Hey Malik 

Greeting from Indianapolis, In.

I love your enthusiasm as I saw your post and wanted to wish you great success on your journey to becoming a "Trailblazer". You seem to be doing the right things by asking for help and seeking advice from the ecosystem. I am also a career changer looking to land my first job within the Salesforce ecosystem. One thing I learned in my journey; was to seek out as many resources as possible, and network, connect and help as many people as possible. Have some sort of "even exchange" even when networking, by taking the servant leader approach and asking people "how can I support your cause(s)", in addition to gaining their support as well.

I began working on Trails, in trailhead as I followed the admin trail-mixes, blazing my own path, at my own pace. Moving forward I joined my cities "user group(s)" to connect with more like-minded professionals who were more experienced, and they didn't mind "paying it forward".

I learned so much from others, and that led me to a program in my city called Pathfinder that was focused on helping veterans, students, and career changers gain experience as either an Admin or developer in the Salesforce ecosystem at NO COST.

Being a Pathfinder has changed my life and help me BLAZE MY TRAIL by teaching, connecting, training, encouraging, and supporting my every move as a career-changer into the Salesforce ecosystem. I know if Indy has a program that DC should have something similar.  I am not sure what programs DC has to offer but you should look into it to see if there are any that will train and help pay for your certification.

Furthermore, from platinum Salesforce partners to Salesforce MVP in your area should and will know more about resources that are designed specifically to help you learn, develop and connect you resources that can energize your journey. 

I am currently studying to take my Admin Cert, and I am also on my way to my first DREAMFORCE. Wishing you nothing but success on your journey, in BLAZING YOUR OWN TRAIL. Keep up the good work

Here are a few resources that help me:

Salesforce Career Trail(s)

https://trailhead.salesforce.com/en/content/learn/modules/career-development-planning/explore-career-options?trail_id=build-your-career-with-salesforce-skills

Stats on the Salesforce Ecosystem

https://investor.salesforce.com/press-releases/press-release-details/2019/New-Research-Finds-The-Salesforce-Economy-Will-Create-More-than-1-Trillion-in-New-Business-Revenues-and-42-Million-Jobs-between-2019-and-2024/default.aspx

SFDC 99 How to get a Salesforce Job

https://www.sfdc99.com/how-to-get-a-salesforce-developer-job/

PepUpTech

www.pepuptech.org

Salesforce Pathfinder Program

pathfinder.salesforce.com

What is Dreamforce: THE HOLY GRAIL OF TECH conference in the world

https://www.salesforce.com/blog/2019/08/what-is-dreamforce.html

Best Practices for studying for your Admin/or any SF Certification

https://medium.com/@jsteadman/salesforce-certifications-high-yield-study-prep-df23f65bf7a8

If you have any questions, concerns or just want to connect feel free to reach out to me. Wishing you the best. Always happy to share and help a fellow Trailblazer :-)