I’ve always been amazed when I’ve looked backed on my career and realized that I’ve never been qualified for any of the jobs I’ve done. Seriously, I didn’t have the skills needed to perform any of the jobs. There were a few times that I thought I was qualified and then I got to the job and realized that I was woefully inadequate for the job I was hired to do.
If you’ve ever had that experience, it’s a scary feeling. In fact, in sometimes it’s extremely intimidating. However, I’ve learned over many jobs an extremely important lesson. I can learn to do any job. I was reminded of this concept when I came upon this quote from Sir Richard Branson:
We’re all presented amazing opportunities in our lives. We’re often offered opportunities for which we’re not fully qualified. Sometimes you might feel like you should say no. However, like Richard Branson, I encourage you to say yes to amazing opportunities that are presented to you. You can learn what you need to in order to make the most of that opportunity.
No doubt opportunities like this won’t be easy. They may even be hard. However, it’s hard things that help us to grow and become much stronger than we are today. So, don’t shy away from hard or even scary things.
Just to be clear, I’m not suggesting you lie to someone in order to get an opportunity. If you’ve ever tried that it can backfire on you quickly. Be honest. It’s worth its weight in gold. However, that doesn’t mean you can’t take opportunities that will require you to stretch and grow. Often the person offering you the opportunity can see more potential in you than you can see in yourself. That’s a powerful place to be!
