The T-Shaped Career
Careers are no longer narrowly defined by a specific tile and set of skills tied to that title. In the current ever-changing environment, having a T-shaped career can make it easier to adapt. The term was first used in-house at McKinsey & Company; it was popularized by David Guest and IDEO CEO Tim Brown.
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What is T-Shaped Career?
T-shaped professionals are:
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Experts in one or two disciplines (the vertical bar)
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Mastered other complementary skills (horizontal crossbar)
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Benefits of having a T-Shaped Career
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Avoid pitfalls of being a generalist or a specialist
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Better communication and collaboration
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Variety helps you stay interested
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Flexibility to change careers/jobs
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Experience the satisfaction of depth
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Heightened creativity and critical thinking
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More attractive to employers
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Big picture thinking
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Being a valuable resource and connector
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Example of T-Shaped Career
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How to have a T-Shaped Career
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Build out the T-Shape for your career profile
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Identify where you have deep knowledge vs. limited knowledge
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Start learning about other things on the horizontal axis to broaden your knowledge and skillset
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