# The Challenge of Maximizing Agility By:: [[Brian Heath]] 2024-02-07 How transferable are experiences and skills? Certainly, some are more transferable than others. For example, learning to type has more transferability than running a cement mixer. There are many more computers to type on than machines that mix things like cement. Similarly, having experiences working in groups is more transferable than climbing mountains. Based on these few examples, there is a hierarchy of experiences and skills. Some experiences and skills are foundational and generalize very well. Others are very specialized. The foundational skills and experiences transfer well, while the specialized ones do not. That being said, one must often work through the foundation skills and experiences to obtain a specialized skill. The mountain climber must likely learn to work with others to learn the trade and successfully and safely climb many mountains. However, specialization keeps one from being well-developed within the foundational experiences and skills. If one is good at something in particular, they will often find themselves in the same situations. One might need to learn to work in a team, but only under those specialized conditions. If one takes the specialist out of the situation, one may struggle even if one performed excellently in related areas such as teamwork. Obtaining specialization conflicts with the breadth of experiences and skills. Furthermore, if one is unaware of this, one will likely become a specialist without realizing it. For example, suppose one only works for one organization their entire life. In that case, one is a specialist in that organization and may lack the perspective or skills to deal with other types of organizations. The entirety of society continuously pushes people into specialization unless one chooses otherwise. Some of this is maximizing outcomes, but much of this is a cognitive bias to simplify the infinite complexity of the universe. If one can be classified as a blacksmith, I do not need to remember or consider all the other things that one is. If one wishes not to be specialized, one must do so intentionally and constantly seek changes. Otherwise, one will naturally become foundationally stagnant with limited transferability and agility. #### Related Items [[Skills]] [[Expertise]] [[Experience]] [[Career]] [[Society]] [[Cognitive Biases]] [[Agility]] [[Change]]