Zero to Cyber

Free field guide ยท Zero to Cyber Community

Cybersecurity is

hiring. Nobody

hands you the map.

Most people don't stall because they aren't smart enough. They stall because nobody tells them what order to do things in. This guide lays out the three stages everyone moves through โ€” and what to actually do at each one.

Field Guide

The Cybersecurity

Career Roadmap

From exploring to employed.

01 Pick a lane that fits your background

02 Certify and build proof you can show

03 Get past the filters and get hired

Get past the filters and get hired

Three stages

Updated April 2026

Find your stage

Everybody gets stuck in

one of three places

These aren't invented categories. They're the three things people in

the Zero to Cyber group ask about most, in the words they use to

ask them.

Stage 01

Exploring

I don't even know which part of

cyber I'd be good at.

Cybersecurity isn't one job. The guide breaks down the main entry paths, who each one actually suits, and how to test a direction before you spend money on it.

Stage 02

Studying

I'm collecting certs but I still feel unqualified.

What to certify first and why the order matters, a study rhythm you can hold down around a full-time job, and how to build hands-on proof for free.

Stage 03

Applying

I'm qualified on paper and nobody calls me back.

Where applications quietly die, how to write so the screening software passes you through, and the outreach that gets you referred instead of filtered.

Inside the guide

What you'll walk away

with

A path that matches you

Entry routes compared side by side, so you choose on strengths instead of vibes.

A certification order of operations

What to sit for first, what can wait, and what nobody's actually asking you for.

A study plan you can hold

A week-by-week structure built for people studying around a job and a family.

Experience you can build tonight

A free home lab setup that gives you something real to talk about in an interview.

Resume and profile fixes

The specific changes that move you from filtered out to phone screen.

A tool list with real prices

Free resources first, paid ones only where they earn it. No affiliate padding.

Brandon Gates

Founder, Zero to Cyber

I work in cybersecurity and program management, and I started the Zero to Cyber community because the same questions kept coming up in my inbox from people who were doing everything right and getting nowhere. This guide is the answer I got tired of retyping. It's the version I'd give a friend, no gatekeeping, no upsell buried in the middle.

CISSP

PMP

GIAC

Federal cyber & program management

Federal cyber & program management

Your next step

Start where you are

Tell us where to send it. Then post in the group and tell us

which stage you're in, that's usually where the

momentum actually starts.

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Zero to Cyber - From exploring to employed