11.16.2011

The Insanity of Business Expertise.

We worship at the feet of expertise.

As business leaders, we make it a defining factor in almost every decision we make with employees.

We hire looking specifically for expertise. We promote based on the expertise needed at the time . We fire, reassign, and group based on expertise.

And at first glance that seems to be the right move. Right?

It’s hard to argue against.

After all, expertise means that you are hiring someone who won’t make the “dumb mistakes” that cost you time and profitability. Expertise means you’re choosing someone who has seen it all — someone who knows enough to avoid the risky moves and shady mindshare that sap brain trust.

According to our business school logic smart, experienced people don’t make mistakes.

But maybe that’s the beginning of the problem.

Since when did avoiding mistakes ever lead to amazing outcomes? When did playing it safe revolutionize an industry?

Can you think of a single example?

The biggest mistakes throughout time have all come from people too stupid to know they didn’t have the expertise to do something amazing.

They wouldn’t have been hired by your company. They surely wouldn’t have been promoted. And it’s likely if they had made their way to the fourth floor of your enterprise you would ear-mark them for early departure.

Author H. G. Wells left school at the age of 14, then went on to become one of the greatest authors of all time. Would you have hired a high school drop out?
Nicolo Paganini, at 17, dazzled audiences with his virtuosity; then pawned his violin in order to pay gambling debts. Would you have promoted an addict?
Jack London went bankrupt at 20 after joining the “gold rush” in Alaska. He went on to become the greatest writer of the 20th century. Would you have trusted someone so inexperienced?
Thomas Edison invented the electronic vote recorder at age 21 . No one bought it. Not one. Would you give a failed promoter another chance?

Playing it safe doesn’t work.

Knowing more than the next guy isn’t (by itself) a good formula for success.

It sounds good to pontificate about “how long you have been in the industry”. But maybe that means you were just too fearful to do anything else. Maybe that means you gave up a chance at greatness for the security of mediocrity. Maybe that’s another way to look at expertise.

So why are we placing such importance on that type of behavior? Why aren’t we hiring people who know what it’s like to “spit out blood” — to take a punch and get back up?

Is it too damn hard to justify? Does it make us seem like we’re not as smart as we should be?

Why are we as leaders playing it safe?

It seems a little like insanity.

It’s business insanity.

We pretend to play at greatness only to pull back at the edge of true breakthrough. Instead of reaching out boldly and surrounding ourselves with those who dare dream with us, we choose the “has beens”. The “been theres”. The “seen it alls”…

And we wonder why we aren’t doing something amazing.

Maybe expertise is the wrong choice.

http://twitter.com/MikeToering Mike Toering

Wow! Just wow. Great thoughts to ponder here. I’ve thought all these things at one time or another but I’ve never seen them all twisted up in such a nice package.

http://www.DanWaldschmidt.com/ Dan Waldschmidt

Thanks, Mike. I’m just thinking out loud.

Dan

p.s. Thanks for taking the time to stop by and share your comments. What are you up to these days?

http://twitter.com/MikeToering Mike Toering

Wow! Just wow. Great thoughts to ponder here. I’ve thought all these things at one time or another but I’ve never seen them all twisted up in such a nice package.
http://www.DanWaldschmidt.com/ Dan Waldschmidt

Thanks, Mike. I’m just thinking out loud.

Dan

p.s. Thanks for taking the time to stop by and share your comments. What are you up to these days?
http://www.joemcgonigal.com Joe

Great Post Dan. Expertise, Experience, Degrees, while all important in their own right, organizations should be looking for people who have shown a commitment to growth…..period. Some of them will come with experience, some won’t. A desire to continually grow is the intrinsic motivation that companies are looking for. People with this makeup are always stretching and challenging themselves and their teams to do better work.

http://www.DanWaldschmidt.com/ Dan Waldschmidt

Thanks Joe. You brought out some best points. (Which I conveniently ignored…)

It’s hard to replace passionate curiosity, isn’t it?

Dan

http://www.joemcgonigal.com Joe

Great Post Dan. Expertise, Experience, Degrees, while all important in their own right, organizations should be looking for people who have shown a commitment to growth…..period. Some of them will come with experience, some won’t. A desire to continually grow is the intrinsic motivation that companies are looking for. People with this makeup are always stretching and challenging themselves and their teams to do better work.
http://www.DanWaldschmidt.com/ Dan Waldschmidt

Thanks Joe. You brought out some best points. (Which I conveniently ignored…)

It’s hard to replace passionate curiosity, isn’t it?

Dan
http://carouselsalesblog.blogspot.com Cara Celli

I agree that when a company is looking for someone with “expertise” that is an outdated term. Yes, experience matters, education matters, but I’ve see some spunky and really smart people make it to higher ranking positions, and they didn’t go past high school. They didn’t have a lot of experience, either. What they did have is passion and drive to succeed…

The business culture has changed. Like you said, experience and education are great! I’m glad I have both. But that’s not even close what it really takes to be successful!Companies are looking for real achievers! And people who are willing to put in the maximum effort all the time, even when things might not be going their way!People who can come up with innovative strategies to work out problems that can and will happen. And all the while, having a smile on their faces while under great pressure. Something you can’t be taught in school. It’s just part of who a person is.

http://www.DanWaldschmidt.com/ Dan Waldschmidt

Passion and curiosity go a long way. And you can’t learn them in school on at a business. It’s something you have to “want”.

It’s an attitude shift.

Thanks for adding some amazing perspective, Cara.

Dan

http://carouselsalesblog.blogspot.com Cara Celli

I agree that when a company is looking for someone with “expertise” that is an outdated term. Yes, experience matters, education matters, but I’ve see some spunky and really smart people make it to higher ranking positions, and they didn’t go past high school. They didn’t have a lot of experience, either. What they did have is passion and drive to succeed…

The business culture has changed. Like you said, experience and education are great! I’m glad I have both. But that’s not even close what it really takes to be successful!Companies are looking for real achievers! And people who are willing to put in the maximum effort all the time, even when things might not be going their way!People who can come up with innovative strategies to work out problems that can and will happen. And all the while, having a smile on their faces while under great pressure. Something you can’t be taught in school. It’s just part of who a person is.
http://www.DanWaldschmidt.com/ Dan Waldschmidt

Passion and curiosity go a long way. And you can’t learn them in school on at a business. It’s something you have to “want”.

It’s an attitude shift.

Thanks for adding some amazing perspective, Cara.

Dan
Mitchell Morrison

Dan…thanks for starting the conversation. Expertise has it’s place. It helps us get things done efficiently. However, the more expertise we gain in a particular field, the tougher it makes it to come up with fresh and EDGY ideas. We should really strive to bring freshness into our lives by changing up our routines, taking on new hobbies or studying an area outside our expertise. By adding our expertise to different experiences and perspectives, we increase our chance of making new creative connections and finding those EDGY ideas!

http://www.DanWaldschmidt.com/ Dan Waldschmidt

That’s right, Mitchell. The more expertise you have the less edgy you find yourself.

By exploring new opportunities in radical ways, we literally create the edgyness that eludes us in other areas of our business.

What’s the formula though? The wider the focus, the less expertise you acquire, right? So it seems that curiosity and passion have to factor in somewhere.

It’s good to think about.

Dan

p.s. what do you think?

Mitchell Morrsion

Thanks for your reply. I strongly believe everyone should be an expert in something…and my hope is that one’s expertise ties in with their passion in life. My distinction on the subject is that we need curiosity in areas OUTSIDE our area expertise to help stretch our thinking and bring richness TO our area of expertise. I don’t own the corner on being right…just sharing my opinion…

http://www.DanWaldschmidt.com/ Dan Waldschmidt

WOW. Love this discussion…

Expertise via passion. The things we learn from “life outside the office” help us “inside the office”…

Dan

p.s. Brilliant…
http://www.DanWaldschmidt.com/ Dan Waldschmidt

WOW. Love this discussion…

Expertise via passion. The things we learn from “life outside the office” help us “inside the office”…

Dan

p.s. Brilliant…

Mitchell Morrsion

Thanks for your reply. I strongly believe everyone should be an expert in something…and my hope is that one’s expertise ties in with their passion in life. My distinction on the subject is that we need curiosity in areas OUTSIDE our area expertise to help stretch our thinking and bring richness TO our area of expertise. I don’t own the corner on being right…just sharing my opinion…

http://www.DanWaldschmidt.com/ Dan Waldschmidt

That’s right, Mitchell. The more expertise you have the less edgy you find yourself.

By exploring new opportunities in radical ways, we literally create the edgyness that eludes us in other areas of our business.

What’s the formula though? The wider the focus, the less expertise you acquire, right? So it seems that curiosity and passion have to factor in somewhere.

It’s good to think about.

Dan

p.s. what do you think?

Mitchell Morrison

Dan…thanks for starting the conversation. Expertise has it’s place. It helps us get things done efficiently. However, the more expertise we gain in a particular field, the tougher it makes it to come up with fresh and EDGY ideas. We should really strive to bring freshness into our lives by changing up our routines, taking on new hobbies or studying an area outside our expertise. By adding our expertise to different experiences and perspectives, we increase our chance of making new creative connections and finding those EDGY ideas!
Mitchell Morrison

Dan…thanks for starting the conversation. Expertise has it’s place. It helps us get things done efficiently. However, the more expertise we gain in a particular field, the tougher it makes it to come up with fresh and EDGY ideas. We should really strive to bring freshness into our lives by changing up our routines, taking on new hobbies or studying an area outside our expertise. By adding our expertise to different experiences and perspectives, we increase our chance of making new creative connections and finding those EDGY ideas!
http://www.DanWaldschmidt.com/ Dan Waldschmidt

That’s right, Mitchell. The more expertise you have the less edgy you find yourself.

By exploring new opportunities in radical ways, we literally create the edgyness that eludes us in other areas of our business.

What’s the formula though? The wider the focus, the less expertise you acquire, right? So it seems that curiosity and passion have to factor in somewhere.

It’s good to think about.

Dan

p.s. what do you think?
Mitchell Morrsion

Thanks for your reply. I strongly believe everyone should be an expert in something…and my hope is that one’s expertise ties in with their passion in life. My distinction on the subject is that we need curiosity in areas OUTSIDE our area expertise to help stretch our thinking and bring richness TO our area of expertise. I don’t own the corner on being right…just sharing my opinion…
http://www.DanWaldschmidt.com/ Dan Waldschmidt

WOW. Love this discussion…

Expertise via passion. The things we learn from “life outside the office” help us “inside the office”…

Dan

p.s. Brilliant…

The Insanity of Business Expertise.

It’s hard to argue against.

Playing it safe doesn’t work.

It’s business insanity.

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