How To Change Careers... With The "Wrong" Qualifications

Eager for a career change... but lacking confidence in your existing background and credentials?

The fact is... in some situations... you'd be right. You will need a particular credential, qualification or body of experience to be qualified. On the other hand, maybe there's no need to be worried at all. This is what I call having "credentialitis". It's a condition where, despite having the skills, talents and knowledge you need for a new career, job or promotion, you still think that you must study, or do some course, or get some credential, to get that new career, job or promotion.

I've always regarded credentials and qualifications as proof that someone graduated from some kind of course or program... but not necessarily proof that they have the critical skills and talents to perform a certain role. For example, what if you're an entrepreneur who left college before graduating, launched a super-successful business which you ended up selling, and now want to be the sales manager of a large, established company? If you're a credentialitis sufferer, you may be worried that you lack the qualifications to be the sales manager. You may even be tempted to apply to college in order to get a diploma or degree.

While you might learn a great deal from going to business school... will you really learn anything that better qualifies you for the sales job than your background as an entrepreneur? Couldn't you present yourself as someone with unequalled business experience, skills and knowledge - someone who has built and sold a company, as opposed to someone with theoretical knowledge acquired from a business school?

Ofcourse, for some career changes you will need to undertake a course to become qualified for the particular role, such as architecture or teaching. But in other cases, you probably have the fundamental knowledge and skills required for the new job... and what you don't know can either be picked up relatively quickly on the job or isn't all that important. On the other hand, modern Western culture seems to value credentials above demonstrable abilities...

But while it may be difficult to change people's attitudes... it's certainly worth trying. Consequently, I urge you to first be clear on what skills, abilities, knowledge and talents you bring to the new career. Do you honestly think they're enough? If so, the next step is to get confident in communicating these qualities to a recruiter or potential employer.

If you're still considering enrolling in some kind of course or program... ask yourself this before you pay the tuition: Would the course or program genuinely teach you something new... or would it give you a piece of paper to prove what you already know?

Really, if you manage to overcome your credentialitis you'll not save a lot of money, time and energy on unnecessary studies, but you'll also become a happier, more fulfilled person. Now, if you are ever questioned over you lack of credentials, you simply reframe your background and experiences to show how they have ideally positioned you for the new job.

Not that everyone will be impressed. Some people and companies will still be more impressed with credentials over substance. You need to decide whether you want to work with them. When it comes to you hiring people, don't be blinded by credentials either. Sure, they do count... but in some cases, an alternative background may count just as much, if not more, in terms of equipping someone with the essential skills and abilities for the job.