“This is a man’s world; this is a man’s world. But it wouldn’t be nothing, nothing without a woman or a girl”. – James Brown (1966), The Godfather of Soul
Lyrics are powerful and the meaning resonates through the masses. Sometimes we don’t take time out to really understand what the artist is portraying through lyrics. As we prepare for 2020, I have realized that it is a man’s world. In my honest opinion, gender and race can be equally discussed. Over the course of three decades and some change, I’ve realized that the world that we envisioned isn’t equal. Men and Women are constantly being compared in various industries such as academia, industry, sports, religious affiliations, etc. The concept of inclusion and diversity is supposed to make sure that men and women are being treated fair in their careers. However, that wasn’t the case for many people.
Two of my favorite television shows that I enjoy are: The Big Bang Theory and Young Sheldon on CBS. I’ve noticed how elite scientists and their significant others come together to discuss scientific discoveries with a twist of humor involved. To be clear, I am not attempting to spoil the episode, but I encourage you to watch the latest episodes for context purposes. One of the most recent episodes from Young Sheldon that I’ve watched involved Sheldon Cooper’s sister Missy Cooper wanting to play a male dominating sport: Baseball. Missy discovered her talents by playing the dunking booth. The church pastor taunted Missy that she wasn’t capable of throwing the ball. To the minster’s surprise, Missy was a Rockstar in the game. Later, in the episodes, Missy discovered her talents, and everybody continued to cheer her on. Further in the episode, Missy asked her father if she could play baseball. Her father, George Cooper Sr. advised that she plays softball because there are no girls on the baseball team. To Missy’s passion and desire, she wanted to play baseball and her father made it happen. However, the coach wouldn’t give Missy a chance. The coach rejected her, and she cried. Another character in the story, NeMa, was going through some heartbreak and needed to get out of a situation. NeMa heard that Missy wanted to play baseball. Missy’s grandmother NeMa came to the rescue by confronting the coach for her granddaughter to play on the team. Eventually Missy was selected to be on team. Someone’s hardship helped someone to obtain an opportunity to play on a team.
Missy faced some challenges while being on the team. Missy was teased by her peers because she was on the team. Her brother, Sheldon could relate with her sister on being teased because of their gift. Instead of crying about a situation, Missy took the opportunity to fight back.
How does this story relate to someone’s situation? I will take myself as the main target. I wanted to be a medical doctor, but my college advisor stated that my grades were too low that I wouldn’t be able to get into anybody’s school. Those words killed my dream for success. Fast forward to the present and it’s the same cycle with new faces. Over the past few months, I’ve tried to make myself relevant in the industry by writing blogs and participating in podcasts. For some, I’ve been a source of inspiration while my naysayers critique my motives. Allow me to explain my story regarding my employment history. There are some roles that I’ve been involved with consisted of a downsize operation or a change of direction regarding the business, which were out of my control and no fault of my own. However, there have been some organizations that I’ve worked for consisted of a male dominating role, and to my dismay a lot of negativity. I thought that I would have a higher salary when starting Information Technology. When I first started my career, I was at the bottom of the totem pole and still attempting to climb the ladder and shatter glass ceilings. Over the course of years coupled with proper guidance, I was able to obtain the certifications and attempt various careers like Technical Support, Field Engineer, Network Engineer, and Cybersecurity Engineer. With the multitude of careers, I have had some setbacks. I have had my peers and leadership display their discourse of negativity throughout my career.
When I’ve raised issues regarding peers treating me unfairly, I’ve had a manager say that they have done everything they could to fixing an issue but instead felt that I was the troublemaker. The second situation was with a manager that did not have any IT certifications, and made a remark saying that they have read my profile on LinkedIn and know that I’m smart, but I need to not leapfrog a process and just do your job. While being criticized on my work ethics, I had to endure secondhand smoke from leadership and endure their negativity and cliquish activities. The most common phrase I’ve heard in my career is, “I see that you are smart but why are you here”? I am here because I have a purpose in life to become successful in a male dominated field. The nail on the coffin that I’ve experienced in my career consisted of a peer who was a year older than me to write on a performance review stating that: I have poor grammar and my writing wasn’t technical enough and that the only time I was engaged was during a client dinner session. From these experiences, I’ve learned how to become resilient while riding through the storms. I’ve posted my resume on LinkedIn to receive roughly 25 reshared and 30k views. However, with the views, I’ve had close to 70 comments and growing with criticism regarding my resume. I value the positive and negative criticism regarding my accomplishments. However, until you have experienced someone’s situation, they will continue to deal with unethical practices in the industry. I know my worth and will continue to disrupt the Cybersecurity space.
So, who am I? I am an educated African American female that was raised in a single-family home with no siblings. I’ve endured more negativity and deaths in my personal life so much that I can vividly illustrate the time and date of the activities. I have an analytical mind and have always been involved in STEM related activities like Science and Music. I can memorize various numbers like driver’s license and license plates, credit cards, routing numbers, and phone numbers and their sounds being dialed. I am a visual learner that loves to solve problems. I’ve been on academic probation through my college career. I have been dismissed from a graduate school program. I’ve failed several certifications. I’ve been blocked and unassociated by my peers and yet I am still standing. You may call me The Walking Brain and I’ve been ready to disrupt the world. I’ve always been recognized academically throughout my education and I don’t regret the paths I’ve taken. I know my worth and capable of doing the impossible. People remind me that I don’t have anything to prove and that a resume is just a list of accomplishments. Through it all, I am thankful for every accomplishment and shortcomings in my life and career. Because of this, I will continue to strike harder in my fire and persevere in this course.
Who am I?
What do we want? Purple Squirrels and My Little Pony Cyber Unicorns
When do we want them? Now!
#NewYear2020 #NewOpportunities #HireMe #Hired #BlackGirlTech #Cybersecurity #womenincybersecurity #purplesquirrels #mylittlepony #cyberunicorns #WhoAmI #equality
ACWCYBERANG 
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