The Mentor | #40 | Expertise
Each month, I share 3 things I've read on skills, careers, and personal development.
“An expert is someone who knows some of the worst mistakes that can be made in a subject, and how to avoid them.” - Werner Heisenberg
I witnessed a conversation not too long ago, where it became evident within 5 minutes that there was a particular person who was an absolute expert on the topic being discussed. In a non-overbearing way, they could describe every angle of the situation, the pros/cons, the unintended consequences, the 3 things we were not thinking about, etc. It was not boasting and it was not ego, it was just expertise.
In a world where sound bites and posts on X can at times be mistaken for expertise, I find it gratifying to see someone in action, who really knows a topic. In fact, having seen this enough times, I now seek it out. When I get myself in an environment, where a true expert can breakdown a situation, then I feel like I become instantly smarter just by being around them.
When I talk to people early in their career, I rarely hear anyone say that they want to be an expert in a particular topic. In fact, it’s almost always the opposite: ‘I want to be a CEO, i want to be general manager, I want to work in sales/marketing/product,’ etc. If you focus on breadth, not depth, early in your career, I think it becomes very hard to differentiate or stand-out.
It’s counter-intuitive, but depth (expertise) leads to breadth. It’s rarely the other way around.
1
To be a learner, you have to be willing to be a fool. The willingness to be a fool, gives you the chance to become an expert.
2
The more you understand something, the more complicated it gets. But, if you keep going deeper and deeper, it eventually gets simple again. It becomes so simple that you can suddenly understand the 1-2 points of leverage, that no one else thinks about.
3
The best way to build expertise is by not talking. That’s hard for nearly everyone (myself included). But, to this day, some of the best people I meet are the ones that are the most quiet in a meeting. They are just listening, taking it all in.
I look forward to reading these posts and I think this is the best post I’ve read anywhere in some time.