Coaching, Leadership, And What I Learned in Prince George's (PG) County Maryland About Winning

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His mom arrived in America with $4. His dad came with $10 and two shirts. Together they built a life — and passed down a philosophy that would eventually help their son lead a $1.3 billion exit. Sujey Edward grew up first-gen in PG County, Maryland watching his father run gas stations, tobacco farms, video stores, and a Peruvian chicken restaurant — all with one belief: "The math is the math." (The kanakku is the kanakku) Sujey took that mindset into tech, pivoted from chemistry to IT by spotting a supply-demand gap, bluffed his way into his first job, and grinded two days ahead of everyone just to keep up. He eventually became CTO of Octo, wrote a personal check to buy in, and helped grow the company from 200 to 1,500 employees before IBM acquired it for $1.3 billion cash. In this conversation we get into: — Growing up first-gen in PG County and what that environment builds in you — His dad's serial entrepreneur philosophy that worked across every industry — Pivoting from chemistry to IT by reading supply and demand — Faking it as a test automation engineer and grinding to catch up — Why basketball coaching made him a better executive — His unconventional 30-minute interview method — Betting his family savings on Octo — and winning — Growing a company from 200 to 1,500 employees and a $1.3B exit — Why he walked away from IBM — sprints vs. marathons — The funeral at 16 that redefined his entire metric for success — Why real regret comes from inaction, not failure — A three-question stress test that reframes any problem instantly — What AI is really going to do to the workforce in the next 10 years Chapters: 00:00 Introduction02:08 First Generation Family from India07:15 "I Came With $10 and Two Shirts"07:36 The Tobacco Farm & "The Math Is the Math"15:07 Family Travel & Lessons from the World19:45 Why He Chose Corporate Over Entrepreneurship26:08 How Coaching Made Him a Better Business Leader29:17 His Unconventional 30-Minute Interview Method33:17 From Chemistry Major to IT Career35:58 Faking It as a Test Automation Engineer40:32 The Three-Question Stress Test46:46 Why We Regret Inaction More Than Failure50:25 Leaving Salient CRGT for Octo as CTO55:00 The $1.3 Billion IBM Acquisition57:50 Learning to Let Go and Trust Your Team1:40:05 The Funeral That Changed Everything at 161:48:14 Sprints vs. Marathons — Why He Left IBM1:52:29 Joining IDS as Chief Strategy Officer1:56:30 Why You Need Multiple Mentors1:03:09 His Relationship With Money Then vs. Now1:23:17 Where AI Takes Us in the Next 10 Years1:28:49 "The Internet Is Still the Internet"1:29:20 Final Thoughts

Inside the Mind of a Hacker: Social Engineering, Security, and Staying Safe in a Digital World

How a Federal Reserve red‑teamer uses psychology, deception, and education to fight scams, stop predators, and keep kids and families safe. Plus: The psychology behind hacking — and how to protect yourself & Why humans — not firewalls — are the real frontline of security. Note: This episode includes brief discussion of online child protection and the work of the Innocent Lives Foundation. There are no graphic details. What actually goes on inside the mind of a hacker? In this episode, cybersecurity expert Lee Anderson pulls back the curtain on the world of red teams, social engineering, and the psychology behind why people fall for scams. Lee grew up in El Paso, built his career at HP and the Federal Reserve, and eventually discovered his passion for the human side of security — not just breaking software, but understanding behavior, influence, and how attackers manipulate emotion. We explore: * How red teams “break” systems to make them stronger * Why social engineering works — and how to spot it * The surprising overlap between magic, deception, and cybersecurity * Whether your phone or hard drive is ever truly wiped * Password managers, AI risks, and the growing attack surface * Why emotional and mental clarity might be the most underrated security tool * How Lee built a cybersecurity card game to teach people without fear or shame If you’ve ever wondered how hackers think, how scams really work, or how to protect yourself in a digital world that’s changing fast, this conversation will change the way you see security forever. Links related to today's episode: Game: Hack Attack:Defense - A Card Game to Hone Your Cyber Skills | Sodalite Games [https://www.sodalitegames.com/games/hack-attack-defense] Website: Lee Anderson — Stay Curious and StaySecure [https://leeanderson.net/#game] Blog Post: Guideto Monitoring Children’s Online Devices — 2025 Edition | The Innocent LivesFoundation [https://www.innocentlivesfoundation.org/guide-to-monitoring-childrens-online-devices/] Chapters: 00:00:00 – Welcome & who is Lee Anderson? 00:01:39 – Growing up in El Paso and finding tech 00:03:07 – From HP to hacking: Lee’s path into cybersecurity 00:04:00 – What offensive security actually does 00:08:22 – Password managers, the cloud, and not being low‑hanging fruit 00:12:54 – Red vs blue teams and how hackers think 00:21:29 – Joining the Federal Reserve and breaking their systems (ethically) 00:23:04 – What social engineering really is 00:26:07 – Learning experience design and teaching people not to get scammed 00:27:58 – Creating “Hack Attack Defense,” a cybersecurity card game 00:34:10 – Why gamifying security works for families and companies 00:42:17 – Inside the Innocent Lives Foundation and OSINT for good 00:46:19 – Practical rules for kids, phones, and social media 00:49:45 – The most dangerous apps and why “anywhere with chat” is risky 00:53:28 – Building real trust so kids actually tell you when something’s wrong 01:00:05 – How games, apps, and social media are engineered against kids’ brains 01:01:02 – The “Curious and Secure” mindset: get curious, not furious 01:07:50 – Teens, social media, and how parents should really model behavior 01:24:25 – One thing kids should know: staying safe and still curious online Tags: social engineering, cybersecurity, hacker psychology, red team vs blue team, Federal Reserve cybersecurity, ethical hacking, security awareness, cyber attacks, password managers, digital safety, offensive security, information security, phishing scams, AI and cybersecurity, data privacy, device wiping, cyber forensics, human behavior in security, security education, cyber risk, why people fall for scams, how hackers think, how to protect yourself online, what is social engineering, how red teams work, cybersecurity for normal people, emotional intelligence in security, best ways to stay safe digitally

15 de may de 20261 h 26 min

Coaching, Leadership, And What I Learned in Prince George's (PG) County Maryland About Winning

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