In this episode of Unspoken Security, AJ Nash is joined by our first social media star...Gabrielle Hempel! Also known as LadyG on Twitter (@gabsmashh) - with over 100,000 followers - she also focuses on making the world a safer place as a Customer Solutions Engineer for LogRhythm.

(NOTE: Gabrielle was actually recorded as AJ's second guest on Unspoken Security - way back in October! - but we saved her appearance until we built our own audience so we weren't just taking advantage of her following.)

Gab and AJ have a fun and interesting conversation about Gabrielle's unusual path from working in an auto repair shop in Ohio - where she was almost stabbed! - to become an expert and influencer in cybersecurity. Gab shares how she grew from a shy child into a confident, powerful voice in cybersecurity, including some incredible stories of overcoming the opinions and assumptions of others. She learned how to assess risk and resolve conflicts in some dangerous real-world scenarios, and combined that with her incredible education (B.A., in Psychology, B.S. in Neuroscience, & MS in Global Security, Conflict, and Cybercrime from NYU).

With all the things in her life - social media, public speaking, a cybersecurity career, and a family - Gab offers her lessons learned and advice (including the power of saying "no") to get closer to the work/life balance most people need to avoid burning out in an industry where it is so easy to do. AJ added some interesting insights and leadership tactics he's also used to help teammates maintain a more balanced life.

This episode even had an additional special guest when AJ's dog Ryleigh couldn't resist meeting Gab! Ryleigh probably heard how much fun AJ and Gab were having and wanted to get some camera time, too.

As always, the show wraps up with our guest revealing something that had, to this point, gone "unspoken." Download this episode to find out Gabrielle's secret because you will ABSOLUTELY want to give her (and probably AJ) a hard time after you hear this!