I have had an unconventional path getting into the IT field. From a young age, I have always had an interest in computers –I built my first computer at 15 years old! My original focus was in playing video games on them, not to fixing them! In fact, my intended career was to become a professional gamer; I played Counter-Strike semi-professionally for 3 years. My teams had small sponsorships, played in online leagues and tournaments, and at our best placing 3rd/4th out of 900 teams playing in front of 10000 online viewers. I’m proud of my time spent as a professional gamer!Eventually, I decided it was time to “retire” from my online playing career. I had learned many skills in basic troubleshooting over the years, and it felt like a natural transition for me to get into the IT field.When I decided I wanted to pursue the IT, networking and security immediately jumped out to me. With the scary world of ransomware and hackers becoming more prevalent every day, I wanted to understand more about security; specifically, how best to keep people safe as technology continues to get more complicated. I started my first IT job at SD Reliance in March 2021, doing general help desk tickets and learning the ropes of the IT world. I was quickly introduced to a wide variety of challenges: from issues that arise because of printers (IT fact: printers are evil) to networking to application troubleshooting. After 9 months with SD Reliance, I was promoted to IT Manager. Our focus is on building out the best platform of managed security and services, focusing primarily in giving our end users a seamless secure environment to be able to focus on their work. I got my Comptia Network+ Certificate at the end of 2020, and am constantly working on gaining more expertise in cybersecurity and ever-growing computer technology.Outside of work, I am an avid baseball and basketball fan. My family has been St. Louis Cardinals fans for over 100 years now – whenever the Cardinals are in San Francisco playing the Giants, you will always catch me at the game. Having spent some time in Los Angeles, I am also a Lakers fan, though Lebron makes it hard for me to cheer for them right now. (If you know you know). I have recently grown to love plants, too! My current favorites are my rubber trees and succulents, especially my Tiger Tooth Aloe. My apartment is now filled to the brim with plants and cacti! Finally, I am an avid cook and love to try new recipes and to try and recreate my favorite dishes at restaurants.