The Business of Expertise

I got through the two days of Pack Burro Racing over the weekend generally unscathed, meaning I did not have any mishaps like falling or getting stepped on by a donkey, but I was a touch sore from some of the effort.  Nonetheless, I felt good enough to run a bit quicker on Monday, and then came back on Tuesday for a good hill fartlek.  Greg hit me up for a fartlek Wednesday morning and I took the bait.  So of course on Thursday I felt horrible and then I caught the crud that KZ had been carrying. 

Thursday evening we picked up JZ at the airport after his week of this.

His track season ended with him being hobbled by an angry shin.  Sitting on a 51 foot boat in the Bahamas has made not running an easy affair.  His recovery seems to be coming along nicely. 

I have been “reading” (really I am listening to it as an audiobook) David Baker’s “The Business of Expertise.”  Its foundational concepts are “experts develop insight by isolating patterns in data; they convert those insights to wealth by crafting a unique positioning for which few available substitutes exist; and their confidence grows as the marketplace embraces their application of expertise.”

I have certainly recognized that pattern recognition is the basis of almost any expertise.  I see this in my work, sometime almost surprisingly so.  Many of the organizations I deal with, despite being very different in the product and services they provide, share many similarities (or patterns).  I see it in coaching – in that good coaches recognize what is going well, what is not, how an athlete is responding or not.  It comes with seeing a pattern enough times that it is quickly evident to be recognized by the trained eye. 

The unique positioning is a different challenge because while you may be able to recognize a pattern, it has no economical value if the positioning of that is not considered unique.  For example in Broomfield, 10 years ago there was only one microbrewery – and it was the one that everyone flocked to. The beer was good, but the location was small and uninteresting.   As the craft brewing market exploded and several of these establishments came into town, with beer as good (maybe sometimes better or even worse) the unique nature of what the original had to offer faded.  They have since moved out of town.

The confidence growing as the marketplace embraces their expertise is an interesting concept.  I struggle between a confidence in “hey I know what I am talking about because I have seen this countless times before” and recognizing that I am seeking the exception, the difference or that I could be wrong this time.  It is a dichotomy that always needs to be considered.

Good read – (or listen) – I’d recommend it.