It’s been almost a year since I began studying and preparing to exit the Army and return to the IT industry and about 3½ months since I began the Army retirement process. The time has gone by SOOOO quickly but at the same time seems like forever ago. Right now, I’m down to about 15½ months until I’m out.
During this past year here are the things which have kept me busy:
- Spending one month in the desert of California at the National Training Center (NTC)
- Earning the Security+ certification
- Earning the Network+ certification
- Attending the CBRN Warrant Officer Advanced Course in Fort Leonard Wood, MO for 3 months
- Submitting retirement packet
- Earning the AWS Solutions Architect Associate certification
- Spending 3½ weeks in the desert of Texas conducting a virtual wargame called Warfighter
- Spending 3½ weeks in Pennsylvania conducting another Warfighter exercise
- Earning the AWS Advanced Networking Specialty certification
Now I’m home for a little while before the next Army training exercise. I’ve been to the initial Army separation assistance program interview and this week I will attend the Pre-Separation Brief which is required before attending the rest of the required classes. I’ve begun initiating the typical “getting out of the Army” medical appointments. Things are starting to feel real and when I look at the calendar ahead, I know I have to be judicious to get everything taken care of with my unit’s schedule.
So, what is next???
Initially, spending some time learning Linux and then diving into the cybersecurity realm. But which area of cybersecurity… hmmm. I think probably blue team, but I’ll play around across the spectrum to see which area interests me the most. I love teaching, and I’ve seen a huge disconnect between IT folks and users, so I think teaching users how to be “safe” in the cyber realm would be a great fit for me.
Anyway, that is it for now.