Experts Use Ten Simple Concepts: #8; Legitimacy

By: Drew Kittinger
Submitted: 2007-01-17 10:58:02
Print this article | For publisher |

Rating:

 

Oh, we’re getting to the nitty-gritty here! If you’re smart, you’ve been putting into practice each of the preceding seven concepts. If not, well, sure, you can try to grasp what’s coming but don’t expect to really be on the same page with everyone else who has turned their lives upside down to embrace the brilliance of this series. That works out fine because for you, they’ll be the experts, and let’s face it, they could use some of your money.

Here is another important word for your vocabulary, legitimacy. It’s a more complex concept than you might imagine, because in the world of Expertise, it becomes part of a much greater understanding:

If you’re going to be an expert it is absolutely essential that you carry with you the perception of legitimacy.

Did you notice how I did that? If so, then you really may be on your way to becoming an expert. And that in only eight steps; I’m proud of you! And I hope that when it comes time to send the check, you’ll be generous.

If you did get the concept, you can skip this step and go to Concept # 9. If not, you better read on – and by all means don’t worry because let’s face it, being a little slow should not discourage you from becoming the expert you’re meant to be. We have grand examples all around us.

This, perhaps of all the steps, is most in-tune with the psyche of America today. For example, even I have to get down on my hands and knees in awe before our current (2006) Commander-in-Chief, who has taken the perception of legitimacy to new heights, and, in the process has sucked We, the People, right along with him!

But, remember, I have a soft-spot for Masters, and, just like you I get the sense we’re getting screwed but, hell, he got there so he must really know what he’s talking about. George W. is certainly the expert on being Mr. President, because he got the gig! Ultimately, nothing is more important, and if there truly were one sentence that rules the psyche of America, this would be it: The guy who gets it got it ‘cause he’s got it.

People buy into the most ridiculous things. Take a good look around you. You see? As the years and exposures multiply, the people who follow the people in power get more gullible, rather than less when it comes to accepting the wisdom of their leaders.

And there’s an extremely good reason for this. Smart experts make room for other, less-knowledgeable experts to advise them because the less competent are their advisors, the more intelligent and responsive they appear.

Here’s how this works: A measure of a leader’s legitimacy is the expertise of his advisors. The longer your list of advisors, the more you are perceived as an expert in management, because then you’re managing all these experts’ knowledge. The longer you stay in power the longer is your list of trusted, expert advisors.

In this way, you can only be as smart as your experts, but, paradoxically, that works in your favor. You are burdened with so many important decisions to be made that you can’t possibly recognize when one of your advisors has an all-too-human psychotic break of some kind that will prompt him to feed you bogus information or interpretations.

When you do make a significant decision that leans toward sinking the ship, it’s really good to have relatively incompetent experts like that below you so you can blame them for feeding you the faulty information that made you make the stupid decision in the first place. Think WMD and Katrina.

You, as the Expert of experts, have your hands tied when faced with the sudden and uncharacteristic incompetence of your expert advisors. Where you come out smelling like a rose is you get to admit, “based on faulty information from my experts, I was mistaken.”

When backed up against the wall, playing the humble card works in your favor, for only a true expert is arrogant enough to admit he was so stupid as to follow the advice of incompetent advisors and then use it as a sign of valor.

Ultimately, every successful expert knows that his legitimacy is based upon the back-breaking work of his underlings. His legitimacy is a result of not how he uses the information he receives, but in having enough of it from a broad enough array of sources that when something goes wrong, he can’t be blamed for his choices.

Look, I didn’t promise you that these concepts would get any easier to grasp, okay? And, no, I am not a Lawyer, how many times I have to tell you?

Up until a little while ago, Drew thought he was just a hack. But then he tuned into http://mauihealingartist.com and learned that his only job is to be the fullest Drew that he can possibly be. There, he learned, there are things that can come through him that cannot be matched by anyone. This is true with you, too. Is that a stretch for you high-powered executive types? Maybe not...check it out. And even if that doesn't excite you, he's sure you'll get turned on by the art that's there. If that doesn't work, you still may get inspired to drop the whole corporate shebang and run away to an island somewheres. Trust Drew. He's the Expert!

Article source: Expert Articles