Parenting, Cybersecurity, and Meaningful Employment: Protecting Futures on Every Front
Candace Gillhoolley
Customer Success Innovator | Business Growth Strategist | Expert in Partnerships & Community | Published Author & Visual Learning Advocate
Parenting, cybersecurity, and meaningful employment might seem like separate worlds, but they share more connections than you’d expect. At their heart, each involves safeguarding what matters most, adapting to uncertainty, and building resilience for the future. For parents raising neurodivergent children while navigating careers in technology, these connections become even more profound.
This intersection isn’t just a balancing act—it’s an opportunity to align personal values with professional impact, creating a purposeful life.
Parenting: The Original Cybersecurity Job
Parenting is, in many ways, a role that requires constant vigilance. For parents of neurodivergent children, like those with ADHD and anxiety, the challenges often multiply. Whether navigating sensory sensitivities, emotional regulation, or unique learning needs, the focus is always on creating a safe and supportive environment.
Interestingly, cybersecurity mirrors this dynamic. Like parenting, it requires identifying risks, building safeguards, and responding quickly to unexpected challenges. For instance, teaching a child about online safety—recognizing phishing scams or understanding privacy settings—feels like an extension of both roles.
This alignment can be empowering for parents, especially those with neurodivergent children. The detective-like skills honed through parenting—reading between the lines, anticipating triggers, and adapting to constant change—translate beautifully into the cybersecurity field.
Cybersecurity: A New Chapter in a Career Built on Connection
As a sales and marketing professional with a strong background in tech, I’ve always been drawn to understanding systems, solving puzzles, and connecting people with solutions. But as I think about my next career move—I want to protect people and create meaningful change.
Cybersecurity, especially in a non-programmer role, offers a unique opportunity to combine what I know with what I’m eager to learn. Whether it’s leveraging my understanding of human behavior from marketing or my problem-solving skills as a parent to a neurodivergent child, I see a pathway where my experience and adaptability make sense.
The Synergy of Sales, Cybersecurity, and Parenting
Cybersecurity isn’t just about technical expertise—it’s about understanding people, anticipating threats, and building trust. These are all skills I’ve honed throughout my career in sales and marketing. Selling tech solutions isn’t just about closing deals; it’s about helping clients feel secure in their decisions, solving their pain points, and building long-term relationships.
Parenting my ADHD/anxiety daughter has deepened my ability to read subtle cues, adapt to challenges in real-time, and approach every situation with empathy and a strategic mindset. These skills, combined with my experience in tech, make me a natural fit for roles in cybersecurity, especially those that focus on communication, strategy, and bridging the gap between technical teams and end-users.
Finding a Path That Makes Sense
I’m not looking to reinvent the wheel but to grow into a role that lets me merge my skills, passions, and values. I see myself thriving in roles like:
These roles don’t require a background in programming—they require critical thinking, adaptability, and the ability to connect people and solutions.
Why It All Matters
At the intersection of parenting, cybersecurity, and meaningful employment lies a shared goal: creating safe, resilient systems—whether for your family, your workplace, or society. For parents raising neurodivergent children, cybersecurity offers more than just a career—it’s a way to align your skills and experiences with a profoundly impactful future.
Every step I’ve taken in my career and every lesson I’ve learned as a parent has prepared me for this next chapter. I’m excited to continue connecting, protecting, and building pathways that make sense—for myself, my family, and the world we’re shaping together.
#ParentingAndTech #CybersecurityCareers #ADHDFamilies #MeaningfulWork #DigitalSafety
Customer Success Innovator | Business Growth Strategist | Expert in Partnerships & Community | Published Author & Visual Learning Advocate
4 天前https://youtube.com/shorts/BxWPCzbgDkg?feature=share
Love this! Parenting and cybersecurity share so many qualities—resilience, adaptability, and empathy. Thanks for sharing this!
Customer Success Innovator | Business Growth Strategist | Expert in Partnerships & Community | Published Author & Visual Learning Advocate
6 天前https://youtube.com/shorts/oDHWEx66VLI