Beyond The Label!
I was sitting with a co-worker talking about the requirements and qualifications needed for our next promotion at work.
My co-worker thought about Bob, who worked in a different department. He said, “I think Bob is certified already. Let me see.”
So, he rapidly went to his computer, logged into the company website, and searched for Bob’s name.
Sure enough, Bob had not only one but 3 different title certifications next to his name.
What followed next was surprising
My co-worker’s face dropped as he was reading Bob’s bio and qualifications.
He was so amazed with all the certifications that he saw in Bob’s bio and said, “That’s a bad dude”, meaning that Bob was a badass because of his certifications.
I thought to myself, is that what it takes for people to get recognized as a badass?
What happened to values and principles? What happened to kindness and empathy for another person? What happens to hard work and ethics?
Is a title more important than all of these things?
According to what I saw and understood, my co-worker was judging Bob’s character based on titles.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to diminish or take away all the effort and commitment that Bob put into getting all his certifications.
Not at all. Kudos to Bob for putting in the work and passing the test for his certifications, but…
A test defines a moment, not a person!
I remember a time when my daughter came home frustrated from school because the following week was “Test week.” She said she was nervous because she didn’t want to fail her test, then she said, “Why are some people so smart?”
I used to have the same mentality and thought that people were actually smarter than me, until I discovered it wasn’t true!
So, I told my daughter…
Everyone is smart!
But there are two things that can make a person sound smarter in front of others.
1. They process things a lot faster. (High Intelligence Quotient)
As soon as you say something, they already finish processing the thought, and if they have to give a solution, they already have it for you.
2. They have more information than the average person. (Lifetime Learners)
These people are lifelong learners. They read the books, they learn the skills, they invest in their personal growth.
Their curiosity and appetite for self-development is endless.
Then I said…
Think of your mind as a puzzle. Every book you read, every lesson you learn, every class you take, every experience you have, every piece of information you gather, unlocks parts of your mind and makes you sound wiser and smarter in front of someone who doesn’t have the same mind processor or the same information you have.
I finish up by saying…
Always know that you are smart and never let other people’s opinions of you define your reality.
From the time of this writing, I have been in the training and facilitating industry for over two years.
I have sat and instructed hundreds of classes.
99.9 % of the time, when the class is over, the last thing we do in class is a writing test with ten to twenty questions.
It amazes me how some trainers believe and can almost swear that a learner is dumb just because he/she missed a question and failed the test.
Test anxiety is real!
I had great learners come to my training classes. They show up on time, they pay attention, they participate in class, they ask questions, but when it’s time to take the test, they lock their mind and forget everything.
Does that make them bad learners?
Absolutely not, they are just having a bad moment.
My friend, do yourself a favor: next time someone dares to define your character based on a title or test, smile, give them empathy, and keep moving forward because you and I know how valuable you are!
See you on the next one!
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