Many security practitioners don’t lead a team. They may not even be part of a team. Individual security consultants, academics, thought leaders, small-business owners, researchers, coders, pentesters and countless others in our field may work in solitary conditions. Yet, leadership abilities for isolated workers can be as important as they are for someone who runs a large corporate security department or guard force.
Few of us work in complete isolation. We interact with clients, students, contractors, ad hoc partners and teams, colleagues, salespeople, government authorities and others. It can be tempting to turn inward and bury leadership skills. But that’s a bad idea.