Swiss Army Knife
Submitted by webadmin on December 15, 2009 - 9:53pm
The New Global Marketplace
Requires the Versatility
of a Swiss Army Knife
On our last trip to Zurich, Switzerland, my son wanted my husband and me to bring him back an authentic Swiss Army knife. Steve and I shopped until we found the ultimate knife as pictured above and brought it home to Mark.
It was well made, had solid craftsmanship, and was true to its core selling point: it was a knife! But it was not only a knife -- it was everything from a cork screw to a fingernail file. If you have ever owned or examined one of these knives, you may have marveled at its versatility, just as I did. When I held the knife in my hand and personally opened each implement, I realized the knife was scary!
Thomas Friedman, author of the popular book, The World is Flat, says that 21st Century employees need to be as versatile as a Swiss Army knife -- the worldwide icon for function, durability, and ingenuity. Freidman recommends that individuals be well-founded in their core identity and well-rounded in their ability to respond to many different types of job requirements.
From my experience, individuals tend to be either a jack-of-all-trades-and-master-of-none or an absolute one-subject powerhouse with tunnel vision. Which one rings true to your personality?
The mantra for the past several years has been 'do more with less.' It should come as no surprise, then, that the global marketplace demands us to be true to our core characteristics as a powerhouse of performance, yet also requires that we lose any tunnel vision and master more skills. In short, the global marketplace requires that we resemble that Swiss Army knife.
In a Swiss Army knife, the tunnel vision or core tools are a large blade and a small blade. Then you start with options where you can chose additional paraphernalia like can openers, tweezers, toothpicks, or a Phillips screwdriver. And don't forget the pliers with included wire cutter and crimper.
Think about your core strengths. Are they in sales and marketing, technology, business management, human resources, research and design, etc.?
Now from the wish list below, put a check by the characteristics that, if developed, would make you more functional and add value to your resume. Even a jack-of-all-trades should find something on this list he/she could improve.
Start each of the following sentences with "I am...":
It was well made, had solid craftsmanship, and was true to its core selling point: it was a knife! But it was not only a knife -- it was everything from a cork screw to a fingernail file. If you have ever owned or examined one of these knives, you may have marveled at its versatility, just as I did. When I held the knife in my hand and personally opened each implement, I realized the knife was scary!
Thomas Friedman, author of the popular book, The World is Flat, says that 21st Century employees need to be as versatile as a Swiss Army knife -- the worldwide icon for function, durability, and ingenuity. Freidman recommends that individuals be well-founded in their core identity and well-rounded in their ability to respond to many different types of job requirements.
From my experience, individuals tend to be either a jack-of-all-trades-and-master-of-none or an absolute one-subject powerhouse with tunnel vision. Which one rings true to your personality?
The mantra for the past several years has been 'do more with less.' It should come as no surprise, then, that the global marketplace demands us to be true to our core characteristics as a powerhouse of performance, yet also requires that we lose any tunnel vision and master more skills. In short, the global marketplace requires that we resemble that Swiss Army knife.
In a Swiss Army knife, the tunnel vision or core tools are a large blade and a small blade. Then you start with options where you can chose additional paraphernalia like can openers, tweezers, toothpicks, or a Phillips screwdriver. And don't forget the pliers with included wire cutter and crimper.
Think about your core strengths. Are they in sales and marketing, technology, business management, human resources, research and design, etc.?
Now from the wish list below, put a check by the characteristics that, if developed, would make you more functional and add value to your resume. Even a jack-of-all-trades should find something on this list he/she could improve.
Start each of the following sentences with "I am...":
__Committed to providing total quality work
__Punctual, trustworthy and dependable
__Competent at managing responsibilities in a high-pressure environment
__Cooperative with a wide range of personalities__Accomplished at gaining trust and winning a customer's confidence__A good communicator in both verbal and written communication skills__Effective in completing assignments despite changing priorities__Good at identifying, analyzing, and solving problems__A team player who consistently contributes to team production__Resourceful in solving problems and maximizing resources__Enthusiastic and optimistic__Skilled in handling the public with diplomacy and professionalism__Good at adapting to new equipment and technology__Capable of organizing workflow, ideas, materials, people__Skilled at working with people from diverse backgrounds__An excellent leader
This list is to get you started thinking about the different skills you could develop that would make you more valuable to your organization--as valuable as a Swiss Army knife is to the outdoorsman. When you develop skills in addition to your core strengths, you will find the versatility puts you in a unique echelon of achievers.
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Would you like to use this list with your team?
