"Where be yer low level ramblings, ye heathen?"
技 (Waza) – technique, skill, or ability
Lacking the time to properly organize my thoughts on malware and cybersecurity (or whatever strikes my fancy), I might as well put forth something else that's been dangling in my mind, persistently nagging to come out and play: the importance of soft skills in IT in general (cybersecurity included).
Being a techie myself, loving all (yeah, right) most things technical, and truly an introvert at heart, I can say without hesitation that I don't really appreciate the constant call for newcomers in both IT and cyber to focus hard on the "soft" side of their skills.
We're led to believe that these skills are oh-so-fundamental, to the point where instead of drilling into the technical basics and particulars of each profession, we get video after video, article after article, and mouthpiece after mouthpiece telling us to prioritize social aspects. I've even seen cybersecurity folks claim that if they could redo their path to cyber mastery (or whatevs), they'd go back to college and focus much more on networking (the human kind) while paying less attention to the technical side.
I take a hard stance against this.
Our fields are highly technical in nature.
We DO have a significant technical knowledge gap.
Most of this knowledge takes years to grasp, master, and apply.
These so-called soft skills are actually quite easy to learn and deploy.
Sure! You won’t become a master speaker or the next Shakespeare in a couple of months, but you don’t need to be. You just have to be able to communicate clearly—enough that those less technically inclined can understand you.
Where am I coming from with all this certainty about these much-hyped social skills—the so-called golden key to a successful tech career? Well, before diving into IT, even before working in math, I worked as an actor, director, screenplay writer, and acting teacher for over 15 years. So I might know a thing or two about speaking before a live audience, presenting oneself, and communicating effectively.
I don’t claim to be the greatest expert—far from it. But I’ve walked the walk and talked the talk, and now that I’m in IT, I can tell you: the two are not even remotely comparable.
My long-term goals in 'IT' are harsh, to put it mildly. Heck, I must have been very drunk when my brain decided that low-level code, reverse engineering, and poking at weird malware was the greatest invention since sliced bread. But even just talking about mastering the basics needed to apply with any real confidence to cyber positions—the often-mentioned triad of programming, systems, and networking—takes serious effort. To actually understand these fields, to feel comfortable discussing them, to even recognize what’s being said in a conversation? Believe me, acting is easier. Speaking in public, presenting your thoughts in a structured manner—these things are much easier.
Now, granted, you might not want to do it. You might be shy, socially averse, or a bloody introvert like me. But that doesn’t make it difficult. It just makes it uncomfortable.
So, is this blog post just an excuse to ramble against soft skills?
No, not really. Just because I dislike something—or the exaggerated emphasis placed on it—doesn’t mean it’s wrong. Quite the contrary.
Soft skills are, in fact, useful. Knowing how to write, speak, present yourself—in one word, communicate—is undeniably important.
Just recently, I had to coordinate a troubleshooting session remotely, where instructions had to be relayed to a team that wasn’t entirely familiar with the technical process—and let’s just say that language barriers didn’t help. Communication isn’t just about simplifying tech for upper management. Sometimes, it’s about conveying precise, critical steps to people who need to act on them immediately, without confusion.
In the end, it worked. But it was quite the ride, and I found myself pivoting, adapting and adjusting, in order to get the troubleshooting steps through and carry on with what we were doing.
So, yeah. There’s that too. Communication takes many forms, and you’ll need it sooner rather than later. Don’t just ignore it. And, to re-iterate some good and bad news: it’s much easier to learn and quicker to grasp than you might think—but that doesn’t mean you’ll enjoy it.
Enjoy the ride, though. If at all possible.
A former acting colleague once said: life is just the backstage intermezzo you take between being on stage.
I don’t like that statement. But he might be right.
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