Why Experience Is Everything

One year while watching the NFL playoffs, an Old Spice commercial came on which featured a confident, dapper, middle-aged man. He was sitting on a chair in front of a lit fireplace with his legs crossed, striking a rather debonair pose while looking directly into the camera. He then delivered these lines while walking to a separate room with an unlit fireplace, where he was once again seated:

"If you have it, you don't need it...if you need it, you don't have it...if you have it, you need more it...if you have more of it, you don't need less of it...you need it, to get it...and you certainly need it to get more of it...but if you don't already have any of it to begin with, you can't get any of it to get started which means you really have no idea how to get it in the first place...do you? You can share it, sure, you can even stockpile it if you like....but you can't fake it...wanting it, needing it, wishing for it...the point is if you've never had any of it...people just seem to know..."

He then stopped, as if giving the viewer time to ponder. The fireplace behind him ignited and the word "Experience" faded onto the screen. It then faded out with the familiar whistling melody which characterizes Old Spice commercials.

The advertising was brilliant. The statements were true.

Experience is the bridge between academic and professional status. It should be obtained by any means necessary. In fact, experience trumps academics in most professions (medical, science, and legal being some of the rare exceptions). Even in cases where the quality or volume of education is emphasized, experience becomes a right of passage to credibility.

Learning and doing are perceived as two different things. People often say get a "good" attorney. What they really mean is get an attorney who is well versed (i.e. educated) and has experience. Premium value is placed on the importance of education and years spent actually applying that education. Without the experience, the well-versed attorney is just a student of the law - not a law practitioner.

Experience is only obtained in the field of play. Ask any coach and they will tell you. No matter how long or intense teams practice their respective sport, it can never match the real life dynamics or psychological aspects of being in real game, just as a soldier can't truly fathom the gruesome nature of war with only combat training.

Employers now demand experience, because experience demands utilization for compensation. In other words, the less time employers spend training you, the more time you spend utilizing your experience to make them more money. They desire experience in their job candidates, and candidates need experience (or more of it) to get desirable jobs.

As the commercial states: "If you need it, you don't have it."

For many college students, experience comes in the form of internships. Others get experience while on the job. But how do you get a job with no experience? Or how do you get experience with no job? It's an age-old question, which is often posed by people who are of a young age.

This dilemma is addressed in the portion of the commercial where he states "...but if you don't already have any of it to begin with, you can't get any of it to get started which means you really have no idea how to get it in the first place...do you?"

It's not an impossible quandary. I will tell you precisely how to get the experience you lack: Volunteer.

There's not a person, organization, or company that can't benefit from the use of free labor. All you have to do is find them and offer your assistance in exchange for the valuable experience you lack. Whether you are a college student in your twenties, or a middle-aged executive transitioning into a new career, experience can always be obtained by working for free. There are even agencies which help match the skills and interests of volunteers with companies who are in need of them.

While the quest to obtain experience should be a priority for those you who don't have it, those who are both ambitious and smart should surround themselves with people who have more experience than they do. But remember, when it comes to experience..."You can share it, sure, you can even stockpile it if you like....but you can't fake it...wanting it, needing it, wishing for it...the point is if you've never had any of it...people just seem to know..."

Law firms have good grasp on this concept. The junior members of a firm are typically partnered with senior members for guidance and direction while gaining valuable "hands-on" experience. The same can be true for independent contractors. Partnering with others who have more experience than you (via joint ventures) is an excellent way to win client confidence when the issue of experience (or lack there of) comes up.

Perhaps the most important purpose of experience is that it is our most effective teacher. The bridge between theory and practicality is experience. Experience is both a qualifier and a disqualifier. It's also a means of measuring intelligence. Psychologists all over the world agree that a person's ability to learn from the experience of their mistakes, is an indication of their intelligence level (or lack thereof).

There's a potential drawback to having an abundance of experience: arrogance and complacency. When we stop seeking and exploring new opportunities to gain fresh experiences, we stunt our growth and limit our knowledge. We should always try to increase experience; it leads to greater proficiency and intuitiveness, which can make you formidable...until you are up against someone with more of it.

So remember, experience is everything. If you don't have it, your goal should be to get it. And if you do have it? Refer back to the commercial: "....you need more of it...if you have more of it, you don't need less of it...

The commercial can be seen its entirety here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Af1OxkFOK18