Today’s specialised professions and education got their start in Napoleon Hill’s day. He used the order of the day to predict and guide his readers to a more efficient, profitable future.
Specialists Most Sought
“Particularly sought after by employing companies are candidates who have specialized in some field—business-school graduates with training in accounting and statistics, engineers of all varieties, journalists, architects, chemists, and also outstanding leaders and activity men of the senior class.
“The man who has been active on the campus, whose personality is such that he gets along with all kinds of people and who has done an adequate job with his studies has a most decided edge over the strictly academic student. Some of these, because of their all-around qualifications, have received several offers of positions, a few of them as many as six.
You’re More Than A Grading System
“In departing from the conception that the ‘straight A’ student was invariably the one to get the choice of the better jobs, Mr. Moore said that most companies look not only to academic records but to activity records and personalities of the students.
“One of the largest industrial companies, the leader in its field, in writing to Mr. Moore concerning prospective seniors at the college, said:
“‘We are interested primarily in finding men who can make exceptional progress in management work. For this reason we emphasize qualities of character, intelligence and personality far more than specific educational background.’
Growth Of A Specialty
This is essentially what gave birth to the state of careers today. We have benefited from the attention to specialisation and to the attention to developing a well-rounded workforce of people who not only know their craft, but have the personal dynamic to catapult that to success. This has given growth to numerous specialised opportunities, and the ability to create more for ourselves.
Sean Rasmussen
Success Communicator
SeanRasmussen.com © 2004 – 2009
{ 7 comments… read them below or add one }
Hi Sean,
How clever is Napoleon Hill! For him to see that to specialize in a certain field of employment is more beneficial than employing someone that shows academic skills only. To also look at his social skills and favor someone who is able to get along with people is someone with wonderful insight, especially for those times. It’s an important attribute even today that a manager needs to be able to handle people and get along with his staff if he is to be good at his job.
Hi Jill,
When you hire someone to work with you, I think that person’s social skills and attitude is just as important, if not more important than their academic skills. After all you can teach people work skills but it is harder to teach people skills.
Some people are just natural communicators and can people to do whatever they want. As a manager you can make someone do it your way, but the best can get someone to change the way they think and get them to want to do it. These kind of social skills are invaluable.
Jazz Salinger´s last blog ..Finding Your Passion
Hi Sean,
Specialist knowledge is important but I agree that social skills are far more important. This is because no matter what field of business you’re in; you’re first and foremost in the people business.
Social skills are so valuable because people buy people not products. Someone who is good at building and maintaining relationships will create calmer and happier workplaces and better customer loyalty. I think happier workplaces are more productive workplaces. Customers who feel listened to and valued are more likely to return.
Again, this is something I’m going to spend some time improving.
I know Hill was writing during a time when men dominated the workforce and that’s why he writes from a very masculine perspective.
All this talk about “the man” seems so strange now in 2010. But that just goes to show how far women and society have come since then. I wonder what Hill would think now, about the advances in women’s rights and societal changes that have occurred since his time. I also wonder whether, if he were to write today, he would speak about wealth and riches in broader terms, to include for example, the success of family and parenting. Perhaps he did?
Lina Nguyen´s last blog ..How to make comments online and build your online persona
Grades are only as good as the system that is giving them. And most of the time at school or Uni you learn the stuff that is already well known. So to bring added value to the company you will work for you need to combine this knowledge with other talents and attributes. And Mr.Moore obviously understood this already very well!
Renee´s last blog ..Motivational Music
Teachers are human and can be swayed in their perception of what a good mark is. A favoured student may be judged lighter than a trouble student whereas the trouble student puts more of him/herself in to get a higher mark. A person has favourites, assumes who wants to go on to higher education and who is just there because the government says he/she needs to be.
No one is to blame it’s simply a matter of realizing that the top student on a report card may not be the one striving for greater success.
Sarah Butland´s last blog ..You Are the Reason I Know It Will Happen
There’s a vast difference between school smart and street smart, intelligence and smartness. To be able to value both so greatly as well as see the difference in them is a major characteristic of a true leader.
Sarah Butland´s last blog ..You Are the Reason I Know It Will Happen