A world of phony business experts

Sadaf V
Sadaf V
Sep 3, 2018 · 3 min read
Illustration retrieved from here

Is it just me or are there more business “experts” around town? Just about everyone I meet or come across on LinkedIN titles themselves as a Guru or Expert in some business field or the other. Perhaps there have always been a gazillion experts but they are now just more visible because they have better access to a marketing platform?

Or, are more and more people feigning expertise as a tried and tested self-advancement strategy?

The word expert is derived from the past participle of the latin word “experiri” which means “try”. Apart from it’s technical derivation, when we hear someone is an expert we automatically assume they have experience in their area of expertise. Ever since we have been armed with our own personal marketing platforms through social media- we find that we hear of more and more experts in weird and wonderful subjects.Is it ethical for someone to claim expertise if they have never tried and succeeded (or failed)?

Should they rather just call themselves academics as people who have deeply studied a subject but have no idea of real life nuance that accompanies execution?

As an example, we find “experts" advising/coaching corporate execs on leadership when their own experience of leadership has been leading their sole employee-cum-admin assistant. Their teacher? Master Google of course! Their only experience is perhaps how to create a brilliant value proposition based on content research conducted online.

Does this mean they are experts and can now consult to corporate execs who are often navigating a plethora of snakes in suits and office gossip whilst trying to keep their jobs and being loved by their team?

Why do we have so many expert people preaching authenticity and honesty when they don’t practice it? Perhaps there are many experts that don’t truly know the meaning of an expert and are mistakenly marketing themselves that way? Academic research and study is admirable and valuable- but I’m not sure if that makes one an expert because in real life there are nuances that the theories don’t or can’t relay.

Some warning signs I use to distinguish phony experts from “experienced” ones:

1. Experienced experts don’t get defensive when you challenge their models/ theories

2. Academic experts usually have stories or examples from “Google”, “Air BnB”, “Uber” etc. They are unable to give you REAL stories of businesses they have worked with

3. Real experts listen. They haven’t parroted standard FAQs

4. Real experts don’t appeal solely to their expertise. Watch out for statements such as “I am an expert in XYZ”. Or, “I know this because I am an expert”, rather than quoting their source of information.

5. Real experts are often (not always) too busy to constantly update their social media accounts

6. Experts are willing to engage in constructive debate that challenges their theories, which often arise from their experience. They can see that there may be many more experiences that are different to theirs and their primary dedication is to solve problems, rather than promote their own theories

If you happen to be proficient in a subject through academic study and want to advance to “expert” level perhaps you could try some of the following (warning- I’m no expert. Just giving untested advice):

  1. Be honest about your lack of experience in implementation and highlight your interest in the subject and knowledge gained from research. Research and self study is impressive as is and people will respect you for what you’ve achieved on your own.
  2. Try and gain experience through internships/ discounted consulting gigs. You can treat this as part of your self-study.
  3. Find a mentor who is an expert in your area of interest and perhaps they could offer opportunities/ insights into real world challenges.

So I guess this article now makes me an expert on experts :)

I would like to hear what others think? Do you see experts as deserving of the title through research alone? What makes someone an expert in your opinion?

Just another person

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