[raffi]

When asked by folks I occasionally give advice to, I try to push them towards creating something new and talking about it, writing an article, or contributing to an open source project. This is a much better way to join a professional community than attaching a certification to your name.

I've met (and worked with) folks who gain certification after certification. In the information security industry this is very rampant. Unfortunately, certification programs feel like empty knowledge. It's a lot of trivia, in some of the better ones there is hands-on, but I'd argue that once you have a foundation (from somewhere: school, work, cert program?) that you're better off improving yourself and demonstrating your worth by contributing to the community. Collecting more merit badges from cert providers doesn't really improve you as a professional beyond a certain level.