Now, the biggest aspect of Try Smarter, is not that you can’t ask questions, but ask good questions. And by good question, I refer to certain aspects that are needed for a question to be good. What have you already tried? When we go to those that have more knowledge, it not only shows that you are earnestly trying to solve the issue, but that you respect their time by not asking something that could easily be searched for. Where have you already looked? Here, the person you ask may have specific places they know of for knowledge in that area, and knowing if you have already check it or not helps. What specific thing are you trying to achieve? This is sometimes the most important part. Because a solid scope of the issue, gives the person you are asking an out. And by that, I mean that they have a definitive time to be done and move on. 

Another very important aspect of this mindset, is making use of the resources available to you. Specifically when it comes to technology, there is such a massive amount of free learning material available to people, so much can be added to your arsenal of knowledge easily. As my personal focus is on cybersecurity, I’ll share some links I find valuable:]

• Learning How to Learn

• Simply Cyber

• Cyber Supply Drop

• Cyber Insecurity

• Adrian Cantrell’s AWS Courses

• The Cyber Mentor

• ATTACK IQ

Make the most of the free and low cost resources available all over the internet. Increase your knowledge. If you are looking for other kinds of content, feel free to message me and I will help all I can. Above all, #TrySmarter

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Neal Bridges recently had a guest on his Cyber-Insecurity stream, Karen Worstell, who shared some stories regarding burnout that she had gone through at some of the companies she was at. Now, this is the former CISO of AT&T and Microsoft, talking about the mental health struggles she had because of the stresses that come with the happenings in this field. We all know that this can be a fast paced and high stress career field, and we take this into account when we decide to travel down this path. So why would some of the most highly recommended training providers push a mindset that hurts professionals in their field?

Why do I feel this way? Part of this mindset, is talk of never falter, never fail. Now we all know, in cybersecurity, this is impossible. ALL companies experience security incidents, ALL companies have problems with IAM, user cybersecurity awareness, and any manner of other security management issues. After the Colonial Pipeline ransomware incident in June, we had a Professor from a Business school put out an article in a major media outlet, where he pushed the nonsensical idea, that management in a company that had a breach, should never be hired in cybersecurity again. This is the kind of attitude that “Try Harder” propagates, and it truly has no place in any professional setting. According to research, people on a whole learn best according to “The 85% Rule”, which states that if we fail 15% of the time we optimize our learning.

Now, what does all of this have to do with burnout and mental health? When we normalize demeaning people based on times they have failed, all this does is create a breeding ground for destructive thoughts. And the more mental fatigue pushed on people from this kind of thing, the more it affects the bottom line. A depressed, burned out worker, is less productive, more prone to mistakes, and misses more workdays. A study by the CDC found that depression was the cause of approximately 200 million lost workdays, costing companies from $17 to $44 **Billion **dollars. And this was **before **the Covid-19 pandemic. Let’s work together to make workplaces that are supportive of employees, and drive our field to promote a healthier mindset, not one that degrades others. For some great resources, please visit Open Sourcing Mental Illness.