THE PARADOX OF EXPERIENCE

The common way to measure “Professional Experience” is years. In some scenarios this makes sense.
Such as business, or medicine. In which, the time spent in the profession can provide knowledge that is
only earned through experience. Some in roles of large consequence of error decisions the ones I want in
those roles have spent 7-10 years in the profession in some way, not necessarily the role I am gathering
evidence for.

However, in other scenarios experience measured in time misses an opportunity to spot interesting
candidates. In a way, this universal use of the measurement time camouflages a lot of other individuals.

In some scenarios, too much experience eliminates a blissful nature that is essential for the role. For
example, an individual who has no experience in a profession but has the professional profile* to do the
role can look at problems and systems with an honest eye and provide the spark to be a game changing
hire. So, in a way, sometimes the most interesting candidate is the maverick or one with minimal

experience within the profession. This is something that should be considered in all roles and work
opportunities.

The Experience measured in years and without awareness of what advantages or disadvantages come
with experience is a missed opportunity. In some cases, experience can prove to be an impediment,
where in others it can prove to be invaluable.

Take for example archery, something that we can dedicate hours to but get worse at it. Joel Tuner,
Archery Coach, talks about this at length in that experienced archers can begin to develop poor habits,
and don’t realize their poor habits are restricting them from taking better and more consistent shots when
it matters.

On the flip side, Firefighters commanders who have experienced many fires develop quality intuition that
aids in evaluating the situation and making a thoughtful decision quickly. They leverage something called
progressive deepening.

So, what we find is that experience can be incredibly useful, and other times unnecessary. It depends on
the role, the professional profile, the candidate’s portfolio of experience, how the Professional Profile
transfers to the work opportunity, and the environment the activity operates in (Wicked vs. Kind).

*Professional Profile: Is a way of creating an avatar of what is essential for the role the work opportunity looks to fulfil. It consists of STACK components. Skill, Talents, Abilities, Character,
Knowledge.