This is for people starting with 0 knowledge.

If I'm trying to get into tech in 2026 and I don't have a degree, I don't have previous experience. Let's realize that just because you get a certification, it doesn't guarantee you anything. Skills are key, but how do you learn these skills? Of course, yes, you can get certifications. So first step, I tell people to get the Google IT Support certificate, which is offered by Coursera. Now, people might say, hey, the CompTIA A+ is way too expensive. The Google IT Support certificate will handle all your needs at that first level. Next level is CompTIA Network Plus. You need to have an understanding of networking because a lot of people say that they want to get into cyber security, they want to get into cloud, they want to do all these different things. None of that works without a network. You have to understand how networking operates. And then after that, you can go for CompTIA Security Plus. Because now that you understand operating systems, now that you understand a little bit of hardware, now that you understand networking, now that you understand how to apply security to what you've learned previously. This is your foundation. No if ands or buts. Don't go for Security Plus first because you don't understand anything. Yes, can you be successful getting Security Plus and still probably make it in the job market? Possibly. Possibility. You know, who knows, right? But what I've seen is that a lot of people will go ahead and get their Security Plus and then backtrack because they realize, wow, there's a lot of missing pieces, there's a lot of gaps in what I've learned, right? So they're getting the Security Plus, but then they have no idea what does a firewall actually do? Or what is Linux? And why is it open source? Or what is Python? Or what do all these different things and how do they come together? There's a reason that you start from the bottom and then work your way up. Don't just jump in and start from level three and then all of a sudden you're lost, right? So this is my advice if you're going to start out. Now, since this is your foundation, then after that, you can then determine, am I going to cloud route, am I going to cyber security, am I going into networking, am I going into all these different areas and sectors that you can go into tech. So this is my thought process. I've been in tech for 15, 16 years. Trust me, you need to build knowledge on top of knowledge if you want some type of success. Let me know what you guys think in the comments. If you disagree, you agree. Let's talk about it.