Author’s Note: Sources are linked inline, and books I reference are linked to Amazon. A few days ago, I was discussing my future career path with a good friend and former MACCDC teammate. I mentioned that I am more of a system-level thinker – I love working on complex problems and understanding how and why systems work together. In fact, as a Sophomore in High School, I wanted to pursue a bachelor’s degree in systems engineering.

Author’s note: The last portion of this article relies heavily on my personal experiences “in the ring” of collegiate taekwondo sparring and “in the pit” of the Mid-Atlantic Regional CCDC. Many of the fighting strategies are ‘coach-isms’ and are not from an official source. Sources are linked inline. A recruiter at the 2019 MACCDC Regional competition noticed that I listed a karate black belt as an achievement on my resume, and asked me if I thought there were correlations in the respective strategies of physically attacking someone and attacking a network.