2020 Hindsight | First 30, part-3: Make The Job You Want

TWO WEEKS INTO OUR SOCIAL DISTANCING

Update: The death toll for COVID-19 in New York City has increased exponentially. As of today - March 28 - the count is at +500. Our dearest President has yet to make an executive decision on whether or not to enforce MANDATORY QUARANTINE in the Tri-State area.
The situation is bleak. The prognosis so far is that we have yet to hit the peak. Social distancing is the prescription to keep the virus from spreading worse than it already has. Sadly, there are those who refuse to obey.

In my last post, I gave a quick synopsis on where I was in first 3 months at the work. Not gonna lie, it's been the best and most challenging of times. If there has been any bad, its been mostly self-induced. But a tremendous opportunity has showed its face and I am all-the-more motivated.

When you see a way, you make a way.

I will dedicate this space to discussing the job I want .. and the job I'm "making"

INTRODUCTIONS

Allow me to start with the following introduction. When I was hired, part of our onboarding/orientation included fundamental user information security education; the basics on what to do and what to avoid as it related to sensitive information and the like. For the first time that I can remember, I was face to face with Security people. I had to make my acquaintances.

THE TEAM

Having made the rounds, I became more acquainted with the rest of the team members. My eagerness felt like an explosion of immense joy. I knew I had always been passionate about getting into the field, but being face to face with persons in the field (not just acquaintances in social media) made the exuberance of wanting to become a team member more than I could bear.

THE WORK

So joining the Security team was not going to be easy. First there's my current role (which I'm enjoying) and the responsibilities that come along with it. Too many times I have stepped outside myself to get the information I need. By this I mean, I know whom to ask for questions, but in my self-reliance, I have taken the onus to circumvent that and go to the source, sometimes with a bit of friction as a result. Then end result was never to become a problem, but to solve them. Which brings me to the Security team.

Having met with one key member virtually, there was so much excitement and kismet that came out of that meeting that I could barely contain it. We spoke about the deficiencies of the department and where I could be an asset. We spoke about the skills and experience I would need to qualify for the role. We spoke about the needs of the department and where I could fill a spot sorely lacking by way of process. To conclude: THIS IS THE JOB I'VE BEEN LOOKING FOR !! We bonded and I got the approval. I know what I want to do.

THE ROLE

For the moment, I envision a Security Analyst role where I can apply my former QA testing acumen towards security-based testing. The intent is to incorporate both a manual and automated approach to web application security testing. I would leverage existing tools, tests, and methods to ensure the security of our applications, as well as the quality thereof. I don't want to "hack" our apps, but if the need to do so warrants it, I want to be that guy. Ultimately, it would be to build up the resume worthy of a RED TEAM.

I have never been more enthused to go to work as I have been this week. I aim to be the best I can be for my team and continue to flourish in my role. But my is on the prize hard-core. I'm close to the dream job.

So yeah ... when you don't have the job you want - Make the job you want. Be your best self and make it known that you have the passion and persistence to persevere !!