Amanda Haberkamp

I attribute my success to all the people who have helped me throughout my career. You can't do this alone - it's the village, and everybody has to help each other. I still talk to one of my favorite old bosses, Max Gabriel, who gave me life-changing advice when I was younger. I had trust issues stemming from my background and how I was raised, and Max told me something that stuck with me: 'Focus on everybody has good intentions until they don't.' That perspective completely changed my world and helped me excel in my path forward. My husband has also been incredibly supportive throughout my journey. It's really about the collective support from old bosses, mentors, colleagues, and people across the globe who I've connected with over the years. We all came together and just connected, and we still have that same friend group today.

The best career advice I ever received came from one of my old bosses, Max Gabriel. I was struggling with trust issues because of my background and how I was raised - we all have a version of the world we believe in based on how we've been molded by our parents, but that might not be the right environment we should be thinking of. Max told me something that completely changed my perspective: 'Focus on everybody has good intentions until they don't.' He emphasized that everybody has good intentions, and that advice stuck with me. It transformed how I approached relationships at work and in life, and it has been instrumental in helping me excel in my career path. I was so afraid of trusting when I was younger, and he changed my world with those words.

My biggest piece of advice is that networking is key. Don't be afraid to reach out to other women on LinkedIn or in your community. If you're young and just starting your career, reach out to other women who are further along in their careers - they can help and support you. Do things in your community because that's going to help you find other women who are higher up in their careers and can mentor you. But here's the critical part: you have to make that first reach out. We can't come find you. You have to raise your hand up and say, 'Hey, I want this, and I want to go here, and I want to do that,' and then let us help you and coach you to get you to that right place. You can't sit and wait for it to happen to you - you have to go make that happen and own your career. It goes back to what I mentioned about mean girls - we all need to come together and support each other. We need to do better about that as women in this industry.

One of the biggest challenges is definitely finding the right female mentors, because not all women are open to it. I don't know why that is, but it's a real issue. The field is highly competitive, and women are already competing against men to prove themselves in technology, which is still considered more of a man's domain. On top of that, women sometimes feel like they have to compete against each other as well. Young women entering the field need mentors and support, but they have to be proactive about reaching out and making those connections. The opportunity lies in building stronger networks and communities where women support each other better. We need to move past the 'mean girls' mentality and come together to lift each other up, because that's how we'll create real change in this industry.

The values most important to me are being humble, honesty, trust, and integrity. Trust is especially significant to me because of my personal journey - I struggled with trusting people earlier in my career due to my background and upbringing. Learning to approach people with the belief that everyone has good intentions until proven otherwise transformed my professional and personal life. Integrity is fundamental, especially in cybersecurity where trust and ethical behavior are paramount. Being humble keeps me grounded and reminds me that I couldn't have achieved success alone - it took a village of mentors, colleagues, and supporters. These values guide how I interact with others, how I mentor young professionals, and how I approach both my work in cybersecurity and my personal relationships.