【TED】专业不对口？如何找到自己的职场核心竞争力？

我们中很少有人做的工作与我们过去的经历或我们在大学里所学学科直接相关。以泰德的常住者沈杰森（Jason Shen）为例，他学习生物学，但后来成为一家科技公司的产品经理。在这篇关于人的潜力的演讲中，沈教授分享了一些新的想法，即求职者如何使自己更具吸引力，以及为什么雇主应该看重能力而不是资历。

演讲者：Jason Shen

演讲题目：Looking for a job? Highlight your ability, not your experience

You know who I'm envious of? People who work in a job that has to do with their college major.

你们知道我最嫉妒谁吗？那些能找到和大学专业对口工作的人。

Journalists who studied journalism, engineers who studied engineering. The truth is, these folks are no longer the rule, but the exception. A 2010 study found that only a quarter of college graduates work in a field that relates to their degree.

新闻专业的记者，工程学专业的工程师。事实上，这些人的存在早已不再是正常情况了，而成了例外。2010年的一个调查显示，只有1/4的大学生在从事和他们大学专业相关的工作。 

I graduated with not one but two degrees in biology. To my parents' dismay, I am neither a doctor nor a scientist.

我毕业时拿到了生物学的双学位。但令我父母失望的是，我既不是一个医生，也没有成为一个科学家。 

Years of studying DNA replication and photosynthesis did little to prepare me for a career in technology. I had to teach myself everything from sales, marketing, strategy, even a little programming, on my own. I had never held the title of Product Manager before I sent my resume in to Etsy. I had already been turned down by Google and several other firms and was getting frustrated.

在DNA复制与光合作用上数年的专心苦读，对我将来的科技生涯几乎没有帮助。我必须从销售，市场营销，策略开始自学一切本领，甚至连简单的电脑编程，都必须自学。在我送简历到 Etsy（电子商务网站）之前，我从来没当过产品经理。我当时十分沮丧，因为当时我已经被谷歌以及其他一些公司屡次拒绝。 

The company had recently gone public, so as part of my job application, I read the IPO filings from cover to cover and built a website from scratch which included my analysis of the business and four ideas for new features. It turned out the team was actively working on two of those ideas and had seriously considered a third. I got the job.

Etsy最近正式上市了，为了让简历增色，我把首次公开募股的信息一行行认真地读，然后摸索着建立了一个网站，其中包括一些我对这个公司的分析以及四个关于产品特色的新点子。结果发现这个公司的工作团队积极地研究了其中两个，并对第三个也进行了慎重考虑。于是我得到了这份工作。 

We all know people who were ignored or overlooked at first but went on to prove their critics wrong. My favorite story? Brian Acton, an engineering manager who was rejected by both Twitter and Facebook before cofounding WhatsApp, the mobile messaging platform that would sell for 19 billion dollars.

我们都知道有些人虽然一开始被忽略，但最终用实力证明了他人的错误。我最爱的故事是什么呢？Brian Acton，一个工程经理，在成立whatsApp (聊天软件)之前，他同时被谷歌和推特拒绝过，而现在这个手机软件平台价值190亿。 

The hiring systems we built in the 20th century are failing us and causing us to miss out on people with incredible potential. The advances in robotics and machine learning and transforming the way we work, automating routine tasks in many occupations while augmenting and amplifying human labor in others.

我们在20世纪建立的招聘系统已经过时了，这导致我们错失了很多颇具潜力的人才。机器人技术和机器学习的进步正在转变我们工作的方式，把许多行业的日常事务自动化，从而将人类的劳力转向其他方面。

 At this rate, we should all be expecting to do jobs we've never done before for the rest of our careers. So what are the tools and strategies we need to identify tomorrow's high performers? In search for answers, I've consulted with leaders across many sectors, read dozens of reports and research papers and conducted some of my own talent experiments. My quest is far from over, but here are three ideas to take forward.

这样下去，我们在接下来的职业生涯中都要做从未做过的工作。那么我们需要什么样的工具以及技巧来辨别那些能够驰骋未来职场的人才呢？为了寻得答案，我和许多部门的领导进行了探讨，读了很多报告和研究资料，并分析了我自己的天赋与经历。我的寻找还远没有结束，但有三个要点值得一提。 

One: expand your search. If we only look for talent in the same places we always do -- gifted child programs, Ivy League schools, prestigious organizations -- we're going to get the same results we always have. Baseball was transformed when the cash-strapped Oakland Athletics started recruiting players who didn't score highly on traditionally valued metrics, like runs batted in, but who had the ability to help the team score points and win games.

第一：扩展你的搜索范围。如果我们每次只去同样的地方寻找自己的天赋——天才少年项目，常青藤名校，那些盛名远扬的机构——那我们只能得到一样的结果。当经济拮据的奥克兰田径队开始招募那些在传统标准上得分不高的球员时，棒球届就发生了变化，这些球员的总体得分虽然不高，比如只是跑位打得很好，但他们却有能力帮助球队得分并最终赢得比赛。 

This idea is taking hold outside of sports. The Head of Design and Research at Pinterest told me that they've built one of the most diverse and high-performing teams in Silicon Valley because they believe that no one type of person holds a monopoly on talent. They've worked hard to look beyond major tech hubs and focus on designers' portfolios, not their pedigrees.

这道理在体育之外也同样适用。Pinterest研究与设计部门的负责人和我说，他们在硅谷打造了一支，全世界最高效，同时最具分化特色的团队。因为他们相信没有哪一类特定的人具有垄断性的天赋才能。他们的眼光超越了核心科技，并注重于设计者们的资历，而不是他们的血统。

 Two: hire for performance. Inspired by my own job experience, I cofounded a hiring platform called Headlight, which gives candidates an opportunity to shine. Just as teams have tryouts and plays have auditions, candidates should be asked to demonstrate their skills before they're hired. Our clients are benefiting from 85 years of employment research, which shows that work samples are one of the best predictors of success on the job.

第二：为了效率而雇佣。受到我自己工作经历的启发，我和别人合建了一个招聘平台Headlight，这个平台给了应聘者们一个展示自我的机会。就好似团队有路演，乐队有试奏，应聘者在被雇佣之前，应该有展示自己技能的机会。从85年的职场雇佣研究资料里，我们的客户可以看到预测职场成功与否的最好方式就是工作实例。 

If you're hiring a data analyst, give them a spreadsheet of historical data and ask them for their key insights. If you're hiring a marketing manager, have them plan a launch campaign for a new product. And if you're a candidate, don't wait for an employer to ask. Seek out ways to showcase your unique skills and abilities outside of just the standard resume and cover letter.

如果你在招聘一个数据分析员，就给他们一张填满历史数据的表格并要求他们给出解析。如果你在招聘一个市场经理，就让他们计划一场新产品的发布会。而如果你是一个应聘者，别等着老板询问你。寻找能够展现你的独特技巧与能力的方式，而不仅仅是依赖于简历以及推荐信。 

Three: get the bigger picture. I've heard about recruiters who are quick to label a candidate a job-hopper based on a single short stint on their resume; read about professors who are more likely to ignore identical messages from students because their name was black or Asian instead of white.

第三：着眼全局。我见过招聘人员不假思索的给一个应聘者贴上“跳槽者”的标签，仅仅因为他的简历上有一项短期的工作；我也听说不少教授会因为学生的名字属于黑人或亚洲人，就忽视他们发送的和白人学生一模一样的消息。 

I was almost put on a special needs track as a child. A month into kindergarten, my teacher wrote a page-long memo noting that I was impulsive, had a short attention span, and despite my wonderful curiosity, I was exhausting to work with.

我小时候几乎被当成需要 “特殊关照”的孩子。进入幼儿园一个月后，我的老师记录了一整页的笔记，上面写着我极易冲动，注意力难以集中，虽然拥有极大的好奇心，但却是一个使人筋疲力尽的孩子。

The principal asked my parents into a meeting, asked my mother if there had been complications at birth and suggested I meet with a school psychologist. My father saw what was happening and quickly explained our family situation. As recent immigrants, we lived in the attic of a home that cared for adults with mental disabilities.

校长叫我的家长们来开会，问我妈生我的时候有没有遇到什么困难，还建议我去看学校的心理医生。我的父亲明白了是怎么一回事，并简短的解释了我们家的情况。作为刚刚移民的家庭，我们住在一家老年康复中心的阁楼里。 

My parents worked nights to make ends meet, and I had little opportunity to spend time with kids my own age. Is it really a surprise that an understimulated five-year-old boy might be a little excited in a kindergarten classroom after an entire summer by himself?

我的父母为了维持生计整日整夜工作，而我也几乎没有和同龄孩子玩耍的机会。对于一个交际经验不足又刚刚独处了整整一个夏天的五岁小男孩来说，在幼儿园的教室里显得有些过度兴奋，也许不显得那么令人惊讶吧？ 

Until we get a holistic view of someone, our judgment of them will always be flawed. Let's stop equating experience with ability, credentials with competence. Let's stop settling for the safe, familiar choice and leave the door open for someone who could be amazing.

在我们没有看到一个人完整的一面的时候，我们对他的评判总是有失偏颇的。让我们别再把经历和能力划等号，也别把文凭和竞争力划等号。让我们不要再一昧的做出安全，熟悉的选择，而是把机会给予那些能够让你眼前一亮的人。 

We need employers to let go of outdated hiring practices and embrace new ways of identifying and cultivating talent, and candidates can help by learning to tell their story in powerful and compelling ways. We could live in a world where people are seen for what they're truly capable of and have the opportunity to realize their full potential. So let's go out and build it.

我们需要让雇主们放弃那些过时的雇佣政策，去拥抱那些定义和培养天赋的新方法，而求职者们也可以通过用强势且引人注目的方式，来讲述自己的人生故事。我们会生活在全新的世界里，在那里人们的潜力将有望被完全激发，人人都能够做自己真正胜任的工作。所以让我们一起携手建造这个世界吧。 

Thank you.

谢谢。

来源：TED演讲

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