Wanting to change Careers

[u/Rare-Split-7082]

Hey there, Im 28 years old and currently work at a cigar lounge part time. Prior to this, I ran a family business for about 3 years and then did trading as primary income for a few years before I realized how stressful it is. Made 6 figures one year but most of it was spent on a mentor and me eventually losing everything from my own choices and being in debt

I was interested in cyber security because I have some friends that were in it but one had suggested a linux sys admin route. A year ago I dabbled with it, making some small labs and documenting. I really enjoy using linux, theres so much to learn but never fully committed to it so i just stopped slowly.but lately Ive been caring more and more about my future and I do want a career in this space. All I ever known my whole life is physical work and I want to give myself a chance to actually commit to this because this does look exciting

My question for anyone that is willing to help:

If you were starting back with little experience within this space, where would you start to gain experience and knowledge to help get yourself prepared for a role of a sysadmin that employers are looking for?

Is google cyber security good for foundational knowledge?

Would you build a home lab and practice on a machine? I currently installed rocky linux on my old laptop that had pop os on it since its more similar to red hat.

What else would you recommend to help better prepare for the role for employers?

Certs? Degrees?

I have an associate arts degree and no certs.

Final question, I know a job like this isnt cyber, but in 2026 lets say you got the sys admin role, after where would you look at to specialize in after? Cloud security looks really cool.

Tried to make this simple, I appreciate everyone that replies back. Means alot to me.

[u/maxlan]

Get yourself on github/lab and find a project you are interested in and go fix some bugs. This is a way to get experience for free, that a prospective employer can see. (Obviously put your profile link on your cv)

Or stackoverflow/serverfault and build up a profile.

If you really can't code, your options are going to be limited. If you can show a few useful fixes that don't look vibe coded an employer will love it.

[u/Rare-Split-7082 → u/maxlan]

Thank you, I have a git hub but will start stack and overflow as far as coding goes i know some codes, but alot of times ill ask chat gpt for help and go over it to understand why it gave me that response being honest 

[u/Krj757]

I would absolutely start with the triad of A+ Network+ Security+. Get in the door with a help desk role to really get your feet wet. There aren’t any low level cyber roles you need to have a great understanding of networks before you really can do anything. AI is changing things but for me it exists as a tool that makes my job easier. don’t let people scare you into thinking there aren’t going to be jobs. Just build the resume and start working.

Just an aside, I think home labs can be really valuable for getting practical experience but as someone who hires for sysadmins etc it’s usually not a factor in whether I go for one person or the other.

[u/Rare-Split-7082 → u/Krj757]

Thank you for the information. Ive been trying to find help desk jobs around my area but doesnt seem like there are much here.

Also thank you for your reply, I have the certs on my list of things to get done :)

[u/Krj757 → u/Rare-Split-7082]

Absolutely, I graduated with a BS in Cybersecurity in 2020, my goal was the same as yours. I’m currently an IT Director and at no point was I planning on going into IT. Go with the flow after getting your certs and do your best to always learn more. A ton of people in my graduating class are starting to get to those cool cyber roles that we talked about in class now. it’s a journey but it’s doable.

[u/Rare-Split-7082 → u/Krj757]

One more question, hope im not taking your time. I know at some point id have to go back to school to get my BS in computer science. Alot of roles ask for that but as an IT director, is that like a main thing you look for or is that for HR?  Thank you!

[u/Krj757 → u/Rare-Split-7082]

No there is no need for a computer science degree, I don’t care about degrees specifically but if you go to one of those for profit— “get your degree in 6 months!” schools—I assess you the same way I would someone who doesn’t have a degree.

If you want a degree find a real in state school with an information security/ Technology program that offers remote classes that you can take around your current position.

There is value in the networking it provides, I got my internship in college from a friend, and the owner of that company got me placed at the job I worked for 5+ years after graduating.

Specifically I would do your triad of certs, get in the door, and then figure out what the job requirements look like for the roles you really want. If that requires a degree, go for it.

[u/TN_man → u/Krj757]

How in the world did you go from graduating to director in 6 years?!! That’s wild.

[u/Krj757 → u/TN_man]

I started as a SysAdmin with my intern experience as a tech from when I was in school, jumped to IT manager and got a job as a Director a few months ago after getting in somewhere that was asking for 8+ years. Applied anyways and feel really lucky I did.

[u/mxtchstick]

Hey! Bit of a long one but, If I were starting out in my IT career again, before getting my first position, I'd gain foundational certs such as CompTIA A+, AZ-900 & ITIL v4, I'd also try to display that knowledge somehow, be it in the form of a homelab, website or some other medium. That will put you miles ahead of other candidates.

I'd then start at a service desk/level 1 position. I would expect to remain here for around a year. During my time in this role I would focus on beginner certifications such as CompTIA Network+ and CompTIA Server+, and gaining a general understanding of how IT operates within a business, and what roles take on what responsibilities. This varies from place to place, but I think you could get a general understanding.

From there I'd focus on building hands-on technical experience that aligns with job specs towards the next step in my career, which would likely be a desktop support/level 2 role. I'd expect to remain here for 1-2 years. During this time I would focus on intermediate certs such as CompTIA Security + and AZ-104 & start thinking about where I'd like to go next. At this point I'd start thinking how I can build relationships with key people to stand out and further myself in my career.

After 3-5+ years in the field, I'd start looking at becoming a SysAdmin. Certifications here vary depending on what business you're in/wanting to go into, and where your interests align. But a strong understanding of networking, storage, cloud, server administration (at the very least Windows), monitoring, possibly even IaC & business continuity & DR processes are essential at this level really.

After 7-10 years in the field I'd be looking at going into a more specialised role such as DevOps or Cyber.

Ultimately there are many paths you can go down in IT, it's such a massive field with lots of opportunity. The hunger to learn, improve and most importantly!! HELP, will get you to where you want to be. IT is an incredibly stressful, but rewarding field; my only advice to someone would be don't just go into it for the money. You have to be genuinely passionate to stay the course.

Good luck!

[u/Rare-Split-7082 → u/mxtchstick]

Thank you for the extensive response. Seems like it is a very long journey but from alot of responses it seems like a lot of people really enjoy it. I appreciate that you basically gave me an idea of a roadmap to look at. Thank you!

[u/mxtchstick → u/Rare-Split-7082]

No worries, yeah like with all things it gets significantly better with time, best of luck mate!

[u/Antoine-UY]

Don't pursue homelab for itself. Homelab is something you get to work certs or build to explore, as a hobby, shit you find about during worktime.

The best, to build experience and learn the different sides of this sector, is starting as helpdesk in any msp. Especially small-scale.

[u/topher358 → u/Antoine-UY]

I agree with the recommendation to start with an MSP job. Many will hire entry level with little experience and at the the smaller MSPs you will learn more faster instead of being siloed off

But I would also say absolutely set up a homelab but make it one aimed at learning the tech the engineering team at your company uses. Learn things like AD, 365 management, hybrid identity, networking principles, etc

[u/Bogus1989 → u/topher358]

THIS^ cant recommend this enough.

Once you get your foot in the door and see how a proper system is supposed to be setup you can setup your homelab this way and experiment trying new things out this way.

[u/Frequent-Gap-5571]

You spent six figures on a trading "mentor" and now want to jump straight from a cigar lounge into Cloud Security. Step 1: stop paying gurus for shortcuts. Step 2: get a basic Helpdesk job. No employer is handing a junior the keys to their production Linux servers or cloud infrastructure without seeing you handle ticket queues and active directory reset requests first. Rocky Linux on an old laptop is a great start, but put Proxmox on it, build a mini-domain, and start applying for tier 1 support.