See It To Be It Spotlight

𝗜 𝗴𝗼𝘁 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝗰𝘆𝗯𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗲𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵…technology has always been my passion. I didn’t pivot into cybersecurity — I evolved into it. After years living and breathing tech and sales at the enterprise level, I saw the intersection of security, data and now AI becoming the most consequential battleground in business. I didn’t want to watch that from the sidelines. I wanted to lead in it.

𝗙𝗼𝗿 𝗺𝗲, 𝗮 𝗽𝗼𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗰𝘆𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗱𝘀𝗲𝘁 𝗶𝘀…treating every threat as information, not fear. Cyber is fundamentally a problem-solving discipline — and the people who thrive in it are the ones who stay curious, stay calm, and never stop learning. A positive cyber mindset means you see complexity as your competitive advantage, not your obstacle.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗽𝗲𝗱 𝗺𝗲 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝗮 𝗰𝘆𝗯𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗲𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗿 𝗶𝘀…sales. Specifically, enterprise sales at scale. Understanding how organizations make decisions, where their vulnerabilities live — not just technical ones, but human and process ones — gave me a lens most technical practitioners don’t have. I learned how to translate risk into business language, and that has been my superpower in this field.

𝗜 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝘁𝗲𝗹𝗹 𝗺𝘆 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗿 𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳…own your ambition without apology. The combination of tech depth and business acumen you’re building is rare. Don’t shrink it to make others comfortable. The world needs leaders who can hold both — and you’re one of them. 

𝗠𝘆 𝘁𝗼𝗽 𝘁𝗶𝗽 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝗮 𝗰𝘆𝗯𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗲𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗿 𝗽𝗮𝘁𝗵 𝗶𝘀…don’t wait until you feel “ready.” Your transferable skills — whether from sales, operations, law, finance — are assets this industry desperately needs. Find a community like RISE, find a mentor, and start showing up. The door opens when you decide to walk toward it.

𝗜 𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗯𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗾𝘂𝗼𝘁𝗲…actually 2 quotes “Consistency compounds”, “The future belongs to those who prepare for it today.” In cybersecurity and AI, preparation isn’t optional. It’s the entire game.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗶𝗴𝗴𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗶𝗻𝗳𝗹𝘂𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗿 𝗶𝗻 𝗺𝘆 𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗿 𝗶𝘀…every leader who ever bet on me before I fully bet on myself — and the ones who didn’t, because they taught me to be self-reliant. But honestly? The field itself. Cybersecurity is humbling and exhilarating in equal measure. It keeps you sharp because it never stops moving.

𝗠𝘆 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗱 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗶𝘀…The Art of Invisibility by Kevin Mitnick — for anyone entering this space. It dismantles the illusion of digital privacy in a way that’s accessible, urgent, and impossible to put down. Pair it with Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman, because the human mind is still the most exploited vulnerability in any system.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗜 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗜 𝗴𝗿𝗲𝘄 𝘂𝗽 𝘄𝗮𝘀…a CEO. (That vision hasn’t changed — only expanded)

𝗠𝘆 𝗳𝗮𝘃𝗼𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝗶𝘀…New York City. It matches my energy — relentless, ambitious, and full of people who are building something that matters. There’s no city in the world that makes you feel more like the future is possible right now.

𝗠𝘆 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝗽𝗶𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗶𝘀…people who refuse to accept limitations placed on them by circumstance or convention. The women in tech and cyber who came before me and kicked the door open — and the next generation who are walking through it. I show up for them every day.

𝗦𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗲𝘄 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗺𝗲 𝗶𝘀…I completely changed countries, languages, and careers — and rebuilt from scratch more than once. From Romania, to Paris to New York. Also I believe in systems. Whether I’m in a sales conversation, reviewing a security architecture, or building a content strategy — I’m always looking for the pattern, the leverage point, the place where one move creates compounding impact. It’s how I’m wired.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝗺𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗶𝘀…making the intersection of tech, cybersecurity, AI, and business leadership more accessible — and more human. I want people to look back and say: Oana made it clear that this field belongs to anyone bold enough to step into it. And she brought others with her.

𝗕𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗻 𝗮𝗱𝘃𝗼𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗻𝗲𝘂𝗿𝗼𝗱𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗹𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗶𝗻 𝗰𝘆𝗯𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗲𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗶𝘀 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲…cybersecurity requires different ways of thinking. Diverse perspectives are not a “nice to have” — they are a strategic advantage in solving complex security challenges. It’s a strategic advantage. Diverse minds catch what uniform minds miss.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗱𝗼𝗲𝘀 𝗶𝘁 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲 𝗮 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗹𝗯𝗹𝗮𝘇𝗲𝗿 𝗶𝗻 𝗰𝘆𝗯𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗲𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘆? It means you don’t get a map. You build the path while you walk it. In one of the fastest-moving, highest-stakes industries in the world — where AI rewrites the rules before the ink is dry and threats evolve overnight — you show up anyway. No blueprint. But here’s what nobody tells you about blazing a trail: It was never about being first. It’s about being visible enough that the person behind you doesn’t have to wonder if they belong. When I started, I didn’t see many people who looked like me. That absence told a story. I decided I wasn’t going to repeat it. Every post, every mentee I work with, every room I walk into and own, that is me rewriting that story, one chapter at a time. Because cybersecurity doesn’t just need better technology right now, it needs better leaders, from more backgrounds, more perspectives, and more paths that don’t look like the last one.

𝗠𝘆 𝗯𝗶𝗴𝗴𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲𝗮𝘄𝗮𝘆 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗜𝗦𝗘 𝗠𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗿𝗮𝗺 𝗶𝘀…that mentorship is a two-way transfer of energy. I came in thinking my role was to give guidance — and I leave every session having received just as much as I gave. The people in this program are hungry, capable, and full of perspectives that challenge my own thinking. That’s irreplaceable.

𝗠𝘆 𝗳𝗮𝘃𝗼𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗯𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮 𝗥𝗜𝗦𝗘 𝗠𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗼𝗿 𝗶𝘀…the collaboration. RISE isn’t a one-way— it’s a living community of people actively building each other up in real time. Watching someone go from unsure to confident, from curious to committed — that’s the kind of impact I want my career to be built on.

Are you ready to take the next step in your cybersecurity journey?

The Cyber Guild connects leaders, practitioners, and emerging talent through events, mentorship, and community.

👉 Explore upcoming events
👉 Subscribe to our mailing list
👉 Learn more about RISE Mentorship