But... Hey, yes, have a life, that is a hacking / security life ! Is there something else ? ;) Honestly without joking, as the OP said, having this as a passi

But... Hey, yes, have a life, that is a hacking / security life ! Is there something else ? ;) Honestly without joking, as the OP said, having this as a passion or lifestyle is going to accelerate your proficiency compared to the others. My feeling is that it's not an absolute prerequisite, just a tremendous accelerator. I started "having a life" maybe 15 years after the beginning of my hacking passion ;) tho my wife would argue about that ;)