Clueless In The Cloud

 Clueless In The Cloud is a blog for those who are new to the world of cloud technology and are interested in pursuing a career in IT but don't know where to start. If you're feeling fed up and overwhelmed, you're not alone—this is a safe space! Hi, I'm Hanna. Welcome to being clueless.

So, Why Was Clueless In The Cloud Created in the First Place?

The blog was born out of pure frustration—the type of frustration you get when you arrive at Greggs bakery and they tell you they’re all out of sausage rolls!

I had recently been made redundant, twice. The first time, I kind of made myself redundant when the business I created failed. I tried to launch a fashion directory focused on promoting industry events to professionals working within the lifestyle and fashion sectors. What seemed like a fabulous idea at the time came crashing down faster than a celebrity tripping down the stairs at the Met Gala.

2020 happened. The world came to an eerie standstill, chaos erupted, and no one was allowed outside due to the devastating COVID outbreak. The economy was impacted, businesses experienced a vast decrease in turnover and start-ups failed, including my own, as there were no industry events to promote. All I could do at the time was sit at home, stay safe and bake banana bread. 

Believe me when I say I got gooooood at baking banana bread! With my entrepreneurial dreams coming to an end, I decided to opt for stability and pivot my career.

No, I didn't open an online banana bread store. Instead, I answered a job ad on Indeed posted by an outsourcing agency seeking remote claim handlers. One of the agency's insurance clients decided to hire remote workers to help clear their backlog of Road Traffic Accident claims, which was perfect at the time. During the COVID lockdown, remote work became a buzzword, and businesses everywhere were hiring.

Everything was going great; our team had cleared the backlog, and the client was extremely impressed they were considering extending our contracts. They were in the process of developing further training for our teams when disaster struck! The outsourcing agency was hit with a cyberattack, and the company was hacked! Some of the stakeholders' and clients’ data had been breached! Financial, healthcare, and government clients were now left vulnerable and open. Unfortunately for us, the agency's clients started to walk away from their partnerships and took our jobs with them. Redundancies hit harder than a Jake Paul and Tommy Fury boxing match. Job security left the building along with my dreams of a Bali vacation and the Chanel bag I had saved on my Pinterest board. 

I was given a reasonable redundancy package and was once again left to contemplate my career choice and possible names for my online banana bread store. However, two great things happened during my time at the company: I had developed a keen interest in cybersecurity, and I wanted to learn more to pursue a career in the industry.

However, I soon realised the path to knowledge isn’t as simple as tech social media influencers make it out to be! I managed to enrol onto a Cloud Security bootcamp, me clueless and without any prior IT experience other than jailbreaking my Gameboy as a teen to play flash carts I brought from the dodgy IT shop in the city center. I remember feeling super confused in class by all the overcomplicated tech jargon. I didn't want to ask questions in case I sounded stupid, as everyone else seemed further along and more knowledgeable.

The courses and bootcamps weren’t designed with the beginner in mind. Even though most of the ads used slogans like "From Zero to Hero," the courses seemed very advanced and fast-paced, perhaps more suited for those progressing from an IT help desk position or those who have at least studied IT at college or university.

I also became overly frustrated by the fact that everyone and their cat was creating content on “How to land your first Tech job with 3 months’ without experience,” or “What expensive certs you don’t need but should buy anyway,” and my favourite, " Land your first role with the Cloud Resume Challenge" (I am certain it is also a favourite with many hiring managers out there). 

While there is some amazing information out there, I found no one was focusing on the key fundamentals for those with zero experience, zero knowledge, and clueless about IT infrastructure—people, like me.

And so, Clueless In The Cloud was born!

I decided to create a blog and a space for those just starting out, the complete beginners who are frustrated too! 

Those who wish to ask beginner questions without feeling judged, a space where we can learn together, make mistakes together (or just laugh at the mistakes I have made), share ideas and resources, and, most importantly, have fun whilst learning. Tech doesn't have to be all scary, corporate and stuffy!

Everyone in this industry started off where we are now...clueless, knowing nothing. Many might still be on their learning journey as the tech industry is forever revolving and expand into the unknown. So, let’s go on this journey together and see where it takes us.

Welcome to Clueless In The Cloud, I hope you subscribe and stick around! :)