What's So Special About Being A Specialist?

Being a specialist, in anything, has its limitations. And that's by design. These limitations reduce distractions by the specialist; enabling them to have a laser focus on their subject matter. While it may be en vogue for many professionals to stretch their perceived boundaries in an effort to expand limitations and increase core competencies (and clients), those who choose specialists do so because of their distinction in providing a specific scope of expertise.

Professional service providers need to consider the one thing that matters most to clients: their interests and focus need to run parallel with their client's interests, focus, and needs.

It's only logical. Service is sacred. It implies trust. When lying on an operating table you don't want to discover that your surgeon has other professional interests and pursuits. It would instantly diminish trust and credibility. You would take great comfort in knowing that your surgeon does one thing (especially if that one thing is going to save your life) and does it well. And who wouldn't?

Doing just "one thing" may seem like a boring existence and a daunting business challenge to many novice service providers, but there is a remedy: diversifying services within one's specialization. It was only natural that I would undertake professional development activities after years of positioning myself in career development. The knowledge base is complementary and so many of the activities intertwine, creating a seamless and symbiotic relationship that increase my offerings - and value - in two different but related fields.

We not only appreciate a specialist who chooses to purse one expertise to the exclusion of others and possesses an obsessive preoccupation with their subject matter; we subconsciously expect it. Failure to see evidence of this specialization makes the professional service provider an opportunist at minimum, and a generalist at most. It's the singular focus fueled by a combination of passion and commitment that makes the specialist so special.