The word Expert is very much a misused word. In speaking with a friend recently, they let me know that they were looking for candidates for a position and they had hired a search firm to get the top 10 experts in a field to be candidates. At first, I was happy that they were going to get the best of the best. As I digested the conversation more fully, I began to disagree with the approach. Why hire an expert – i.e., someone who has documented, great accomplishments in a particular field? Those accomplishments are already achieved, by definition, and some other company is already reaping the benefits of them. I know that I read in many financial statements that “Past performance is not a guarantee of future results”. What does it mean to be an expert in a field or profession? My father used to always crack this corny joke – “Are you out standing in your field?” my reply was always “Yes” even though I knew his response was something like “why are you out in a field? Come back inside.” I don’t think he meant much more than just the joke but I will try to use that to help explain my perspective that being an expert is not an entity state but more of a continual journey and subsequently, if you have attained the label of expert that you may not be am expert.
In my work as a technology leader, I am known for setting goals that people think they can’t achieve and have lists of reasons why they can’t hit them. I’ve been coached to “set realistic goals” for the past 20 years but I never do and I don’t understand why I ever would. In fact, nobody has been able to define what a “realistic” goal is or why it should be something lower / easier than what I requested. The conversations go something like this:
Me – “Hi, person xyz. Lets discuss your goals for the year. ”
XYZ – “I have set a stretch goal of doing 5% better than last year.”
Me – “Great to see. How did you determine the percentage?”
XYZ – “well, 5% seems achievable given ”
Me – “Ok. What does the business need to be world class?”
XYZ – “I didn’t look at that but some are operating at a level much, much higher than this.”
Me – “Ok. Would you prefer to be 5% better or world class?” Before they can answer, “Let’s agree to have a goal of being world ass because I have no interest in being #2. Don’t worry, you won’t be in this alone. The company needs you to be a success and so the team will pitch in and help you every step of the way. I know you can and want to do this.”
The conversation has shifted and now I have the burden of proof to demonstrate that the much higher goal is achievable and worth the effort. This is very important and often a fatal flaw of companies. In every market there is someone inventing a disruptive technology, process, ad campaign, whatever which will make others obsolete. Has 5% or some other micro improvement ever really made a difference? Has it made an employee happy to be barely better than before and be done? Or do people / companies get motivated by being on a path to excellence? How will you feel when our area becomes obsolete and you are looking for the next thing?
My son is taking Tae Kwon Do now and is doing really well. He is young has not been bound by normal rules of society yet. He is inquisitive and excited by many things. He comes home from TKD excited to become the “ultimate” – a black belt. Two years of training is a very long time for him and is world class in his mind. He talks about being a black belt every day without fail. But he does something else that I love and want to adapt to the business world – he is super excited when he gets a stripe or a new belt or a new kick / block / punch. It is important to k ow the advancement process. First you learn a new move, then you practice it, then you demonstrate it for the “Master”, & then you get a stripe. You repeat this process for 5 stripes and after that, you test for a new belt. There are 15 belts from white to black and it takes about 2-3 years to attain 1st degree black belt. My son gets excited about the new moves, the stripes and the belts. But why … because he wants to be an “expert” or “master” not because he wants to be just 6.7% better (1 belt further of the 15).
He is intrinsically motivated to be an expert / master and extrinsically motivated to get a new belt. His goal is Black Belt not the next belt. I believe he will make it too. Little does he know that the ultimate belt is 10th degree which has an asymptotic path because you achieve that after death and a lifetime of TKD.
In the end an expert is not just someone who has attained something but also knows that they are not finished learning to be an expert. When my son gets his black belt, he will be one of the 5% that start and actually make it to black belt. Then, I will tell him about his asymptotic climb to 10th degree.
-Dana
