This is more of a musing about the skills we look for. We look at the primary skills when we hire or even when we develop ourselves. Sometimes the secondary skills, which are not always important, matter to achieve the intent. At times it is more important to
- ask than answer
- debug than code
- remove than add
- seek than design
- listen to than talk
- re-evaluate than speed up
- reject than accept
- isolate than integrate
- let loose than control
- break than comply
- disrupt than assist
- use than show
- play than work
- go by your gut than analyze
- just see than measure.
Of course this works if we know when to do this. And it also means that when we look at skills we have to look at more than one, even if they are in contrast. When you look only in one direction, you can only force ahead. And, as I had read somewhere, you cannot fight the exponential with force.
October 12th, 2007 at 9:02 pm
Okay… that was the most generic thing I’ve read this year. I mean, it has a certain poetic quality, but essentially, all you’re saying is “sometimes it’s better to do one thing, and other times another”. Uhmmm… riiiiight…
October 12th, 2007 at 9:37 pm
Michael, thanks for commenting. Do ignore this if it was very obvious for you.
It was not so obvious for me that sometimes skills other than the core ones take more importance to achieve the purpose.
October 19th, 2007 at 8:30 pm
This is good. @ times when we are looking to bring someone new to the team it’s because there is a need for their skill set. Some value we need to add to the team. That void is what is generally conveyed while the interview is in process. We the, interviewer, ask the questions specific about the task at hand and the interviewee answers praying they answered correctly.
We have one question that throws everyone for a loop in an interview.
It’s an odd question but effective. We had one guy turn green and sweat bullets because he was not sure how he should answer. There is no right answer but depending on how the person answers, can tell you if they accept or challenge their circumstance.
The above article illustrates that we as employers should not just focus on the skills of the individual but evaluate the person’s ability to bring something different to the table outside of the actual job task. It also shows that when interviewing, we should also not lead the person down a path that ONLY explores their job experience but explores their willingness to bring about change.
Though this may seem like a no brainer, there are many out there who have the slightest clue and continue to “paint by numbers” when it comes to job tasks and office culture.
July 1st, 2008 at 1:06 pm
Only if you have the primary skills, you can have the secondary skills.
You can ask only if you know how to answer.