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We value “T-shaped” people. That is, people who are both generalists (highly skilled at a broad set of valuable things—the top of the T) and also experts (among
by maho 10y ago
We value “T-shaped” people.
That is, people who are both generalists (highly skilled at
a broad set of valuable things—the top of the T) and also experts (among the best in their field within a narrow discipline -- the vertical leg of the T).
This is a nice metaphor. I try to be T-shaped, but I wonder how useful I am becoming... My expertise in high-precision mass spectrometry is not something companies are looking for....
- trevyn 10y agoIt is also important to intelligently select where your vertical leg is placed.
- Scirra_Tom 10y agoI feel that to be "among the best in their field within a narrow discipline" (the vertical leg) means you have a natural disposition and interest in that discipline. Not something you can just choose (that would be more about the horizontal).
- officemonkey 10y agoThen the "where are you willing to work?" becomes an important factor. There aren't a lot of "high-precision mass spectrometry" work in a lot of towns.
- pc86 10y agoAm I the only one that finds it hard to believe all of Valve's ~330 employees are among the best in their respective field?
- ComodoHacker 10y agoJust wait for upcoming asteroid mining startup bubble.
- talmand 10y agoWhy wait? Start it yourself. With a little imagination you can get it started before we even have the capability to achieve asteroid mining. After all, there's a star naming registry that will name a star of your choice to be recorded in their books for a nominal fee.
- talmand 10y agoI've heard this recently and it only seems to me it is too easily used to create a bad mix of people on a team to tackle problems.