As cybersecurity consultants, we get busy with customer projects and daily tasks. Nevertheless, it’s important to have high ambitions in this field because the landscape is always changing. If you don’t continuously learn new things, you get stuck in an outdated loop of information and eventually you are phased out of the market.

Today, I want to challenge that notion and share with you a plan I’ve made for myself to stay relevant and challenge myself. Who knows? Maybe it will ignite a spark within you to start something similar, or at the very least, inspire you to make a change.

This year, I want to achieve four certifications that are vendor neutral and still have some weight in the industry. They are provided as follows: CompTIA Network+, CompTIA Security+, AZ-900, and Splunk.

Certifications get a bad reputation due to a sheer volume available on the market. There are all sorts of opportunities to get vendor-specific, vendor-neutral certificates. Some people think it’s just a paper. I think it brings value if you are actively pursuing the knowledge and applying it while working with customers and colleagues.

My list includes two vendor-neutral certificates that gives a good foundation for starters. For example, CompTIA Network+ is essential because without understanding how computer networking works, you will not be able to analyze traffic flows efficiently.

CompTIA Security+ builds on top of a previous certificate with additional knowledge about security. Together, it becomes a powerful combination.

AZ-900 provides an exposure to cloud technologies and their concepts. It specifically targets Microsoft related products, so it’s a vendor-specific certification. However, the concepts learned within Microsoft ecosystem can be transferred to AWS or Google.

Same goes for Splunk. With this certification were learning in Splunk environment, but that analytical mindset and ability to look into SOC logs transfers to other products as well.

These four certificates should be a great foundation for cybersecurity enthusiasts. Reach out on LinkedIn if you think there are better alternatives. In my next article, I will discuss how I am learning the new material and share what kind of strategies to use to get better.