration testing courses, or if you are an incident handler, you can broaden your area of expertise by taking forensic courses like the CHFI course.
