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We’ve all done it. In an effort to get an assignment, any assignment, we list every skill we have (or can seriously imagine having) in our profile. “Surely if they realize how many things I can do,” we think, “they’ll hire me.” But this is a mistake.
I’ve been having some good discussions lately with people I know about the concept of specialization. Most of us tend to err towards generalization, and while it can be a good way to try many different things, I think it’s a miscalculation inspired by fear.
Fear? Yes, fear. We’re afraid that if we narrow our targets too much, we will miss out on all the other opportunities. That’s true. We’re afraid that we might not be able to find work. That’s also true. We’re afraid that people might not understand how talented we are. (Yep, you guessed it, also true.)
So if I agree that all of the fears are, in fact, valid, why do I still say that generalization is a mistake? Because in almost all cases, I think we let our minds get carried away and turn valid fears into overwhelming, immobilizing fears. Face it: by refusing to even try specializing, we’re letting our fears get blown way out of proportion.
In an online world, it’s easy enough to change strategies if one doesn’t work, so most of these fears really become irrelevant in the long term. If you can’t find enough work or people treat you poorly because they don’t understand what you’re capable of, you can always try a different approach.
I’ve spent this whole post so far talking about why we don’t specialize, but let me tell you why I believe we should specialize.
- It’s easier to get assignments when you’re the perfect candidate for the job. Think about it from a buyer’s perspective. If he’s looking for someone to create a WordPress theme, who do you think he’ll consider more seriously: a jack-of-all-trades who lists WordPress halfway down a long list of skills, or a provider who clearly lives and breathes WordPress, complete with a portfolio that proves it?
- Buyers aren’t usually looking for one person to do everything. They’re almost always searching for a provider for a specific task, and in the rare cases when they are looking for one person to do everything, you’re frequently looking at an indecisive buyer without a clear long-term plan—the kind of buyer you’re probably better off avoiding anyway (because if they don’t know what they want, how can you possibly give it to them in a way that will make them happy?).
- You don’t really want to do everything! All tasks are not created equal, and neither are people. You have preferences, things you want to do as well as things you’d rather not do. If you want to spend more of your time doing the things you really enjoy, pursue those things and let your less-enjoyable tasks go to someone who actually enjoys them.
- You can get really good at your chosen specialty. Instead of being just one of the faceless crowd who fumble their way along, you can actually master your specialty and enjoy the sense of accomplishment (and sometimes even a degree of fame) that comes with true mastery. Most people never get that good at one thing, but when you’re intentional about it, you can become the provider to go to.
- Buyers will start to come to you. When all of the previous points combine, you end up in a position where you’re spending your time doing the jobs you enjoy, and with a system like oDesk, you’ll start to get requests from buyers to interview, rather than having to always apply. Not only does this save time and effort, but it accelerates your progress toward mastery.
I hope I’ve convinced you that specialization is the way to go. It’s not necessarily easy (especially in the beginning), but I highly encourage you to stick with it for a month or two and give it a fair shot. I think you’ll discover that it gets easier to find good jobs, and that you enjoy your work more.
- Profiles I’d like to see on oDesk
- Specialize Your Way To The Top, And The Other Top Too
- Is your profile headline selling your skills?
- Being Honest About What You Can Do
- Making Money in Your Pajamas: A Freelancer’s Handbook from the oDesk Insider
You make an excellent case for specializing in the work world. This reflects the current trend in the academic world in which college admissions favors students who specialize.
Nowadays, it’s nearly impossible to achieve the Renaissance ideal of mastery of every discipline. There is just too much to know!
We can master some content areas, and just dabble in others. However, when we present ourselves in a selective process, it’s best to go with our strengths.
Good point about college admissions. I expect this trend is cropping up everywhere for the very reasons you mention. (And I love dabbling!)
I totally agree with your post. I’ve been trying for years to specialize in a specific area, but my job forces me to work on many different things and not specialize in any one area. One of my goals this year is to try and focus my efforts on a specific area rather than be the jack of all trades master of none.
That’s one of the issues working for a small company is the staff is smaller and you are expected to take on more responsibilities.
One thing I do like about generalization is if you’re not sure what to specialize in yet then you get a broad view of everything.
Hi, Colby, thanks for your thoughts. I can definitely sympathize with the small company dilemma. I worked for several years at a very small library, which meant that I was IT person, reference librarian, and circulation assistant every day.
Now I own my own business and it was even worse for a while: coder, designer, bookkeeper, project manager, customer service, you name it. It’s only since I’ve been using oDesk that I’ve been able to step back a little and pick which work I actually want to do.
Of course, if it wasn’t for all those years of generalizing, I might not have as clear an idea of what I want to do (though I think that perhaps I didn’t need to experience bookkeeping first-hand to know that it’s not for me!
).
You make some very good points for specialisation Sarah.
However I have made a very successful career by being able to do many things and perform many roles. I have been fortunate/unfortunate to have worked in an environment of almost continuous change for the last twelve years and that cultivates special survival skills.
Whilst a continuously changing environment can be very wearing and often threatening for the change averse (many of whom are specialists and can be quite vulnerable) it also presents many opportunities to take on new skills and new roles.
I love dabbling. I really do.
But when it comes to oDesk I try to focus pretty closely on what I want to do, and it seems to be working. I’m not wanting to work my backside off at one of those under-paying article mills.
I think the best option is to have one primary specialty and one or two more areas that you’re decent at. Don’t try for everything on the map, just the jobs that will keep you sufficiently interested to want to work on them every day.