Path of Exile = Cybersecurity?

I know what you are thinking...

What the {expletive here} are you writing about, Cybersecurity is a mastery of super technical skills and is nothing like a stupid {another expletive here} video game for kids! But hear me out, maybe just maybe its a little similar when you really break it all down they might have a few similarities. If you have never played Path of Exile, ill give you a quick little summary...you run around eliminating monsters all while you gain levels. Sounds pretty fun and easy right? Just when you think "oh man I'm really going to like this game" you get your first level and you are met with the infamous passive tree which if you have never seen is an absolute work of art.

Intially opening the screen however you see the greatest monstrosity of all time...and to many the sight can be instantly overwhelming to the majority of people that have never played the game before. And to be totally honest if you are planning on making a build that can even get past act one by yourself with zero knowledge best of luck.

The guides

Like most people however you are probably going to resort to using a written guide by someone that has put the time and effort into really learning and understanding the game...Doesnt that sound kind of familiar? If you just starting out - than most likely you are going to start with a course, written guide, or maybe watch a couple of videos on good ole Youtube to get a feel for what Cybersecurity really is. This is normally a good starting point and like Path of Exile allows you to go forward with an idea of what you are looking to do. About half way through however, alot of people say "you need to get certifications", so you do a little google search and you find a roadmap that lays it all our for you. You open the link and bam you see a boat load of acronyms that you have no idea what they are, and you are left again with deciding "what path should I choose".

You could go and watch a guide that tells you "you should take this certification and then this one" and while they might be right - is that really going to help you build your knowledge? Probably not to be honest.

So what do I do?

If I had an answer to that, i'd probably be on a boat somewhere. Just kidding, what you should do is try, learn, and then learn some more. Cybersecurity much like Path of Exile is all about trial and error, build then rebuild, at the end of the day its all about learning and then when you feel like you know something - you stop yourself and think "do I really know that"...more than likely the answer is gonna be NO. The path is going to look absolutely insane at times and there are going to be tons of guides that tell you what you should and shouldn't do.

The take away

Keep learning, find what interests you, and when you get overwhelmed with something go ahead and take a look at that guide. Cybersecurity isnt a linear path, nobody has all the answers, and you arent going to learn it all in a single play through. Its going to take few stumbles and then a couple climbs up the peak to really get there. But if you are really committed and want to learn it - then continue to look to the light at the end of the tunnel cause once you down that first uber you'll look back at all that hard you and know it was worth it. The journey might not be a straight line, it will more than likely be a zig-zag but continue forward. You just might like the ending.

No AI used in the making of this post that I know of atleast 😀