is what we are considering in this chapter from my world. The word that we'll start with is overqualified. It is on Wikipedia as, in part, someone that has, basically way more skills that the position requires, and that they are likely just taking the job (and training) as a stepping stone to something better, or, to tide oneself over for the time being. Okay, I will say that in some circumstances, that can absolutely be true. But isn't that the very definition of "life experience?" Some people DO take jobs KNOWING they aren't going to stay, who COULD get better, or different jobs, but for some reason don't. The people that are USING employers maybe shouldn't get the job before someone that can't get anything else, BUT, what if, yeah, you have had better jobs in the past, but for some reason cannot any longer DO them, or you want/need something with less pressure in your life, you're wanting to scale down on purpose?
Who starts at the top, really? A rarified few, that's it. Those born to power and wealth, yeah. Sons and daughters of great leaders, sure. But the majority of us started out "entry level" and worked our way up, didn't we? McDonald's is a great example of what I mean. There used to be mostly two sorts of employees there, besides the manager, who usually worked his way up from fry cook. The pretty young and the pretty old. Those coming into the workforce, and those about to leave...in other words, those who would work for less money due to lack of experience who are learning, and those with a lot of experience, but not allowed to make too much on top of social security. The latter often taught the former, and that is the way it should be, isn't it? You aren't supposed to start at the top, and even if you're middle aged, if you want to learn a business, isn't the basement the place to be? I think things changed when we started outsourcing everything and the locally owned business went by the wayside. The very best managers and supervisors are those crackerjack smart types that start out at the bottom, learn things, and start moving up. But HOW do you get to move up if you can't get hired in the first place? If someone with little or no experience at the open position, but a willingness to learn all you have to teach shows up at your doorstep, isn't THAT person the best for the job? For instance, we need to give the newbies a chance to learn so that they can be the "elder statesmen" of the future. But who is going to teach them? There are two sorts of employees at, say, a hardware store. First, the silver-haired mentor that either knows how to fix most anything, or knows the guy on the floor who does...he started as a stockboy, most likely, and learned by doing. Second, the new-hire that knows a few things, but what he/she lacks in knowledge, they make up for with enthusiasm and interesting new ideas. Last summer, I talked to one of the old timers in "filters" and such about the Cottonwood issue I had with my outdoor AC unit, and it getting all clogged up. He said I needed something to block that fuzz the trees shed, but that they didn't carry anything like that. He THEN suggested that we talk to someone in the "construction" area. Two young Turks mulled the problem over, and one suddenly asked me if I could come back in a couple hours, he had a thought. I agreed, left and returned later. When I got there, they had used some screening, PVC pipe and zip ties and built a cage for my outside unit. They showed me how to assemble it and it works! Now IF the experienced guy had just sent me away with "we don't CARRY anything", and hadn't taken me over to the young men, I still would have to spray down my AC every couple of days for a LOT of the summer and fall.
We need some of every type, experienced and not-so-much in our workplace. It's how things get handed down. Or are we SO very determined to totally dumb down everyone? Just because you know some stuff in ONE area doesn't mean you shouldn't get to know another. Give the "over-qualified" person a chance, maybe they'll be your next really great supervisor, bringing what they have learned already, plus what you teach them, to the table. And while you're giving the newbie and the oldster a job, let's not forget the man in the middle, huh? to be continued...
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