How She Broke Into Tech with no Tech Background | ft. STEM Babe

[00:00:00] [SPEAKER_03]: You've got a broad, elegant tech. You've identified the discipline and then within that discipline you understand what are the most valuable skill sets and what are the most common roles

[00:00:09] [SPEAKER_03]: And then you can look for a paternity that aligns with you upskilling in that area

[00:00:15] [SPEAKER_02]: Welcome back to the Tech Certified Podcast

[00:00:18] [SPEAKER_02]: I guess today is Yamara, aka STEM Babe, a cyber security engineer and investment banking firm

[00:00:26] [SPEAKER_02]: And also, the content creator, online. She is built in incredible following, especially on TikTok and Instagram

[00:00:33] [SPEAKER_02]: I've been following her for a while

[00:00:35] [SPEAKER_02]: We had a great discussion and in this video you will learn how to find suitable roles as a beginner in tech

[00:00:41] [SPEAKER_02]: How to navigate and post-dicindrome in the tech industry

[00:00:45] [SPEAKER_02]: And you will also hear about Yamara's incredible journey from graduating with the degree in chemistry

[00:00:50] [SPEAKER_02]: To her current position as a cybersecurity profession

[00:00:54] [SPEAKER_02]: But before we begin, I just ask one thing

[00:00:58] [SPEAKER_02]: If you watched this podcast or any videos on the Caleb Oni Certified channel

[00:01:02] [SPEAKER_02]: Please subscribe to the channel

[00:01:04] [SPEAKER_02]: Other people who watch the videos on this channel

[00:01:06] [SPEAKER_02]: 87% of those people are not subscribed to the channel

[00:01:11] [SPEAKER_02]: And only 13% of people that watch are actually subscribed

[00:01:15] [SPEAKER_02]: So if you are watching this content and really enjoy it, please hit that subscribe button

[00:01:20] [SPEAKER_02]: Let's get this total up a little bit higher

[00:01:22] [SPEAKER_02]: I want to see way more than 13% for people who are subscribed and watch

[00:01:27] [SPEAKER_02]: Let's get this number away up

[00:01:29] [SPEAKER_02]: Alright guys, let's get right into the podcast

[00:01:37] [SPEAKER_02]: I think we will start off this podcast by asking you this question

[00:01:43] [SPEAKER_02]: I followed you online for a while

[00:01:45] [SPEAKER_02]: And I've seen a lot of the content that you put out there

[00:01:48] [SPEAKER_02]: And you put out a lot about roles that are out there

[00:01:52] [SPEAKER_02]: It is really cool and you kind of suggest roles that people should get into

[00:01:59] [SPEAKER_02]: And I kind of wanted to ask you on that note

[00:02:02] [SPEAKER_02]: How do you think, what do you think is the way to find those suitable roles for you

[00:02:07] [SPEAKER_02]: And for anyone getting into tech?

[00:02:10] [SPEAKER_02]: How do you find those super-berols, where do you start with that?

[00:02:14] [SPEAKER_02]: Where are your thoughts on that question?

[00:02:15] [SPEAKER_03]: Yes, so that's a really interesting question

[00:02:19] [SPEAKER_03]: Because technology is so diverse and I think one of the hardest things about breaking into technology

[00:02:26] [SPEAKER_03]: Is that there's so much option and you kind of go over information overload

[00:02:31] [SPEAKER_03]: The practical step that I would suggest for people who want to break into the industry

[00:02:35] [SPEAKER_03]: Is that I break tech into five disciplines

[00:02:39] [SPEAKER_03]: And so those five disciplines are cloud data, AI, cybersecurity and web development

[00:02:45] [SPEAKER_03]: That's where I would start off as like the disciplines within tech

[00:02:49] [SPEAKER_03]: I encourage people to research into those different disciplines

[00:02:53] [SPEAKER_03]: And take time whilst researching those different disciplines

[00:02:57] [SPEAKER_03]: To get a general understanding about the conversation

[00:03:01] [SPEAKER_03]: Within those disciplines and also the opportunities and roles within there

[00:03:06] [SPEAKER_03]: What I find are the lot of people they get confused

[00:03:09] [SPEAKER_03]: Because they haven't necessarily got a strategy towards their research in tech

[00:03:15] [SPEAKER_03]: They kind of just go online, look for whatever seems to be high paying

[00:03:19] [SPEAKER_03]: Or what everybody's going for

[00:03:21] [SPEAKER_03]: But they haven't actually dedicated enough time to do research within each of those disciplines

[00:03:27] [SPEAKER_03]: So the five disciplines give yourself time and grace

[00:03:31] [SPEAKER_03]: Researching into those different disciplines and identify like what's the language

[00:03:36] [SPEAKER_03]: What's the conversation, what's happening in industry and what are the roles

[00:03:40] [SPEAKER_03]: And so what I like to do as a starter is like

[00:03:43] [SPEAKER_03]: L'Auguin and general assembly have introductory lessons across those different disciplines

[00:03:49] [SPEAKER_03]: So you could be like, I want to know more about the cloud one earth as a cloud

[00:03:53] [SPEAKER_03]: Go to maybe L'Auguin or general assembly

[00:03:56] [SPEAKER_03]: Do one of their one hour intro sessions to our intro sessions

[00:04:00] [SPEAKER_03]: And find out, okay, this is something that's interesting to me

[00:04:04] [SPEAKER_03]: Yes it is

[00:04:05] [SPEAKER_03]: So once you've done that and you've like, okay, it seems to me that I really like the area of cybersecurity

[00:04:11] [SPEAKER_03]: And what I like to do is find out the key roles within that discipline

[00:04:15] [SPEAKER_03]: So let's say in cybersecurity you've got instant response

[00:04:19] [SPEAKER_03]: You've got project management business analyst, cyber security engineer, cyber security analyst

[00:04:24] [SPEAKER_03]: Find out what are the most common jobs in that discipline

[00:04:28] [SPEAKER_03]: Because then that will tell you like, okay, these are the common jobs within cybersecurity

[00:04:33] [SPEAKER_03]: And what are the most in demand skills within that discipline?

[00:04:38] [SPEAKER_03]: So I think you've got a broad on account tech, you've identified the discipline

[00:04:42] [SPEAKER_03]: And then within that discipline you understand what are the most valuable skill sets

[00:04:46] [SPEAKER_03]: And what are the most common roles

[00:04:48] [SPEAKER_03]: And then you can look for opportunity that aligns with you upskilling in that area

[00:04:53] [SPEAKER_03]: So that sort of the starting ground I would say

[00:04:57] [SPEAKER_03]: More specifically to the content that I share I think it's just a gift that I have

[00:05:03] [SPEAKER_03]: Working within industry you might not necessarily understand how your skills set translates into the industry

[00:05:11] [SPEAKER_03]: Until you stop working it's only until I started working now

[00:05:15] [SPEAKER_03]: So oh my gosh actually being in the industry if we had someone who had business acumen

[00:05:20] [SPEAKER_03]: They'd be really good at this if we had someone who did that and whatever

[00:05:23] [SPEAKER_03]: But I think when you're starting out you might not necessarily be able to

[00:05:28] [SPEAKER_03]: Understand what makes the most sense based on your background

[00:05:32] [SPEAKER_03]: But yeah, that's what I would say and also on the pursuit of wanting a tech career

[00:05:37] [SPEAKER_03]: Understand that your trajectory might change so for me when I was pursuing a career within tech

[00:05:44] [SPEAKER_03]: My ambition was to get into cloud at that time and it was cloud engineering

[00:05:48] [SPEAKER_03]: So I just took on opportunities that upskilled me in the air of cloud engineering

[00:05:54] [SPEAKER_03]: But that skills set opened me up to the doors as well

[00:05:58] [SPEAKER_03]: But anyway during my time applying for roles in cloud

[00:06:01] [SPEAKER_03]: I am fortunate wasn't successful however

[00:06:05] [SPEAKER_03]: I was able to land an opportunity inside the security during that journey of wanting to get into tech

[00:06:10] [SPEAKER_03]: So it's good to have a nice deal of what you want to do

[00:06:13] [SPEAKER_03]: The skills that you develop that be open to changes in your career trajectory as and when you develop your skill set

[00:06:20] [SPEAKER_02]: Amazing. Amazing. There's some really good points

[00:06:23] [SPEAKER_02]: And for the one that you started with when you spoke about

[00:06:28] [SPEAKER_02]: The five different areas

[00:06:31] [SPEAKER_02]: I think that's a really good breakdown because

[00:06:36] [SPEAKER_02]: Even when I was getting into cloud

[00:06:38] [SPEAKER_02]: I kind of fought through some of those areas and I was like

[00:06:43] [SPEAKER_02]: Okay, it's cloud, cyber, there's state, it's wherever, I was like

[00:06:48] [SPEAKER_02]: I need to actually understand each of these to know

[00:06:52] [SPEAKER_02]: That's one I'm trying to get into

[00:06:53] [SPEAKER_02]: So I really relate to that point

[00:06:56] [SPEAKER_02]: And I also just know that there's so many people who are really confused

[00:07:00] [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, I want to get into tech

[00:07:04] [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, like tech is all this

[00:07:09] [SPEAKER_02]: So it is important to do some research into these little things

[00:07:13] [SPEAKER_02]: Don't understand what actually draws your interest

[00:07:16] [SPEAKER_02]: And knowing that like you said, your trajectory could change

[00:07:21] [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah

[00:07:22] [SPEAKER_02]: I can say like go ahead

[00:07:23] [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah

[00:07:24] [SPEAKER_03]: I was going to say I think it's really important because

[00:07:28] [SPEAKER_03]: If you have a guided direction

[00:07:32] [SPEAKER_03]: What happens is

[00:07:33] [SPEAKER_03]: I said the five disciplines

[00:07:35] [SPEAKER_03]: There's a lot of intersections in between those disciplines anyway

[00:07:38] [SPEAKER_03]: But I think starting from somewhere with a structured learning path

[00:07:42] [SPEAKER_03]: With an understanding of what skills that you're going to develop

[00:07:44] [SPEAKER_03]: Will still open you up to other areas as well

[00:07:47] [SPEAKER_03]: You're not pigeon-held into one area

[00:07:49] [SPEAKER_03]: It's just having that, okay

[00:07:51] [SPEAKER_03]: I want to get into cloud, I want to get into cloud engineering

[00:07:53] [SPEAKER_03]: This is what I need, this is a skill set

[00:07:55] [SPEAKER_03]: During that journey it can still open doors for other areas within tech as well

[00:08:01] [SPEAKER_03]: It's a bit like medicine like

[00:08:02] [SPEAKER_03]: I want to get into medicine, medicine you can specialize in going to college

[00:08:07] [SPEAKER_03]: Pediatrician, like, etc.

[00:08:09] [SPEAKER_03]: So people need to when it comes to tech

[00:08:11] [SPEAKER_03]: They need to have the medicine approach

[00:08:13] [SPEAKER_03]: I want to get into medicine but I want to specialize in XY

[00:08:16] [SPEAKER_03]: Which is where I think people lack

[00:08:19] [SPEAKER_03]: And kind of get confused and don't really progress or go anywhere

[00:08:23] [SPEAKER_02]: Hmm, I make so much sense

[00:08:26] [SPEAKER_02]: You're actually not pigeon-held into one thing

[00:08:30] [SPEAKER_02]: That's a fear of some people

[00:08:34] [SPEAKER_02]: And it basically

[00:08:36] [SPEAKER_02]: The different roles in tech

[00:08:38] [SPEAKER_02]: Offer transferable skills to other roles, which is a really good point

[00:08:44] [SPEAKER_02]: And so to move on from that point

[00:08:47] [SPEAKER_02]: I kind of wanted to ask you about navigating imposter syndrome

[00:08:52] [SPEAKER_02]: In the tech industry

[00:08:54] [SPEAKER_02]: I think it's a massive topic that we haven't quite covered

[00:09:00] [SPEAKER_02]: On the spotcast so far

[00:09:02] [SPEAKER_02]: And so I thought it would be good to talk to you about that

[00:09:06] [SPEAKER_02]: Imposter syndrome

[00:09:08] [SPEAKER_02]: Firstly, for those who don't understand what it is

[00:09:11] [SPEAKER_02]: You give a little bit of an explanation of what that actually means

[00:09:15] [SPEAKER_02]: And just how you navigate that in the tech industry

[00:09:20] [SPEAKER_03]: Yeah, I think imposter syndrome is something that's faced amongst all work and professionals

[00:09:25] [SPEAKER_03]: Regardless of where they are in their careers

[00:09:29] [SPEAKER_03]: But so what I like to say imposter syndrome is the feeling of

[00:09:32] [SPEAKER_03]: I shouldn't be here

[00:09:33] [SPEAKER_03]: Oh, they're going to catch me out

[00:09:35] [SPEAKER_03]: I'm a bit of a fraud

[00:09:36] [SPEAKER_03]: It's always feeling as though you're never good enough for what you're doing

[00:09:41] [SPEAKER_03]: The term was actually coined as a specific but it was

[00:09:45] [SPEAKER_03]: It's a term coined by a researcher, some scientists who found

[00:09:48] [SPEAKER_03]: It was really prevalent amongst women who were doing incredibly well in their careers

[00:09:54] [SPEAKER_03]: So I like to see imposter syndrome as a feeling rather than it being like a mental health issue

[00:10:00] [SPEAKER_03]: So it's that constant feeling why am I here?

[00:10:03] [SPEAKER_03]: They've got it wrong, they're going to catch me out

[00:10:05] [SPEAKER_03]: And yeah, that's how it's defined it basically

[00:10:09] [SPEAKER_02]: Amazing and I make so much sense

[00:10:11] [SPEAKER_02]: And I can say like for myself

[00:10:13] [SPEAKER_02]: There are so many points in my career where I felt like that

[00:10:19] [SPEAKER_02]: I felt that way

[00:10:20] [SPEAKER_02]: And like you said, anyone can get to the point where they feel that way

[00:10:27] [SPEAKER_02]: I think I felt that way for different reasons for my career

[00:10:32] [SPEAKER_02]: And for some of it, it's been like early on when certain technical terms come up

[00:10:40] [SPEAKER_02]: That I'm like literally have no idea where to start and what it's like about

[00:10:46] [SPEAKER_02]: And other areas it's where I've just been in a space where

[00:10:52] [SPEAKER_02]: Of course there's no one that looks like me in terms of my

[00:10:56] [SPEAKER_02]: ness to my race. I'm like, wow, I'm the only one here but I'm the only black person there

[00:11:02] [SPEAKER_02]: Oh, really good

[00:11:03] [SPEAKER_02]: And I sort of feel like, am I really supposed to be here?

[00:11:09] [SPEAKER_02]: And I get those feelings and I feel like I'm a poster

[00:11:11] [SPEAKER_02]: Like I'm not supposed to be in this space

[00:11:15] [SPEAKER_02]: I don't know if you've had those feelings in your career

[00:11:19] [SPEAKER_03]: Oh yeah, definitely I think in tech it's perfectly more more to have those feelings

[00:11:25] [SPEAKER_03]: Especially when you're starting out so for me

[00:11:29] [SPEAKER_03]: That feeling was really intensified when I was first starting out my career within cyber security

[00:11:36] [SPEAKER_03]: Because I'd literally just come from a chemistry background

[00:11:39] [SPEAKER_03]: And I was literally thrown into the big wide world of cyber security

[00:11:44] [SPEAKER_03]: And aspects of that and post-ac syndrome like, oh, am I really meant to be here?

[00:11:49] [SPEAKER_03]: Because I didn't understand what was going on

[00:11:52] [SPEAKER_03]: And on top of that it wasn't just the cyber security

[00:11:55] [SPEAKER_03]: It was that she navigating the professional working life

[00:11:59] [SPEAKER_03]: Navigating working within a large organisation

[00:12:02] [SPEAKER_03]: And navigating being a corporate professional

[00:12:05] [SPEAKER_03]: Having graduated from university

[00:12:07] [SPEAKER_03]: So in the early stages of my tech career

[00:12:10] [SPEAKER_03]: It was really big because of number one that Lingo and cyber security

[00:12:15] [SPEAKER_03]: Can be really complicated

[00:12:16] [SPEAKER_03]: Number two, I had to navigate the new stage of life that I was entering into

[00:12:22] [SPEAKER_03]: From being a jobless graduate

[00:12:25] [SPEAKER_03]: To an experience working professional who was getting paid

[00:12:29] [SPEAKER_03]: And how to task to do

[00:12:31] [SPEAKER_03]: And then the third thing again is sort of being the minority I guess within the team

[00:12:38] [SPEAKER_03]: And yes, so that's where it's mostly been evident

[00:12:40] [SPEAKER_03]: But I've sort of learnt how to navigate that a little bit better now

[00:12:46] [SPEAKER_03]: Some things that have really helped me is the change in mindset

[00:12:50] [SPEAKER_03]: So I like to say, I've never been that feeling as because there's growth

[00:12:55] [SPEAKER_03]: And there's development and that's energy that you should channel to learn

[00:13:00] [SPEAKER_03]: If you don't necessarily get the imposter syndrome

[00:13:03] [SPEAKER_03]: It might be that you're a bit too comfortable

[00:13:05] [SPEAKER_03]: Where you are so I like to see as area of growth, area of development

[00:13:10] [SPEAKER_03]: That can be internal factors, external factors that can contribute to

[00:13:15] [SPEAKER_03]: Imposter syndrome is your environment

[00:13:17] [SPEAKER_03]: So for me I was quite an unfortunate in my career

[00:13:21] [SPEAKER_03]: That I've had psychological safety

[00:13:23] [SPEAKER_03]: So feeling safe enough to make mistakes and fail

[00:13:28] [SPEAKER_03]: And be not disciplined for it

[00:13:33] [SPEAKER_03]: But be open to constructive criticism

[00:13:37] [SPEAKER_03]: In a way that's loving and nurturing and allows you for development

[00:13:41] [SPEAKER_03]: So for me luckily in the first part of my career when I did make mistakes

[00:13:45] [SPEAKER_03]: I had psychological safety which was given to me by my manager

[00:13:49] [SPEAKER_03]: So that if something did happen or I made a mistake and production

[00:13:54] [SPEAKER_03]: He would be there like, yeah, you fumbled

[00:13:57] [SPEAKER_03]: But let's what can we do next time to improve

[00:13:59] [SPEAKER_03]: Here's what we need to do next time to improve

[00:14:01] [SPEAKER_03]: Even in my current role as well

[00:14:03] [SPEAKER_03]: I have that psychological safety in terms of okay

[00:14:06] [SPEAKER_03]: I don't know what's going on can you help me

[00:14:09] [SPEAKER_03]: And can you provide me with feedback in terms of what I've done

[00:14:12] [SPEAKER_03]: While or where I haven't done well

[00:14:13] [SPEAKER_03]: So I think internally that mindset shift has been helpful in navigating

[00:14:17] [SPEAKER_03]: Imposter syndrome but also the external factors like my team

[00:14:23] [SPEAKER_03]: And my manager and the work life balance and the work culture

[00:14:27] [SPEAKER_03]: Have also helped me navigate Imposter syndrome as well

[00:14:30] [SPEAKER_02]: Wow amazing and some really good points there

[00:14:34] [SPEAKER_02]: Psychological safety of you know feeling like yeah, okay

[00:14:40] [SPEAKER_02]: You can make mistakes and you're you're not getting fired for it

[00:14:46] [SPEAKER_02]: You're basically

[00:14:46] [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, it's I think that's important

[00:14:51] [SPEAKER_02]: Because especially as a junior when you're starting out

[00:14:57] [SPEAKER_02]: How like we've had

[00:15:01] [SPEAKER_02]: About 15 guests on this podcast and pretty much all of them have told a story about a mistake they made

[00:15:11] [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, some of them have 10 years experience

[00:15:13] [SPEAKER_02]: Some of them have 23 years experience

[00:15:15] [SPEAKER_02]: But they've all shared a story about what's most of them have shared a story about something that completely wrong

[00:15:22] [SPEAKER_02]: Some of them have shut down their whole organization

[00:15:25] [SPEAKER_02]: Some of them have deleted emails that as opposed to go to the CEO

[00:15:29] [SPEAKER_02]: I've had stories that I've told about big mistakes that I've made

[00:15:33] [SPEAKER_02]: And I think the the important part of those stories is that the response has always been

[00:15:39] [SPEAKER_02]: It's always been a learning experience rather than your big trouble

[00:15:43] [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, type type of thing

[00:15:46] [SPEAKER_02]: Which is a really good point that you made

[00:15:48] [SPEAKER_02]: We've just launched a free cloud engineer assessment to evaluate and assess your current skills

[00:15:54] [SPEAKER_02]: When you're path to becoming a cloud professional

[00:15:57] [SPEAKER_02]: Now when you take this assessment it provides some incredible recommendations for your path

[00:16:02] [SPEAKER_02]: And remember this is completely free. It costs you nothing. It only helps you on your journey

[00:16:07] [SPEAKER_02]: So if this interests you and you are an aspiring cloud professional, definitely take this assessment

[00:16:13] [SPEAKER_02]: I'm going to leave a link to it. Here's an example of me taking it myself

[00:16:16] [SPEAKER_02]: And getting some pretty good recommendations for my own assessment

[00:16:19] [SPEAKER_02]: So guys check this out and I hope this is really helpful. Thank you guys for watching

[00:16:23] [SPEAKER_02]: I'll see you guys later

[00:16:25] [SPEAKER_02]: And so you spoke a little bit about your story

[00:16:29] [SPEAKER_02]: Yes

[00:16:30] [SPEAKER_02]: And your journey to where you are now

[00:16:33] [SPEAKER_02]: I mean, you know, you spoke about how you started

[00:16:36] [SPEAKER_02]: Or you did your degree in chemistry

[00:16:39] [SPEAKER_02]: And moved from there into the industry or how you know you've worked in different roles

[00:16:44] [SPEAKER_02]: And that sort of thing. So I just wanted to understand more about that

[00:16:48] [SPEAKER_02]: And get a brief walk through of your journey from where you started to where you currently are

[00:16:55] [SPEAKER_03]: Oh boy, yes

[00:16:57] [SPEAKER_03]: So I studied chemistry and my the initial intention must be a doctor

[00:17:05] [SPEAKER_03]: Typical African parent style

[00:17:07] [SPEAKER_03]: But then I realized at the end of my degree

[00:17:10] [SPEAKER_03]: I did not want to do postgraduate medicine and I did not want to work in a lab

[00:17:15] [SPEAKER_03]: What I do anything related to chemistry

[00:17:18] [SPEAKER_03]: So at the end of my degree, I decided to take a year out and go to China

[00:17:23] [SPEAKER_03]: Because if I stayed at home and told my parents I was jobless

[00:17:27] [SPEAKER_03]: And employed and once figured my life that did kill me

[00:17:30] [SPEAKER_03]: And it was also an opportunity for me to gain clarity

[00:17:33] [SPEAKER_03]: As to what did I actually want to pursue in the future career wise

[00:17:37] [SPEAKER_03]: Which is actually a question we don't really get time and capacity to think about as graduates

[00:17:42] [SPEAKER_03]: Or you know university students so I thought let me take some time I'll go to China and extend my studies

[00:17:49] [SPEAKER_03]: And figure out what I actually wanted to do

[00:17:51] [SPEAKER_03]: So in the following year of my degree

[00:17:53] [SPEAKER_03]: In the final semester of the year in China Studies, COVID happened

[00:17:58] [SPEAKER_03]: And we were forced to come back to the UK

[00:18:01] [SPEAKER_03]: And basically we had to look at how you can use technology to teach education

[00:18:09] [SPEAKER_03]: So that introduced me into the world of technology

[00:18:12] [SPEAKER_03]: Because I've got the on my gosh, now having to work remotely

[00:18:16] [SPEAKER_03]: My year in China Studies have been terminated

[00:18:19] [SPEAKER_03]: But during research into how technology the edge of tech spaces evolving

[00:18:24] [SPEAKER_03]: Was what kind of got me interested in the field

[00:18:27] [SPEAKER_03]: That also coincided with a tweet that went viral by a later courteous men

[00:18:34] [SPEAKER_03]: Who tweeted how much she earned within technology

[00:18:36] [SPEAKER_03]: But also has success within the industry and her career progression

[00:18:40] [SPEAKER_03]: And I remember it was a light bulb moment for me because I was like oh my gosh

[00:18:46] [SPEAKER_03]: This is amazing like there's a black woman who's earning a high paying salary

[00:18:52] [SPEAKER_03]: Within technology and I'm just learning about it so there's opportunity there

[00:18:57] [SPEAKER_03]: So following on from that, I decided to take on a course

[00:19:02] [SPEAKER_03]: Looking at clouds computing and following on from that course

[00:19:06] [SPEAKER_03]: I was able to work at how to tech startup

[00:19:09] [SPEAKER_03]: Which is the intersection of chemistry and technology

[00:19:13] [SPEAKER_03]: So essentially we were looking at how you can use technology to detect for coronavirus

[00:19:18] [SPEAKER_03]: And so that actually required you to have scientific knowledge which I had from my chemistry degree

[00:19:24] [SPEAKER_03]: But also an understanding of technology in terms of how do you interpret those results

[00:19:31] [SPEAKER_03]: Using technology, et cetera

[00:19:33] [SPEAKER_03]: So for me I really saw the versatility of technology from the educational perspective

[00:19:39] [SPEAKER_03]: But also from the chemistry perspective

[00:19:41] [SPEAKER_03]: So following on from that as we'd start up they don't necessarily work out

[00:19:47] [SPEAKER_03]: I was sort of in a limbo wasn't really sure what I wanted to do

[00:19:50] [SPEAKER_03]: So I attempted a recruitment event hosted by a career support group

[00:19:55] [SPEAKER_03]: They had a partnership with an organisation within finance

[00:19:59] [SPEAKER_03]: And as part of that recruitment event the hiring managers were just talking about the opportunities and the roles they had to offer

[00:20:05] [SPEAKER_03]: And I at the time wasn't like I didn't want to get into cyber security

[00:20:11] [SPEAKER_03]: Because I thought I'm not smart enough I'm not intelligent enough

[00:20:15] [SPEAKER_03]: And there's no opportunity for me the only reason why I applied for the role at the time is because I liked my manager

[00:20:21] [SPEAKER_03]: And I thought okay, I have the chance variable skills from the cloud computing knowledge that I've developed

[00:20:29] [SPEAKER_03]: Because that financial institution was moving over to the cloud

[00:20:32] [SPEAKER_03]: And also my manager seems like a really cool guy

[00:20:37] [SPEAKER_03]: He seems like someone that I could work for

[00:20:39] [SPEAKER_03]: So then I was like oh well okay

[00:20:42] [SPEAKER_03]: Let me apply and see what happens

[00:20:45] [SPEAKER_03]: And so from then on the rest is history

[00:20:48] [SPEAKER_03]: So I was able to land the role within cyber

[00:20:52] [SPEAKER_03]: It was a shock

[00:20:55] [SPEAKER_03]: It was it was those three years at that institution

[00:21:00] [SPEAKER_03]: Where a shock

[00:21:02] [SPEAKER_03]: Because I was literally it was almost like I was doing a degree

[00:21:06] [SPEAKER_03]: And in like a foreign language

[00:21:09] [SPEAKER_03]: But that was the training ground for me to have the career I have now

[00:21:14] [SPEAKER_03]: In a more senior position within investment banking

[00:21:17] [SPEAKER_03]: So it's been a difficult, exciting journey

[00:21:22] [SPEAKER_03]: The first three years in the junior role but very much worthwhile

[00:21:27] [SPEAKER_02]: Wow, no an amazing story

[00:21:29] [SPEAKER_02]: And there's a lot that stands out about that story

[00:21:32] [SPEAKER_02]: And I think the most incredible thing about your story

[00:21:37] [SPEAKER_02]: is well from my perspective

[00:21:39] [SPEAKER_02]: Is that like you said before

[00:21:43] [SPEAKER_02]: You're not pigeonholed in a tech industry

[00:21:46] [SPEAKER_02]: Even from the start, you could

[00:21:48] [SPEAKER_02]: It's one of the industries that you can come from any background

[00:21:52] [SPEAKER_02]: And get into within a short space of time

[00:21:57] [SPEAKER_02]: If you're willing to do the learning

[00:21:59] [SPEAKER_02]: You're willing to put in the work and you're willing to do the courses

[00:22:02] [SPEAKER_02]: The long stuff

[00:22:03] [SPEAKER_02]: You can actually make your way into this industry

[00:22:07] [SPEAKER_02]: Of tech, whether it's cyber, whether it's car, whether it's

[00:22:10] [SPEAKER_02]: Software, whether it's all the other areas of tech

[00:22:14] [SPEAKER_02]: Which is really cool

[00:22:15] [SPEAKER_02]: And another thing I always love when people talk about this story

[00:22:20] [SPEAKER_02]: And they tell people how difficult it actually was

[00:22:22] [SPEAKER_02]: Because people can really see the numbers

[00:22:28] [SPEAKER_02]: And the salary online, it'd be like, yeah I want to do that

[00:22:31] [SPEAKER_02]: It was an easy life

[00:22:33] [SPEAKER_02]: It was starting

[00:22:34] [SPEAKER_02]: It didn't just wake up and

[00:22:37] [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, I'm getting into this

[00:22:38] [SPEAKER_02]: It was a journey

[00:22:41] [SPEAKER_02]: And for those that are on this journey

[00:22:43] [SPEAKER_02]: Which is a lot of the people who watch this podcast

[00:22:46] [SPEAKER_02]: There's helpful to understand

[00:22:48] [SPEAKER_02]: Your journey in the mirror and how you're journey went

[00:22:52] [SPEAKER_02]: And how you got to the position that you're at

[00:22:56] [SPEAKER_02]: Which is really cool

[00:22:57] [SPEAKER_02]: And to move on just on that point

[00:23:01] [SPEAKER_02]: I've been following you and

[00:23:03] [SPEAKER_02]: I see like, you've done so many

[00:23:07] [SPEAKER_02]: Like amazing talks and

[00:23:10] [SPEAKER_02]: Speaking gigs

[00:23:11] [SPEAKER_02]: You've been doing a lot of public speaking

[00:23:14] [SPEAKER_02]: And sharing a lot of the knowledge that you've learned on this journey

[00:23:17] [SPEAKER_02]: Which is so amazing

[00:23:21] [SPEAKER_02]: Like I was at

[00:23:24] [SPEAKER_02]: Was the black tick day

[00:23:26] [SPEAKER_02]: But I wasn't there the same day you were there

[00:23:30] [SPEAKER_02]: And I just been seeing your post about all the other events

[00:23:35] [SPEAKER_02]: That you speak at

[00:23:37] [SPEAKER_02]: And that sort of thing which is really, really cool

[00:23:39] [SPEAKER_02]: So I wanted to ask you about that literally

[00:23:41] [SPEAKER_02]: How you got into speaking

[00:23:43] [SPEAKER_02]: How you found

[00:23:46] [SPEAKER_02]: Speaking at events in other kinds of stuff

[00:23:49] [SPEAKER_03]: Yeah so for me I've always been a bit of a yapper

[00:23:54] [SPEAKER_03]: And it's just something that I'm good at

[00:23:56] [SPEAKER_03]: I guess but I felt like

[00:23:59] [SPEAKER_03]: At work I was recognised a lot

[00:24:02] [SPEAKER_03]: By my peers and say, oh like you're really

[00:24:05] [SPEAKER_03]: Good at talking, you're really good at articulating

[00:24:07] [SPEAKER_03]: Your self-excepts

[00:24:08] [SPEAKER_03]: And I suddenly really enjoy

[00:24:10] [SPEAKER_03]: And I was used to read a church

[00:24:11] [SPEAKER_03]: So I only came across speaking as a profession

[00:24:15] [SPEAKER_03]: Last year because there's a lady called Hayley Melenda

[00:24:19] [SPEAKER_03]: Who was talking about her success within the speaking world

[00:24:23] [SPEAKER_03]: And how much she was getting paid

[00:24:24] [SPEAKER_03]: And I said, wait a minute

[00:24:26] [SPEAKER_03]: I am free

[00:24:29] [SPEAKER_03]: There's something that I need

[00:24:30] [SPEAKER_03]: That's making a profession

[00:24:32] [SPEAKER_03]: Let's be seen as a professional within the industry

[00:24:36] [SPEAKER_03]: So I actually started taking professional lessons

[00:24:41] [SPEAKER_03]: And speaking and really understanding the industry

[00:24:44] [SPEAKER_03]: Because it's actually an industry

[00:24:45] [SPEAKER_03]: Which a lot of people don't realise

[00:24:47] [SPEAKER_03]: And actually invested in a barren and Bianca's self-made

[00:24:51] [SPEAKER_03]: Speaking and catching me where they taught us the foundations of speaking

[00:24:54] [SPEAKER_03]: Like it's a whole world

[00:24:56] [SPEAKER_03]: Keynote topics, video show rules, professional headshots

[00:25:01] [SPEAKER_03]: Like there's a lot that goes into being recognised

[00:25:05] [SPEAKER_03]: As a professional speaker

[00:25:07] [SPEAKER_03]: So having that sort of training I would say

[00:25:11] [SPEAKER_03]: To give me the background I'd say

[00:25:15] [SPEAKER_03]: And the foundation essentially to really pivot

[00:25:18] [SPEAKER_03]: Into the speaking world and do a lot more engagement

[00:25:21] [SPEAKER_03]: So I've started to treat my social media pages

[00:25:26] [SPEAKER_03]: Though it's a public speaking platform

[00:25:28] [SPEAKER_03]: And that sort of how people can recognise

[00:25:31] [SPEAKER_03]: Okay, how does this person speak?

[00:25:33] [SPEAKER_03]: How do they come on this stage?

[00:25:35] [SPEAKER_03]: What's their appearance like in?

[00:25:37] [SPEAKER_03]: That's how people can come across

[00:25:38] [SPEAKER_03]: Your type of content and want you to speak at their events

[00:25:41] [SPEAKER_03]: I've also spoken at conferences as well

[00:25:46] [SPEAKER_03]: Not of the time organisations have what you call call for papers

[00:25:49] [SPEAKER_03]: Which is basically where you submit a topic or a panel discussion

[00:25:54] [SPEAKER_03]: That you would like to speak about

[00:25:56] [SPEAKER_03]: And then they can give you a place there

[00:25:59] [SPEAKER_03]: And then of course me just having increased visibility

[00:26:02] [SPEAKER_03]: People being able to see my YouTube, my TikTok, my LinkedIn post

[00:26:06] [SPEAKER_03]: That sort of how the opportunities have been coming in

[00:26:10] [SPEAKER_03]: So it's only life for those that

[00:26:11] [SPEAKER_03]: Oh people get paid for this

[00:26:14] [SPEAKER_03]: Sometimes five figures

[00:26:16] [SPEAKER_03]: I'm like let me actually invest in my personal development

[00:26:20] [SPEAKER_03]: In public speaking

[00:26:21] [SPEAKER_02]: Wow, that's incredible

[00:26:23] [SPEAKER_02]: And it's really good to know

[00:26:26] [SPEAKER_02]: And I feel like

[00:26:27] [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, it's a skill and it's not easy

[00:26:31] [SPEAKER_02]: Like not everyone can just like

[00:26:33] [SPEAKER_02]: Go on a stage and talk to

[00:26:36] [SPEAKER_02]: Whatever amount of people

[00:26:38] [SPEAKER_02]: It's really interesting to know that as well

[00:26:40] [SPEAKER_02]: On top of your natural ability to speak

[00:26:43] [SPEAKER_02]: Yep, like you said

[00:26:44] [SPEAKER_02]: You also went out and did that training to sharpen that skill

[00:26:52] [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah

[00:26:53] [SPEAKER_02]: Learn how to do that in that professional setting

[00:26:56] [SPEAKER_02]: And you know, get all the engagements that you've got

[00:27:01] [SPEAKER_02]: And which is really cool and really incredible

[00:27:04] [SPEAKER_02]: So insightful to speak about and hear from you

[00:27:08] [SPEAKER_02]: On this podcast

[00:27:09] [SPEAKER_02]: Okay, and so I want to get into my favourite topic on this podcast

[00:27:15] [SPEAKER_02]: And I always love asking people this question

[00:27:21] [SPEAKER_02]: Because I think it's so interesting

[00:27:23] [SPEAKER_02]: And we've been able to hear so many interesting stories

[00:27:28] [SPEAKER_02]: Okay

[00:27:28] [SPEAKER_02]: Through this or on question

[00:27:31] [SPEAKER_02]: And so the question is

[00:27:33] [SPEAKER_02]: What is your most interesting career story

[00:27:38] [SPEAKER_02]: And it could be like

[00:27:41] [SPEAKER_02]: Interesting in a good way

[00:27:42] [SPEAKER_02]: Like oh, something amazing happened

[00:27:44] [SPEAKER_02]: I did really well in this

[00:27:46] [SPEAKER_02]: Or it could be interesting in a bad way

[00:27:49] [SPEAKER_02]: Something terrible happened

[00:27:51] [SPEAKER_02]: Something blew up

[00:27:52] [SPEAKER_02]: There was an explosion

[00:27:54] [SPEAKER_02]: Or whatever the case may be

[00:27:57] [SPEAKER_02]: And the choices yours of which one you want to choose

[00:28:01] [SPEAKER_02]: So yeah, what is your most interesting career story

[00:28:08] [SPEAKER_02]: That you'd want to share with the audience there

[00:28:11] [SPEAKER_03]: I'm going to share two, one's non-technical

[00:28:14] [SPEAKER_03]: And the one's technical

[00:28:16] [SPEAKER_03]: So non-technical, one interesting career that I had

[00:28:19] [SPEAKER_03]: Part time job I would say is I used to be a food taste stuff

[00:28:23] [SPEAKER_03]: So I actually used to get paid

[00:28:25] [SPEAKER_03]: It was like 20 quid an hour

[00:28:26] [SPEAKER_03]: But 20 quid an hour to taste

[00:28:29] [SPEAKER_03]: Supermarket food before it went out on the shelf

[00:28:32] [SPEAKER_03]: So you'd be lazy to spice it to chillies

[00:28:35] [SPEAKER_03]: It's one of my side gigs that I've really enjoyed doing

[00:28:39] [SPEAKER_03]: From a technical perspective

[00:28:44] [SPEAKER_03]: Gosh, I feel like

[00:28:46] [SPEAKER_03]: I don't think I have a story

[00:28:49] [SPEAKER_03]: I think it's I see all of these things as experiences

[00:28:54] [SPEAKER_03]: What's been the worst?

[00:28:57] [SPEAKER_03]: I think

[00:29:01] [SPEAKER_03]: Yeah, to be honest, I think

[00:29:04] [SPEAKER_03]: There's nothing that stands out in particular

[00:29:06] [SPEAKER_03]: But I have had cases where my previous show

[00:29:09] [SPEAKER_03]: Where you know, you make a change

[00:29:12] [SPEAKER_03]: So in the tech world of things

[00:29:16] [SPEAKER_03]: You have changes and stuff

[00:29:18] [SPEAKER_03]: So before you deploy anything out for the public

[00:29:21] [SPEAKER_03]: You need to trial and test it beforehand

[00:29:24] [SPEAKER_03]: So I've had multiple cases where

[00:29:26] [SPEAKER_03]: Not multiple, let me know

[00:29:27] [SPEAKER_03]: Same multiple, one or two cases where

[00:29:30] [SPEAKER_03]: Something that has gone well in testing

[00:29:33] [SPEAKER_03]: Environment, so let's say we're looking to update

[00:29:35] [SPEAKER_03]: And website for example has done one in testing

[00:29:37] [SPEAKER_03]: But then in the production environment it doesn't work

[00:29:42] [SPEAKER_03]: And what can be attributed to that

[00:29:44] [SPEAKER_03]: Can be things like making sure you really check your work

[00:29:49] [SPEAKER_03]: But also get someone else to peer review your work

[00:29:52] [SPEAKER_03]: But sometimes it can be this is why

[00:29:54] [SPEAKER_03]: In networking is so important in cybersecurity

[00:29:56] [SPEAKER_03]: Because the production environment and the

[00:30:02] [SPEAKER_03]: Testing environments can sometimes be configured differently

[00:30:05] [SPEAKER_03]: So for me, I've had incidents as where

[00:30:08] [SPEAKER_03]: You deployed something into production

[00:30:10] [SPEAKER_03]: And it doesn't necessarily work in the expected way

[00:30:14] [SPEAKER_03]: Because for some odd reason the production environment

[00:30:16] [SPEAKER_03]: Doesn't necessarily simulate the testing environment

[00:30:19] [SPEAKER_03]: But I've been fortunate enough in my career where I haven't

[00:30:22] [SPEAKER_03]: caused outage on a large scale that I can remember

[00:30:26] [SPEAKER_03]: Because if I did, I would have had a hidden and disappeared

[00:30:30] [SPEAKER_03]: But usually it's usually like a small-ish website

[00:30:35] [SPEAKER_03]: That doesn't have impact or if you identify the issue

[00:30:39] [SPEAKER_03]: I'm able to quickly reflect back to the previous one

[00:30:42] [SPEAKER_03]: So I would say my whole journey has been like an experience

[00:30:48] [SPEAKER_03]: The fact that I'm here talking about cyber-scurities

[00:30:52] [SPEAKER_03]: Like a massive thing for me

[00:30:54] [SPEAKER_03]: Because like, you know, that's

[00:30:57] [SPEAKER_03]: It just goes to show how much has changed

[00:30:59] [SPEAKER_03]: How much has developed and how much I've grown I guess

[00:31:02] [SPEAKER_02]: Yes, amazing, amazing. Thanks so much for that, Yamari Yamari

[00:31:06] [SPEAKER_02]: I really appreciate you sharing that

[00:31:08] [SPEAKER_02]: And I think that is just like a look at the day today

[00:31:11] [SPEAKER_02]: Of really working in this space

[00:31:14] [SPEAKER_02]: You know, like going from tests and production

[00:31:18] [SPEAKER_02]: And sometimes it works sometimes a dozen

[00:31:21] [SPEAKER_02]: And everything is learning process in what you do it

[00:31:26] [SPEAKER_02]: And oftentimes you know, or you get better at knowing

[00:31:30] [SPEAKER_02]: And for that it was going to happen

[00:31:33] [SPEAKER_03]: And to be honest, you need to make mistakes to do

[00:31:37] [SPEAKER_03]: Well, in tech I think the more impactful is

[00:31:42] [SPEAKER_03]: I'm not saying that it should be impactful

[00:31:43] [SPEAKER_03]: The more you will never forget that

[00:31:46] [SPEAKER_03]: And also the people around you will be like, yeah

[00:31:48] [SPEAKER_03]: Because sometimes these issues can cost a company millions of pounds

[00:31:53] [SPEAKER_03]: So I'm not saying you should do it

[00:31:56] [SPEAKER_03]: But those ones you will never forget

[00:31:58] [SPEAKER_02]: Yep, for real

[00:32:01] [SPEAKER_02]: Yamari, thanks so much for being a part of this podcast episode

[00:32:07] [SPEAKER_02]: It's so great to have guests like you

[00:32:09] [SPEAKER_02]: Really share their experiences and the knowledge with our audience

[00:32:14] [SPEAKER_02]: And there are so many people in the audience that are

[00:32:18] [SPEAKER_02]: Either preparing to get onto the path that you're on

[00:32:22] [SPEAKER_02]: Or better already on it

[00:32:25] [SPEAKER_02]: And trying to push forward their career

[00:32:28] [SPEAKER_02]: And so it is amazing to have guests like you that are in this space

[00:32:32] [SPEAKER_02]: I'm able to share exactly what their experience

[00:32:37] [SPEAKER_02]: Their experiences and their experiences are working in this space

[00:32:41] [SPEAKER_02]: So thank you so much for being on this podcast

[00:32:43] [SPEAKER_02]: And to end off, I just wanted to ask you if there's anything you wanted to share

[00:32:48] [SPEAKER_02]: Plug a shout out

[00:32:49] [SPEAKER_02]: Go ahead and do

[00:32:50] [SPEAKER_03]: Make sure you follow me on TikTok, stem and the school bay

[00:32:53] [SPEAKER_03]: Follow me on Instagram, stem and the school bay and the school end

[00:32:56] [SPEAKER_03]: Sign up to my mailing list

[00:32:59] [SPEAKER_03]: Because I literally share like I share opportunities

[00:33:03] [SPEAKER_03]: But not all opportunities on that social media page

[00:33:06] [SPEAKER_03]: On my mailing list, you will get all of the opportunities that I come across

[00:33:11] [SPEAKER_03]: I will share them and sometimes they're exclusive to those who are signing to my mailing list

[00:33:16] [SPEAKER_03]: So make sure you'll sign up to follow me on social media

[00:33:19] [SPEAKER_03]: But also, most importantly, follow me on my mailing list

[00:33:24] [SPEAKER_02]: Amazing, amazing

[00:33:25] [SPEAKER_02]: And the mailing list and the email is other

[00:33:29] [SPEAKER_02]: Socials will be linked in the description

[00:33:31] [SPEAKER_02]: Of this video, thanks so much guys for watching

[00:33:34] [SPEAKER_02]: And we'll see you in the next episode of The TechSap Fart Podcast