In Good Will Hunting…
There’s a scene that hits me hard whenever I watch it.
Will and his friends are in a Harvard bar… (or in their Boston accents, a “Havad bah”), and Will’s best friend decides to try his luck and chat up a girl.
All seems to be going smoothly, until a pompous Harvard student called Clark interrupts, and intellectually humiliates him.
That’s when Will steps in….
Who points out how Clark is just regurgitating info from textbooks, and passing it off as his own.
“See,” explains Will…
“The sad thing about a guy like you is, in 50 years, you’re gonna start doing’ some thinking on your own, and you’re gonna come up with the fact that there’s two certainties in life:
“One: don’t do that.
“And two:
“You dropped 150 grand on an education you coulda got for a dollar fifty in late charges at the public library.”
🎤 drop.
Ouch.
That must’ve stung.
It kinda stings myself, if I’m honest.
Because I - like many of us - dropped a lot of money on getting a degree, all in the name of landing a good job..
But was it even necessary to begin with?
I say this because, nowadays, in 2024, the rules of getting a job are completely different to what they were, say, 80 years ago.
And not just like this…
Before?
A degree pretty much guaranteed you a job.
Or your dream job required years of traditional experience.
Whereas now?
Not so much.
So, in today’s issue of Coached, I’d like to explore ways to succeed in the job market…which aren’t overly reliant on the ‘old’ ways of getting a job.
Let’s go.
🧔 Have we reached “peak degree”?
I read an article once that claimed we’ve reached “peak beard” - the point where so many men have beards, that beards no longer stand out, thus making people less likely to grow one.
And that got me thinking…
Have we reached “peak degree”, too?
In the early 60’s, only 4% of people went to university. Whereas now? It’s over 40%. Clearly, having a degree means far less than it once did.
🤷♂️ So are degrees, qualifications, or traditional experience useless then?
Well, no.
Because there’s always going to be some jobs where you need to go to college / uni, to get the qualifications you need to practice. Becoming a nurse, or a lawyer, or a dentist, for example.
But for most other jobs today?
There’s something that I believe is far more important to a degree:
🤟 Non-traditional experience!
Now more than ever, when entire industries are being created faster than universities can create courses, what employers are looking for is experience.
But Rohan, how do I get experience without already having experience? Who's going to give me a job with no experience?
In the past, that would have been a tricky question to answer.
But that's where "non-traditional experience" comes in…
I'm talking about ways to gain practical skills and real-world experience in your desired field - without needing anyone's permission or waiting for a job offer.
So let’s dive into my three strategies for getting non-traditional experience that can help you break into a new industry, even if you don't have a directly relevant degree or background.
These are approaches that I've seen work time and time again - for career changers, recent grads, and anyone looking to stand out in a competitive job market.
🧱 #1: Build something
Here’s a fun fact:
30% of programmers are self-taught. (a % going up every year).
So, let’s say you wanted to get into coding. Instead of shelling out for a degree, why not take part in an open source project, or build an app yourself?
I mean, think about it:
Who’s more impressive to an employer?
Someone with a degree? Or someone who’s built an app the interviewer can download and play with during the interview?
👨🏻💻 #2: Freelance on Upwork or Fiverr
So you want to try out graphic design, or cartography, or copywriting, or drawing, huh?
Well, here’s an easy option.
Sign yourself up to sites like Upwork or Fiverr, and try to get a small project at a lower rate. (Mention that you’re working for a low-rate to build a portfolio). Then, not only will you get experience in your chosen field, but you’ll also deal with real clients, real deadlines, and get a clearer picture of what’s involved.
Someone without real-world experience vs. someone with 10 client projects under their belt, even if small. I know who I’ll chase after.
📍 #3: Become a “niche” expert
Let’s say you’re interested in a more niche field, like, I dunno, sustainable urban development. What do you do then?
Simple:
Let the “fish” come to you by becoming an authority on LinkedIn.
How?
By writing compelling LinkedIn content about sustainability practices, urban planning innovations, & eco-friendly urbanization trends, for example.
In a “niche” topic, it won’t take a lot to get noticed.
Do this right, and after a while, people will see you as the expert in your field, and start coming to you with opportunities. This maybe anything from consulting calls to direct invites to relevant jobs. I’ve seen this happen over and over again — and depending on how big your niche is, you can reasonably become an authority in <6 months.
Btw:
The Step 0 of becoming an authority on LinkedIn is to optimize your LinkedIn profile for the role/industry you want.
Use this free tool to start with. (It’s Resume Worded’s tool — and is by far the best thing out there for optimizing LinkedIn profiles)
