Recently updated on: September 21, 2023
Looking around our society, we can easily say that many would respect people with fancy titles rather than those with a long, demonstrated history of working experience.
It is as if having a title, degree, or license will automatically download the needed knowledge and know-how to anyone who graduates or passes a licensure exam.
Some time ago, our old TV broke down. Though I am an electronics engineer and electronics technician by title, I know it will take some time for me to fix the issue.
So we took it to a technician who works and specializes in TVs. Expectedly, when he opened the casing, he immediately knew the issue and fixed our appliance in no time.
Another example is the friend who designed the Rat Race Running logo.
It may look simple and straightforward at first glance, but if we look closely at the process and technique that he puts in whenever he works on a logo, it easily justifies whatever rate he may demand.
And though he is a professional logo designer, he has no title or degree related to arts, yet this doesn't decrease his skills in his craft.
This is what's impressive about people with experience. They can triumph over anyone with a title who lacks the needed skill.
What experts usually do may look too easy, but in reality, it took them years of practice and mastery to make it look that way.
Table of Contents
Titles Don't Equate To Expertise.
The idea that titles don't equate to expertise is something many people will find hard to understand.
Remember that not because someone has the title doesn't mean they automatically have the expertise to back it up.
I worked with some people who had fancy titles and international certifications but still didn't know how to do simple stuff that was initially assumed they knew.
I remember a story told by one of my professors in Engineering. He said they once had an incident in a production plant in one of the breweries abroad. They called on their top engineers to look at the root cause of the problem, but they couldn't pinpoint the issue.
So they contacted the technician who had worked in their plant for over a decade. Within that week, they had their machine up and running.
Even I can attest that though I have licenses and certifications, there are many things that I still need to learn how to do - similar to the TV and brewery examples.
Likewise, people without fancy titles and certifications can efficiently perform the tasks given to them through sheer experience, years of practice, and dedication.
Books, Google, and YouTube, Can't Beat Experience, But They Are A Start.
Some companies have an ingrained learning culture. They value learning initiatives so much that they can only ask their seniors if there is absolutely no way to know the answer for a specific topic.
And if you ask "stupid" questions, the usual theme will be GMG or "Google mo, g*go."
While it can sometimes be demoralizing, it can still be a way to start your learning initiative. Hopefully, it will not discourage you from asking questions.
Books, Google, and YouTube are great ways to learn many skills. Though they are still not substitutes for hands-on experience, they can offer a jump-off point.
Practice Makes Progress Not Perfect.
Malcolm Gladwell's book "Outliers" talked about the 10,000-hour rule. He argues that it will take someone 10,000 hours to master a skill.
While this number is highly debatable, it shows the time required before we obtain mastery.
However, we can be sure of progress through time, even if that progress is incremental. Remember that progress is progress.
Similar to what James Clear says about the power of marginal gains. As long as we work to improve on something day in and day out, it is impossible not to gain a certain level of expertise.
Even a 1% improvement every day will surely bring immense improvement.
Final Thought
Gaining titles and accolades is great, but it should never be a free pass to look down on others who have none because sometimes, those people may be more experienced in handling things than us.
Work on your titles, certifications, and licenses, but also work on the necessary skills to accompany them.
Learning does not end with a piece of paper. It is a life-long journey that you'll be willing to take.
“Once you stop learning, you start dying”
Albert Einstein
The featured image is drawn by c.Ray. Follow him on IG @crayzrandom
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