You can take it to the bank. When I meet almost any client for the first time, and ask them to tell me a little about themselves and their strengths, it’s almost guaranteed they’ll inform me that they’re a “great problem solver.”
And yet, oddly enough, when I then follow up and them something like “that’s terrific – so what kinds of problems are you looking to solve in your next job?” I usually get the deer-in-the-headlights look. They either literally can’t answer the question or stammer out something vague about how they like to solve problems involving people and processes and efficiency and similar stuff – which when you stop and think about it, could mean anything from arranging the cup sizes more effectively in a Starbucks store, to fixing a fuel line on the space shuttle, to helping people overcome clinical depression.
The impression they send, in other words, is that they’re fairly good at figuring out how to address a problem when somebody else points it out and asks them to do so, but they have very little understanding of the problems companies are facing in the first place. Or any proactive desire (or dare I say passion) to help fix them.
This disconnect to me is telling – and extremely important – when it comes to the topic of job searching and career exploration. Simply put, if a professional can’t identify and articulate the current, relevant, and specialized business problems they’re actively seeking to solve for a potential employer, they’ll constantly be at a disadvantage, career-wise.
So here’s my call to action for those out there struggling to figure out your career path or for whom the above anecdotes sound eerily familiar. If you want to put your employment future on more stable ground, don’t be a passive participant in your own career story. Recognize that one of the hallmarks of an expert in any field is not just the ability to reactively respond to challenges that come up, but to anticipate them proactively, in advance, and help companies avoid them. If I hire an accountant to do my books, in other words, they should be able to not only address the bookkeeping tasks I already know I stink at – but ideally point out other potential risks, issues, or opportunities I’m not even aware of since, after all, I’m not an accounting professional.
Lather, rinse, repeat with any other professional field.
An experienced IT manager, in other words, should be able to rattle off at a moment’s notice the challenges that today’s companies are currently facing (or could soon face) when it comes to technology usage and adoption. Along the same lines, an HR professional who understands the nuances of self-marketing might develop a line of patter that sounds something like “While I definitely have the ability to help address a ton of different HR-related issues, what I’m really passionate about right now is helping companies embrace the concept of diversity, equity, and inclusion – and revamp their processes and culture in dramatic ways in order to attract a greater percentage of diverse, non-traditional candidates.”
So don’t sell yourself short by just telling folks you’re a good problem-solver. Honestly, that won’t set you apart from 98% of everybody else you’re competing with out there and will usually leave people lost and confused about what a good referral actually looks like for you. Instead, go the extra mile and show that you’re a kick-butt problem identifier, too. Take whatever steps necessary (i.e. market research, further schooling, networking with employers, soul-searching around your experience to date) to figure out what specific issues, challenges, and risks companies are wrestling with these days and that they’re willing to pay good money to solve – then tailor your elevator pitch and job search campaign to showcase your expertise in addressing these exact issues.
Just as every successful entrepreneur figures out an unmet need in the market they can make money by solving, you, too, need to focus on your customer — the hiring manager — and get into their psyche a little. They’ve got lots of headaches. Can you be the aspirin?
Matt, I appreciate your advice “Just as every successful entrepreneur figures out an unmet need in the market they can make money by solving, you, too, need to focus on your customer — the hiring manager ” It all comes down to “how can I help you meet your needs”
Estrella: Thanks, as always, for your support and comments! And I totally agree with what you’ve said, with just the additional caveat that the most effective professionals are 1) very clear about the needs they’re an expert in solving and 2) should be able to anticipate the other party’s needs, in advance, and even help identify needs the person/company didn’t know they had. That’s the fine line I’m trying to emphasize here. I think too many folks are passively saying “I’m good at solving problems” but stopping short of being able to articulate what those problems actually are – which limits their marketability greatly. Just my two cents… :)