Get That New Job Even If You Aren't Qualified

Interested in a new career... but worried that you may not have the right background?

You could be right - you may need specific skills, experience and qualifications for your desired career.

But in some cases... you don't need to be worried at all.

This is what I call having "credentialitis". It's a condition where, despite having the skills, talents and knowledge you need for a new career, job or promotion, you still think that you must study, or do some course, or get some credential, to get that new career, job or promotion.

Strange.

I always considered qualifications and credentials to be short-hand for skills and knowledge... but not the only "short-hand" and not necessarily indicative of the most valuable skills and knowledge.

Imagine, for example, that you dropped out of school, started and sold a business and now want to become the marketing manager of a big company.

As a victim of credentialitis, you might wonder if you're qualified to perform the marketing management role.

You may even consider going to business school and investing thousands of dollars, not to mention one or two years in time, to get an MBA in marketing...

Although there's nothing necessarily wrong with attending business school - and you might learn some interesting things - is the return on your investment really positive? Will studying really make you more qualified than having hands-on experience as a business owner?

What if you repositioned yourself as the best possible marketing manager - someone who has acquired rare and valuable skills and experiences through building and selling your own company?

Ofcourse, for some career changes you will need to undertake a course to become qualified for a particular career, such as architecture or teaching.

But in other cases, you probably have the fundamental knowledge and skills required for the new job... and what you don't know can either be picked up relatively quickly on the job or isn't all that important.

Now, I know that while you may value real ability above a degree... many recruiters and prospective employers may not.

Well, although it's difficult to change people's beliefs and attitudes... it's definitely worth attempting. Especially if it saves you time and money and gets you the job you deserve.

So what should you do? Firstly, work on your self-confidence. Be confident in your ability to both do the job you want, and to communicate that you're qualified to do it.

And if enrolling in a formal education course or program continues to intrigue you, answer this question:

Will you be undertaking the course to acquire new knowledge and skills or to acquire a credential that proves your possession of that knowledge and those skills?

You see, overcoming credentialitis and becoming more self-confident will not only save you money, time and energy... but it will also enhance your sense of self-worth and happiness.

If someone queries you over the absence of some qualification, you reply by explaining how your particular background and experiences have given you the skills, knowledge and abilities required for the new career.

This happened to me when I was asked why I didn't have an MBA. I pointed out that my experience working in advertising, marketing, law and my own business had given me much more valuable business skills and knowledge than what I would have acquired going to business school.

Of course, not everyone will be satisfied with an answer like this. In that case, you need to ask yourself whether working for people and companies that have credentialitis is really for you.

In turn, when you're the one doing the recruiting, don't let credentialitis get in the way of making a good hiring decision. Sure, consider qualifications - they do have value - but also consider alternative backgrounds and on-the-job experience that may be just as, if not more, indicative of an individuals abilities.