Project management. Defence. Security. These are often the go-to avenues most service leavers take.
But cyber security could be one of the best industries for military folk to pivot to. Even without a techie background, the military skillset makes you a great fit for cyber security. And you’d be surprised how quickly you can shift your military brain to fit this tech-driven world.
We spoke with an incredibly successful veteran, Yousif Ashaa, who transitioned from the Household Cavalry to private security, to now running his own cyber security company. He shared his life-changing experiences and advice on how you can ease into the industry and start making your way on civvie street.
Get stuck in 👇
(Scroll for key takeaways.)
[Jade] Hi Yousif! Before we get the ball rolling, can you tell us a bit about your military career and why you decided to leave?
[Yousif] Yeah sure, so I joined the British Army in 1998. I served for 10 years, and within that time, I served in the Household Cavalry, so I had no technical background. Cyber wasn’t even a thing I would have thought about at the time.
I left at the beginning of 2008, for a few reasons actually. I knew that I'd reached the end of how long I wanted to serve. I’m very grateful for the time in the military, and I really loved being in the Household Cavalry, but I'd just got married, my wife was pregnant, and I just thought, I need to do something, I need to change something.At the time, a lot of my peers were heading out to the Middle East to do private security, so that's what I did. So I left the military, but I stayed within that bubble for a few years and went out to Iraq, Afghanistan, Africa, and various places.
[J] So then why did you shift from private security into cyber?
[Y] After a good few years of bouncing around lots of interesting and dangerous places, I had a bit of a moment where I thought, I can't do this forever. What is my skill set? What am I interested in? All of these sorts of things. It became a bit of a fork-in-the-road type of situation. Considering my skill set, my knowledge, and my understanding, it needed to be something dramatic, especially if I wanted to sort of have a normal life. There's absolutely nothing wrong with private security, but I needed a change. And that change was cyber security.
When I came back to the UK, I started working for a wealthy family as private security, but as an early adopter of cryptocurrency, they wanted to secure their digital assets too. I just remember thinking “No idea, don't ask me.” but it turned out to be the catalyst for me to get into cyber security. So, I started looking online and researching and doing various training courses, and then I made the decision - this is what I want to do. I enjoy it and it’s very similar to the military in quite a lot of respects, so I could apply my skills and the military mindset. So I left physical security behind and moved into corporate cyber security full-time.
[J] Okay, so although they’re both security, I can imagine it’s a huge shift. You mentioned you did a few courses, what advice would you give service leavers considering taking these courses?
[Y] Oh yeah, cyber security and information security is a really wide subject, it’s not packaged up into one box.
It involves anything from offensive security, like ethical hacking and penetration testing, all the way to information security, which includes policies, procedures and compliance and everything in between. Because I didn’t have a techie background, I looked at all the different routes into the industry. The biggest challenge is that cyber is a completely different language. It’s not just civilian and corporate terminology, it’s got it’s own whole language that you need to understand. Once you start to crack this, you can gain an understanding of what the various jobs in cyber security are and what you’d be doing in that space.
I hammered things like YouTube - it’s a great resource. It helped me to learn roughly what area of cybersecurity and information security I wanted to go into. One of the first courses I did was the ISO 27001 Lead Implementer. It’s an information security management system and framework and it’s an internationally recognised certification. I remember thinking, “I haven't got it, this isn't me, right? I don't understand it.” But I stuck with it, and as I started understanding it, I realised that this is just another version of risk management, like you apply in the military.
There’s a huge amount of terminology you need to learn. But once you start breaking it down into things you can relate your military experience to, it becomes a lot easier.
[J] Did you do any other courses after that?
[Y] Yes - I did my data protection course, which gave me a holistic view of protecting data - from your basic things like cyber attackers, all the way to the legal side of things. With those two qualifications, I got my first job in an insurance company. Then I did much harder and more in-depth courses, and eventually went on to things like SISM and CISP and Certified Ethical Hacker and all of these sorts of courses. Even though it can seem overwhelming, all these courses start with the fundamentals, and bringing in that military background again, you realise that you’re used to this learning environment.
[J] You mentioned that there’s a bit of crossover when it comes to your military background, what other aspects of your military experience and skillset have helped you succeed in this space?
[Y] The military gives you the fundamentals to thrive on civvie street. When you start out, you think, “What’s the point of all this?” But a lot of people from the military community will understand those fundamentals arm you with several skills. One which has helped me is self-confidence. After some time, I got to a senior level, and I was operating in a boardroom, speaking to CEOs and presenting. We do this in the military often; we’re given a set of orders, we stand in front of our peers and we’ve instructed and taught in public. That’s a big confidence builder. It’s just part of the job. And a huge portion of civilians don’t have that exposure, so they’re not comfortable.
Another thing is being prepared. You would never go into something you weren’t 100% prepared for. You have the mindset where you think, ‘Oh, I’ve got a meeting with the CEO at 10 o'clock tomorrow morning, I’m going to have everything done and prepare for all the points they might pick out.’ Humility is another great trait. Those in the military community tend to remove their egos and understand that every day is a school day. There’s always something to learn and we’re not afraid to say, I don’t understand, but I will go and figure it out and come back to you.
One final one is the management skillset you gain when serving. I think the military excels in management. You manage people extensively and you learn what motivates people and how to get the best out of them. I think that was a really good thing that I took from the military, especially when I went into management.
[J] Yes - humility is a skill that comes up time and time again when we speak to veterans. And that makes for a nice segue into the kinds of challenges that you faced and how you overcame them.
[Y] I think one of the biggest challenges I faced was learning how to learn, as ridiculous as that may sound, especially when I went on to do my Master's. I'd never been to university, I'd never done anything purely academic like that. So when it came to the reading lists and things - it was all very overwhelming. Even though we’re always in an educational environment in the military, we never learn how to learn for exams or courses.
Another major challenge going into the civilian world was needing to try to slow down. Especially in the sense of trying to do everything and solve everything as fast as I can. And that’s a big military mindset, to problem solve and get things done quickly. So I said to myself, slow down, just do the work and do it well.
[J] I’m sure service leavers will find that really useful. You mentioned earlier that cyber is a great space for veterans to go into based on their skill set, but what about the veteran mindset that works well in cyber?
[Y] I know a lot of people like the idea of going into cyber because they think that there’s a bit of flexibility there in terms of working hours, but that just depends on the company. As a whole though, I think it’s the fundamentals that we learn in the military and the concepts that we grasp that align with the industry. You always need to think about the weaknesses in your system and always assume that an attack is coming. It’s like second nature for those in the military - it’s ingrained in us.
[J] I can see that. Thank you. To wrap up, do you have any tips for service leavers and veterans wanting to go into cyber security?
[Y] One thing that I would say is, that cybersecurity can be as exciting or as boring as a person makes it. So don't look at it and think, well, they're paying really well, I'm gonna do that. Because if you haven't got an interest in it it's a long road.
Another tip, I would say is to take the time at the start, go on YouTube, go on Udemy, or similar. These things are either free or come at an extremely low cost, and just feel it out. Start to understand it and to picture it. And if you get to the end of that and go, that's not for me, that's fine. But if you get to the end of it and go, I don't really get it, but I enjoy it, then go for it.
[J] Amazing. Well, thank you, Yousif, that was so interesting!
Key Takeaways
- Your military skillset suits the cyber security space: Risk management and self-confidence are crucial in this industry. But your humility, preparedness and management skills make you invaluable.
- Look at cyber security as a whole before picking a path: There are various areas in cyber security, from information security (policies, procedures, compliance) to offensive security (ethical hacking, penetration testing).
- YouTube is your best friend: It’s a free resource that can answer almost all of your questions. Don’t shy away from online courses either - they can help you pick your niche, and get started and they can be relatively inexpensive.
Top 3 tips:
- Use free or low-cost resources to gain initial knowledge and get started.
- Focus on building a strong foundation in cybersecurity concepts and terminology.
- Be prepared for a learning curve, but draw parallels between military and cybersecurity skills to ease the transition.
Transitioning into civvie street is a tough journey. And even more so if you’re interested in a career in an industry that you might have little to zero experience in. But that doesn’t mean you can’t dive into and succeed. Learn. Gain knowledge. Leverage your military background, and succeed.
Speak with Yousif and other inspiring veterans in cyber security and a host of other industries on the Redeployable community. Join now!
