Today is the eleventh birthday of this notebook.
Following the convention I have established each January, this is a brief reflective post before the year proper begins.
Eleven years
The discipline continues. Eleven years of weekly writing. The cumulative archive is substantial; the underlying habit is deeper than habit; the cumulative trajectory continues.
The cumulative markers as of year-end:
Approximately 500 posts across all categories.
A book, Evolution of DDoS, now over a year in the field.
A correspondence network that continues to grow.
A cumulative practitioner profile that supports specific subsequent opportunities.
Substantial career progression through the previous decade — DEC, the gaming-operator role, RBGE consulting, Vodafone interim, Gala Coral CISO. The cumulative trajectory has been varied; specific decisions through 2009 may extend the variation.
What is changing this year
Three specific things visible at year-start.
Specific cumulative thinking about an independent practice. I have been thinking about this through 2008. The cumulative trajectory — the book, the conference engagement, the cumulative practitioner network — supports specific subsequent decisions. 2009 may be the year those decisions become operational.
Continued Conficker trajectory. The variant from late 2008 will produce further evolution; specific cumulative impact across 2009 will be visible.
Continued financial-crisis context. Specific operational pressure across the security-operations community will continue.
Continued cumulative writing discipline. The notebook continues regardless of role transitions.
What is the same
The weekly cadence. The British English. The internal links. The calibrated humility discipline.
The quiet enjoyment of starting the year at the keyboard with a fresh notebook page open and a kettle on.
What I want to do this year
Five specific things, marked as predictions to score at year-end:
Continue the weekly cadence. 95%. The discipline is now part of how I think.
Make specific subsequent role decisions. 90%. Whatever those decisions are.
Attend at least four conferences. 80%.
Speak at at least one conference. 70%.
Substantial cumulative writing or extended-format work. 60%. Specific cumulative subsequent project to be defined.
A small note on operational rhythm
The financial-crisis context will continue across at least the first half of 2009. Specific operational pressure across the security community will be sustained. The burnout discipline continues to apply.
For anyone reading this who is in the field: take care of yourselves through the year. The cumulative work matters; the cumulative people doing it matter more.
A reflection on eleven years
When I started in 1998 the cumulative trajectory through 2009 was unimaginable. Specific subsequent decisions — through specific subsequent years — will continue producing cumulative outcomes that current expectations cannot capture.
For practitioners considering similar discipline: the cumulative compounding continues to surprise.
Truly closing
Eleven years on. Thirteen years from when I started a Slackware box that became the foundation of all this work. Fourteen years out of school. The trajectory continues; specific decisions are pending; the discipline continues.
Thank you for reading. Happy 2009. See you next week.