How to start a tech career for $0

Copy this method exactly

Hello, Hoodies!

Long term readers of this publication will know that the market isn’t what it used to be. 2022 was WHITE HOT and it’s been cooling off ever since. Now, we’re back to “normal” unless we get 0% interest rates again.

But I still have over 20,000 readers of this publication who need a way in. And many of them could never afford a bootcamp, no matter how affordable it was in reality.

So here’s my no BS approach to start a career in tech for $0. Ready? Let’s dive in.

STEP 1: PICK YOUR PATH (THIS MATTERS MORE THAN YOU THINK)

When people fail to break into tech, it’s usually because they picked the wrong starting point, not because they aren’t smart or capable.

There are two realistic entry paths:

Path A: Helpdesk (Recommended for Most People)

Ask yourself one honest question:

Would my life meaningfully improve if I made ~$20/hour?

If the answer is yes, start here.

Helpdesk is:

• The fastest way into tech

• The lowest barrier to entry

• The best “paid internship” that exists

It gets you:

• Real experience

• A real title

• A real paycheck

• A resume that stops getting auto-rejected

Path B: Skip Helpdesk (Higher Risk, Higher Cost)

If $20/hour doesn’t move the needle for you, you can skip helpdesk — but understand this:

• It will not be $0

• Exam vouchers cost money

• Expectations are higher

• Competition is fiercer

For this post, we’re assuming Path A because you presumably clicked on this because you’re broke, right??

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STEP 1A: THE $0 HELP DESK BREAK-IN PLAN (YES, REALLY)

Most people overcomplicate this. You don’t need permission. You don’t need credentials. You need proof of competence.

Here’s the exact playbook.

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1️⃣ Build a Windows Server Lab (FREE)

• Create an AWS Free Tier account

• Spin up a Windows Server VM

• This becomes your “company environment”

You are no longer learning IT.
You are doing IT.

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2️⃣ Promote It to a Domain Controller

• Install Active Directory Domain Services

• Create your own fake company:

  • Users

  • Groups

  • OUs

  • Password policies

This is exactly what helpdesk supports every day.

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3️⃣ Perform Real Admin Tasks

Do ALL of the following:

• Add users

• Delete users

• Reset passwords

• Modify group membership

• Lock and unlock accounts

• Break things on purpose

• Fix them

Then take screenshots of everything.

Screenshots = receipts.

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4️⃣ Practice Ticketing (FREE TRIAL)

• Start a free Zendesk (or similar) trial

• Create fake tickets like:

  • “User locked out”

  • “VPN not working”

  • “New hire onboarding”

• Write clean, professional ticket notes

• Resolve them properly

Now you have:

• Technical experience

• Workflow experience

• Communication experience

That’s 90% of helpdesk.

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5️⃣ Build a Simple Portfolio

Put everything in one place:

• Lab overview

• Screenshots

• Short explanations of what you did

• Tools used

• Problems solved

This can be:

• A GitHub repo

• A simple website

• A Notion page

• A PDF

Perfection is not required. Existence is.

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6️⃣ Create a Plain, Boring Resume

No fancy formatting.
No colors.
No charts.

Just:

• Skills

• Labs

• Projects

• Tools

• Clear bullet points

Applicant Tracking Systems hate creativity. Don’t fight them.

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7️⃣ Apply Aggressively (This Is Non-Negotiable)

• Apply every day

• Apply even if you feel “not ready”

• Apply even if you think you’ll get rejected

And let me be crystal clear here:

In the past year, I personally know over a dozen people who followed this exact approach, based solely on my free content, and landed helpdesk jobs.

That does not include:

• People who didn’t tell me

• People who aren’t on social media

• People who didn’t DM me

This works. Period.

If you want hands-on guidance through this, that’s exactly why we built the Helpdesk Speedrun, but the blueprint above is free.

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STEP 2: THE CYBERSECURITY CAREER ROADMAP (POST-HELPDESK)

Once you’re making ~$20/hour, the game changes.

Now you can afford:

• Exam vouchers

• Better labs

• Better tooling

This is the battle-tested roadmap that has placed hundreds of people:

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The Core Stack

In roughly this order:

• Network+

• Security+

• AZ-900

• Splunk Core

• Linux fundamentals

• Python fundamentals

• Traffic analysis

• Detection & logging projects

• ePortfolio

• Plain-text resume

• Apply. Apply. Apply more.

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Important Reality Check

• Education is free (YouTube exists)

• Vouchers are not

• Quality varies — but excuses don’t matter

No one is coming to save you.

The formula is boring and effective:

Learn → Build → Document → Apply → Repeat

Keep going until you land. And you will.

Get your certs. Learn hard skills. Make projects. Document. Apply. And keep going until you land, and you will.

Want my help to get there?

Go put 10m on my calendar for free.

We just partnered with a new company to offer financing for the program for almost anyone - with better rates and longer terms than affirm or klarna. If you’re interested or wanted to join the bootcamp before but failed to qualify for financing, go put 10 minutes on my calendar and let’s chat.

Love you all. Put your comments below on what you guys want to see this year for the substack and we’ll make it happen.

Cheers,

Evan Lutz (BowTiedCyber)