Don't Think You're Qualified? You Can Still Get The Job

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

Perhaps you are right to be concerned. You may indeed need a particular qualification to get the new career.

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

Actually, you may have "credentialitis" - you think you need some kind of credential to qualify you for a promotion, new position or career change, when you actually have all the skills, talent and knowledge necessary.

It's crazy.

I thought credentials and qualifications were a convenient means of proving that you have certain skills and knowledge. But if it's obvious that you have those skills and knowledge... why do you need a certificate, diploma, degree or some other kind of qualification to prove it?

For example, what if you're an entrepreneur who left high school before graduating, launched a super-successful business which you ended up selling, and now want to be the marketing manager of a large, established company?

If you have credentialitis you may doubt your ability to become the marketing manager of a large company.

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...

But will studying really be all that beneficial, considering you've already acquired hands-on business and marketing skills?

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?

Obviously, in some instances, you will need to do a course to be qualified for a certain career, like law or medicine.

But in many cases you already possess the most important skills and knowledge needed for the career change you want to make... and anything else you can learn on the job, by purchasing a book or by attending a half-day workshop.

Of course, I understand that while you may know you have the skills, abilities, knowledge and talents for a particular career... you may still face an employer who wants to see a certificate, diploma or degree.

Yet, the only way you as an individual, or we as a society, are going to get over this credentialitis, is if we make an effort to change things.

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 you're still interested in doing a course or program, ask yourself this question:

Would the course or program genuinely teach you something new... or would it give you a piece of paper to prove what you already know?

Really, if you manage to overcome your credentialitis you'll not save a lot of money, time and energy on unnecessary studies, but you'll also become a happier, more fulfilled person.

If you are challenged over your lack of credentials you can "reframe" your background... so that it's obvious that this has equipped you with the ideal background for the new job.

I, for example, was once questioned over my lack of an MBA. I explained that my background as an advertising copywriter, marketing manager, commercial lawyer and business owner had given me a real-world MBA.

Of course, you'll find some people who just won't "buy it" - they obviously have credentialitis themselves. In this case, it's up to you whether it's worth your while trying to convince them... or whether you're better off trying to work with people who aren't so hung up on qualifications and recognize true ability.

Of course, when you are recruiting people, try to look beyond someone's qualifications too - their "real-world" background may well have armed them with skills, abilities and knowledge that is just as valuable (if not more so) than those obtained through formal education.

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