Cybersecurity Pro Advises Certification Candidates To Identify Their Learning Style

Abdiel Novoa, a security consultant and forensic analyst at a major global tech enterprise, has a job that aligns his passion for technology and cybersecurity with his desire for growth and his core values. He took the position in early 2022, specifically because it was his dream job. While it was tough to leave his previous role – one he loved everything about – a unique opportunity for career advancement was calling.

Having one’s pick of the perfect job is an enviable place to be. But Novoa’s road was not always easy, and it posed challenges at every step. He found CompTIA certifications themselves to present some of the biggest challenges – and the biggest rewards.

CompTIA certifications helped Novoa go from a lifelong tech hobbyist to a cybersecurity expert, a goal he never imagined achieving. In fact, Novoa had not really considered working in tech at all. Until a little over decade ago, he was on an entirely different career path.

Rethinking Restaurants and Revisiting an Old Passion

In 2011, Novoa was a longtime employee at a mom-and-pop restaurant. Making the leap to owning and operating his own restaurant struck him as the obvious next career move.

He enrolled in a business administration and management program at Seminole State College of Florida, earned his associate degree and entered a restaurant management certificate program. While he liked the field’s combination of personal skills and financial acumen, the risky realities of running a restaurant were impossible to ignore. Without money to fall back on, he was in no position to roll the dice on restaurant ownership. He needed to shift gears.

At the restaurant he worked at, Novoa was the de facto IT guy. Each time he fixed a problem, owners and colleagues said that he should consider a tech career. As a lifelong computing hobbyist, he believed that doing it for a living would kill his passion. In need of a new career path, though, he finally reconsidered that position.

He soon found that rather than killing his passion, it did the opposite.

CompTIA A+: The First Big Challenge

With a lifetime of self-taught computing knowledge, Novoa got an entry-level IT job. Building his skills there, he then secured a service desk analyst role at a national healthcare organization.

As a service desk analyst, Novoa saw more advanced opportunities ahead of him. CompTIA A+ was a requirement for moving up to a Tier 2 role, so he started studying for it. He had built his first computer at age 13, but his homegrown knowledge hardly prepared him for the detailed exam objectives.

“I recall how extensive the body of knowledge was,” Novoa said. “How in depth and intricate and how many different things they wanted you to know about hardware, software, system architecture – computers from the ground up.”

Information-wise, it was a deeper dive than he expected, and it was also the first exam of that type he had taken. It took six full months of studying, and when he passed both exams, he jumped into a higher-level job role. But with the demanding CompTIA A+ exam still fresh in his mind, the prospect of going beyond that seemed daunting. 

“I was like, I can’t imagine going for something like CompTIA Network+ or CompTIA Security+,” Novoa said. “Especially my Security+. That was like, no way.”

Soon, he was pursuing both.

Filling in the Gaps With CompTIA Network+

In his new role, his CompTIA A+-backed confidence with hardware and software was going a long way. On network-related calls, though, he was shaky. He wanted a full grasp of the flow of information through networked ecosystems. This was something he knew CompTIA Network+ could provide. 

Novoa studied and earned CompTIA Network+ and cut his study time in half – despite the information being more advanced. He was beginning to understand how he learned. Discovering what study methods worked best for him would become even more important as he continued on his certification path.

Finding Inspiration in the Cybersecurity Challenge

When Novoa was growing up, watching movies like “Hackers” and “The Matrix” made him think of cybersecurity as the tech world’s coolest pursuit. So doing it in real life, with real technology, was a bit of a dream. Eyeing cybersecurity jobs, though, he found a challenge no less intimidating than “hacking the Gibson,” and he could not – like Neo with Kung Fu – download the skills directly into his brain.

Novoa started studying for CompTIA Security+, and the first time he took the exam, he did not pass.

“That could have been the brakes,” Novoa said. “[I could have said] ‘Stop, okay, I’m not made for this.’ But I came back two weeks after that. I took it and I passed it.”

With CompTIA Security+ in hand, Novoa was headed for the security operations center (SOC) and beyond. The tech was getting way more advanced, but the path was getting easier. In part because he found a study technique that really worked for him.  

Study Techniques for Shredded Cybersecurity Skills

In 2019, Novoa stood in line at Publix waiting to check out. On his smartphone, he was quizzing himself on cybersecurity-related content. He spent that entire year studying for certifications everywhere he went. He was watching videos while he was waiting to be seated at restaurants, and he was running through trainings while on walks. He was weaving his certification preparation into the time pockets of his daily life in a way that was paying dividends.

“Any of those moments where you find yourself going on social media or just searching for random stuff on your phone, those are times that you could be filling your brain with knowledge about the thing that you want to learn,” Novoa said.

Having found a study technique more effective for him than a classroom or a preparation course, Novoa added CompTIA Cybersecurity Analyst (CySA+) and CompTIA Project+, as well the CEH and CISSP certifications to his resume within a year. A once intimidating prospect became a fun mental workout.

“Because the material overlapped, I just wanted to keep going and keep that educational muscle in my brain growing,” Novoa said. “Almost like putting heavier weights on the rack. This is your new max, so let’s throw on another 25 pounds. I just kept stacking certifications up and taking what I understood from one exam to the next.”

A Hands-on Cybersecurity Future

As a personable, talkative IT pro, people often assume Novoa is headed for the C-suite. But any new role he advances to will need to involve working directly with technology. That, above all, remains his passion, and he has advice for those who hope to follow suit.

“The number one thing I can say is, don’t be intimidated by the challenge,” said Novoa. “Be encouraged by the challenge. Be inspired by the challenge.”

To get started, he advises aspiring tech pros to learn how they learn best. And whether that’s taking advantage of pockets of time or more traditional methods, he sees CompTIA certifications as the thing to study for.

“CompTIA certifications give you structure in your learning path,” Novoa said. “It guides you down your learning path. It also gives you a sense of accomplishment. You can say I studied this, I learned this, I validated that I know it.”

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Matthew Stern is a freelance writer based in Chicago who covers information technology, retail and various other topics and industries.