You’ve probably been told to “niche down” before.
To define yourself in a neat and tidy box as an expert so that new customers, employers and connections know that you are the perfect fit for them. It simplifies. Removes the excess. And converts to cash faster. Or so they say.
However, amidst the simplicity, there comes a cost. If you, like the rest of us here, love doing many things then there’s no louder death knell than having to focus on just one thing forever. Where’s the fun in that?
But, there is a better way. One that draws the benefits of specialisation without losing what it means to be a multipotentialite. In it you’ll be more than fairly rewarded without losing the diversity in your life that you love.
Let me show you how…
Choosing Your Expertise
As a multipotentialite, what we want to avoid is niching yourself into the “E-commerce Email Copywriter for Start-ups”. It might start fun. But, soon enough every project will look the same. Life will get boring. And you’ll quit.
Instead, we want to double down on 2, rather than 3 expertise areas:
Organisation - ie. Start-ups, Scale-ups, Big Tech, Corporates.
Industry - ie. E-commerce, Healthcare, Finance, Energy.
Skill - ie. Copywriting, Web Design, No-Code, Social Media.
Love building many skills? = Then choose an organisation AND industry. While varying the skills you provide. Example: be the healthcare scale-up expert providing copywriting, web design and social media services.
Love exploring many industries? = Then choose a skill AND organisation. While varying the industries you work in. Example: be the start-up no-code expert who works with e-commerce, finance & energy clients.
Love understanding many organisations? = Then choose an industry AND skill. While varying the organisations you work with. Example: be the finance copywriting expert who works with start-ups, scale-ups & big tech.
Keep in mind that this is an iterative process. You won’t define your expertise today forever. It will change. Embrace it. But, if you want to be recognised for something you’ve got to start somewhere.
Signalling Your Expertise
Just exactly who is and isn’t an expert?
Is it someone with a degree, a Masters or a PHD? Someone with five, ten or fifty years experience? Someone with a 100k following, a published book or an online course? The answer: Whichever you choose to believe.
Each is an expertise signal that builds credibility in the minds of those stalking you for the first time on LinkedIn. We all know that Oxbridge or Harvard don’t guarantee competence. But, they sure as hell signal it. As do any other badges of credibility with high perceived difficulty of achievement.
To become an expert means stacking your credibility in the ways that resonate with your audience. It could mean a fancy education or a big corporate on the CV for some. Or a Ted Talk, book launch and speaking gigs for others. It all depends on what matters to those that will pay you. If you’re unsure, build a few.
Here’s a non-exhaustive credibility list to get started:
Graduate from a world recognised university.
Align yourself to other top industry experts.
Show-off awesome client testimonials.
Write and launch a non-fiction book.
Build an engaged online audience.
Deliver a Ted Talk on your topic.
Get onto the Forbes30U30 list.
Work at a top corporate firm.
Join a big tech start-up.
You don’t need all of them. Some are easier than they seem (*cough, Ted Talk, *cough). While others are basically scams that incentivise fraudulent behaviour (see Forbes Lists).
But, what matters isn’t actually whether you worked your ass off for the achievement or it was handed to you on a plate, but what the badge signals to those you are attempting to influence with your expertise.
Expanding Your Expertise
What do you do once you’re a master?
Either you expand the definition of your expertise. Which means rather than being the best in the UK, you decide to become the best in Europe. Rather than being the best runner, you decide to become the best endurance athlete. Expanding your circle of expertise expands until you’re playing bigger and bigger games that you once thought were impossible.
Or you reinvent yourself completely. Leaving your job as an accountant to become a DJ or ending your podcast to write a book. Each time it will feel like you’re starting from zero again, choosing, building and signalling your expertise for an entirely new field. But, as you explore the new area you’ll realise that the principles you spend the last 5 years learning are the exact ones that work in another seemingly disconnected domain.
But, if neither sound up your street there is a third option for those of us with many interests. As the world’s library of knowledge grows exponentially, as does the the amount of information and expertise signals you’ll need to attain to master certain areas. The disciplines are increasingly fragmented across specialists who never spend enough time speaking to one another. So, rather than attempting to master the expertise areas yourself, aim to learn enough to synthesise other’s work, applying it across industries to create whole new paradigms of thinking. For that is often where the greatest ideas lie.
In Conclusion
Expertise is not a binary switch.
There’s no single accolade that finally promotes you the illustrious title of “expert”. It’s a broad grey area that depends on the legitimacy of your achievements. Which both a blessing and a curse. It means you can be an expert in anything as long as you discover the signals that matters to those you’re trying to convince. But, it also means that so can everyone else.
In the beginning niching is almost a requirement. We also have to start somewhere. And the case study from our previous job or client is often the best place to begin. Use it to get your foot in the door. But, never let your more diverse ambitions out of sight. For the greater the games you play, the greater the rewards that you’ll earn.