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% Document Info
\author{bytebar}
\pdfinfo{
  /Title (breaking-into-it-the-free-starter-kit.pdf)
  /Creator (Cheatography)
  /Author (bytebar)
  /Subject (Breaking Into IT: The Free Starter Kit Cheat Sheet)
}

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\noindent
\begin{multicols}{3}
\begin{tabulary}{5.8cm}{C}
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    {\parbox{\dimexpr\textwidth-2\fboxsep\relax}{\noindent
        \hspace*{-6pt}\includegraphics[width=5.8cm]{/web/www.cheatography.com/public/images/cheatography_logo.pdf}}
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\begin{tabulary}{11cm}{L}
    \vspace{-2pt}\large{\bf{\textcolor{DarkBackground}{\textrm{Breaking Into IT: The Free Starter Kit Cheat Sheet}}}} \\
    \normalsize{by \textcolor{DarkBackground}{bytebar} via \textcolor{DarkBackground}{\uline{cheatography.com/218949/cs/48453/}}}
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\noindent
\begin{multicols}{3}
\begin{tabulary}{5.8cm}{LL}
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  \mymulticolumn{2}{p{5.377cm}}{\bf\textcolor{white}{Cheatographer}}  \\
  \vspace{-2pt}bytebar \\
  \uline{cheatography.com/bytebar} \\
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  \mymulticolumn{1}{p{5.377cm}}{\bf\textcolor{white}{Cheat Sheet}}  \\
   \vspace{-2pt}Not Yet Published.\\
   Updated 21st September, 2026.\\
   Page {\thepage} of \pageref{LastPage}.
\end{tabulary}
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  \mymulticolumn{1}{p{5.377cm}}{\bf\textcolor{white}{Sponsor}}  \\
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  \vspace{-5pt}
  %\includegraphics[width=48px,height=48px]{dave.jpeg}
  Measure your website readability!\\
  www.readability-score.com
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\end{multicols}}




\begin{document}
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% Set font size to small. Switch to any value
% from this page to resize cheat sheet text:
% www.emerson.emory.edu/services/latex/latex_169.html
\footnotesize % Small font.

\begin{multicols*}{3}

\begin{tabularx}{5.377cm}{X}
\SetRowColor{DarkBackground}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{\bf\textcolor{white}{Your IT Career Roadmap}}  \tn
% Row 0
\SetRowColor{LightBackground}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{Help desk → Sysadmin → Network/Security/Cloud — the classic ladder, 1–3 yrs per rung} \tn 
% Row Count 2 (+ 2)
% Row 1
\SetRowColor{white}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{Pick ONE lane by year 2: security, cloud, or networking — generalists stall, specialists get paid} \tn 
% Row Count 4 (+ 2)
% Row 2
\SetRowColor{LightBackground}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{Certs get interviews; projects get offers — build a home lab and document everything} \tn 
% Row Count 6 (+ 2)
% Row 3
\SetRowColor{white}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{GitHub + LinkedIn matter: hiring managers Google you before the interview} \tn 
% Row Count 8 (+ 2)
\hhline{>{\arrayrulecolor{DarkBackground}}-}
\SetRowColor{LightBackground}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{bytebar free it career guide}  \tn 
\hhline{>{\arrayrulecolor{DarkBackground}}-}
\end{tabularx}
\par\addvspace{1.3em}

\begin{tabularx}{5.377cm}{X}
\SetRowColor{DarkBackground}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{\bf\textcolor{white}{Which Cert First?}}  \tn
% Row 0
\SetRowColor{LightBackground}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{Start: CompTIA A+ (hardware/OS basics) or Google IT Support — no experience needed} \tn 
% Row Count 2 (+ 2)
% Row 1
\SetRowColor{white}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{Then: Network+ (networking fundamentals) → Security+ (DoD-approved, biggest ROI early)} \tn 
% Row Count 4 (+ 2)
% Row 2
\SetRowColor{LightBackground}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{Cloud lane: AWS CLF-C02 → SAA-C03 | Microsoft lane: AZ-900 → AZ-104} \tn 
% Row Count 6 (+ 2)
% Row 3
\SetRowColor{white}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{One cert at a time — stacked half-finished certs impress nobody} \tn 
% Row Count 8 (+ 2)
\hhline{>{\arrayrulecolor{DarkBackground}}-}
\SetRowColor{LightBackground}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{bytebar free it career guide}  \tn 
\hhline{>{\arrayrulecolor{DarkBackground}}-}
\end{tabularx}
\par\addvspace{1.3em}

\begin{tabularx}{5.377cm}{X}
\SetRowColor{DarkBackground}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{\bf\textcolor{white}{Home Lab Under \$100}}  \tn
% Row 0
\SetRowColor{LightBackground}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{VirtualBox or Proxmox (free) — run 3–4 VMs on any 16GB laptop} \tn 
% Row Count 2 (+ 2)
% Row 1
\SetRowColor{white}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{Build: a Windows Server DC, a Linux box, a pfSense firewall — learn AD, DNS, DHCP hands-on} \tn 
% Row Count 4 (+ 2)
% Row 2
\SetRowColor{LightBackground}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{TryHackMe / HackTheBox free tiers for security reps; AWS free tier for cloud} \tn 
% Row Count 6 (+ 2)
% Row 3
\SetRowColor{white}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{Document builds on a blog or GitHub — your lab IS your experience section} \tn 
% Row Count 8 (+ 2)
\hhline{>{\arrayrulecolor{DarkBackground}}-}
\SetRowColor{LightBackground}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{bytebar free it career guide}  \tn 
\hhline{>{\arrayrulecolor{DarkBackground}}-}
\end{tabularx}
\par\addvspace{1.3em}

\begin{tabularx}{5.377cm}{X}
\SetRowColor{DarkBackground}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{\bf\textcolor{white}{Interview Prep Essentials}}  \tn
% Row 0
\SetRowColor{LightBackground}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{STAR method: Situation, Task, Action, Result — every behavioral answer uses it} \tn 
% Row Count 2 (+ 2)
% Row 1
\SetRowColor{white}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{"Tell me about yourself" = 60-second pitch: who you are, what you've built, where you're headed} \tn 
% Row Count 4 (+ 2)
% Row 2
\SetRowColor{LightBackground}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{Always have 3 questions ready: team structure, on-call expectations, growth path} \tn 
% Row Count 6 (+ 2)
% Row 3
\SetRowColor{white}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{Follow up within 24h — a short thank-you email beats 90\% of candidates} \tn 
% Row Count 8 (+ 2)
\hhline{>{\arrayrulecolor{DarkBackground}}-}
\SetRowColor{LightBackground}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{bytebar free it career guide}  \tn 
\hhline{>{\arrayrulecolor{DarkBackground}}-}
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\par\addvspace{1.3em}

\begin{tabularx}{5.377cm}{X}
\SetRowColor{DarkBackground}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{\bf\textcolor{white}{30-Day Exam Sprint}}  \tn
% Row 0
\SetRowColor{LightBackground}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{Weeks 1–2: learn — one domain per day, take messy notes, lab everything} \tn 
% Row Count 2 (+ 2)
% Row 1
\SetRowColor{white}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{Week 3: drill — 50+ practice questions daily, log every miss in a weak-spot list} \tn 
% Row Count 4 (+ 2)
% Row 2
\SetRowColor{LightBackground}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{Week 4: simulate — full timed practice exams, review only your misses} \tn 
% Row Count 6 (+ 2)
% Row 3
\SetRowColor{white}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{Exam day: sleep \textgreater{} cramming; flag hard questions, answer easy ones first} \tn 
% Row Count 8 (+ 2)
\hhline{>{\arrayrulecolor{DarkBackground}}-}
\SetRowColor{LightBackground}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{bytebar free it career guide}  \tn 
\hhline{>{\arrayrulecolor{DarkBackground}}-}
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\par\addvspace{1.3em}

\begin{tabularx}{5.377cm}{X}
\SetRowColor{DarkBackground}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{\bf\textcolor{white}{Resume \& USAJobs Tips}}  \tn
% Row 0
\SetRowColor{LightBackground}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{One page per 10 years of experience — quantify everything (users supported, tickets closed, uptime)} \tn 
% Row Count 3 (+ 3)
% Row 1
\SetRowColor{white}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{Mirror the job posting's keywords — ATS filters kill resumes before humans see them} \tn 
% Row Count 5 (+ 2)
% Row 2
\SetRowColor{LightBackground}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{Federal jobs: USAJobs resumes can run 3–5 pages; spell out GS-level eligibility clearly} \tn 
% Row Count 7 (+ 2)
% Row 3
\SetRowColor{white}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{Clearance = pay bump: Secret adds \textasciitilde{}10–15\%; start the process early, it takes months} \tn 
% Row Count 9 (+ 2)
\hhline{>{\arrayrulecolor{DarkBackground}}-}
\SetRowColor{LightBackground}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{bytebar free it career guide}  \tn 
\hhline{>{\arrayrulecolor{DarkBackground}}-}
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\par\addvspace{1.3em}

\begin{tabularx}{5.377cm}{X}
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\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{\bf\textcolor{white}{More from ByteBar}}  \tn
% Row 0
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\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{🎁 All free: the complete \{\{link="https://bytebarhq.com/collection/freebies"\}\}Freebies Collection\{\{/link\}\} — resume pack, interview checklist, home lab guide, career roadmap \& exam sprint planner at bytebarhq.com} \tn 
% Row Count 5 (+ 5)
% Row 1
\SetRowColor{white}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{Free IT certification study resources at bytebarhq.com} \tn 
% Row Count 7 (+ 2)
\hhline{>{\arrayrulecolor{DarkBackground}}-}
\SetRowColor{LightBackground}
\mymulticolumn{1}{x{5.377cm}}{bytebar free it career guide}  \tn 
\hhline{>{\arrayrulecolor{DarkBackground}}-}
\end{tabularx}
\par\addvspace{1.3em}


% That's all folks
\end{multicols*}

\end{document}