Hear this!
You don’t need a degree to be an expert or an authority.
That’s right!
If you have been diligently learning, practicing, or applying anything for 10,000 hours or approximately five years, you can call yourself an expert.
I remember scanning the Help wanted ads in the newspaper many years ago. There were lots of jobs that I felt qualified to do; however, when I got to the end of the ad, it almost always said “experience necessary.”
How was I supposed to get experience if I wasn’t eligible for the job to get me the experience required to do that job?
And round and round and round again.
How in the world does one become an expert?!
Nothing beats a degree in life. And unless you’re doing surgery on someone or designing plans to build a skyscraper, the experience gained by having a degree in life is hard to beat.
When my first child was born, I had zero experience with a newborn. I didn’t take any classes or courses. The hospital sent me home with my tiny bundle, and day after day after day, I had to figure out how to keep her fed and happy and warm and dry and alive!
In this example, a Mom becomes an expert in just over a year!
We can also read all the books on swimming, but until we dive into the water and start practicing our paddling, we will never learn to swim, never mind become an expert.
Be bold. Dive in. Believe you are completely competent and capable. Because you are.
