DISQUS

adamkmiec · 3 months ago

If we take this to be true...and it takes roughly 3 years, which lines up with Gladwell's POV in Outliers (based on an 8 hour day), to become an expert...then how is it we have so many Social Media experts?

Nick O'Neill · 3 months ago

@Adam, I think the title was more of a figure of speech but 3 years makes sense. Didn't Gladwell state 10 years was how long it takes to become a master at something though? I don't remember the number in that book but I recall it being a fairly long time.

Case Ernsting · 3 months ago

Hey, I just graduated and I'm using Twitter to build my personal brand and get my name to the public in my desired industry. Your advice is incredibly helpful as I move forward.

I have also started attending local networking shops and events. They often have panels of experts discussing topics relevant to my area. The most I listen and engage with them, the closer I feel to expert status.

Thanks for the post!

John Corey · 3 months ago

Nick is closer to the mark re: 3 years vs. 10 years. Gladwell talks about 10,000 hours and how that is more or somewhere between 5 and 10 years depending on the number of hours a person puts in per year. In many places a tad over 2,000 hours is the Full Time Equivalent.

8 hours a day for 3 years is not going to be close.

ztoryteller · 3 months ago

An IBM executive I once knew told me that by consistently reading the latest literature of the field for half an hour every day, without fail, one can become an expert in that field within two years. Of course, this assumes we're talking about a fairly narrow field: "grass fed beef", "online libraries", "passive solar electric generation", "authenticity in persuasive video". It also assumes that the day-to-day opportunities for expression and activity are also relevant to the field. Which is why only active doctors could become experts in a particular specialty such as diabetes diet management or vasectomy reversal surgery. So experts need to A. Stay abreast of what others are doing and unlearn/re-learn constantly; B. Practice the specialty; and C. Talk/write about it regularly. In my opinion anything else is just, as Seth Godin would put it, branding, but not a true brand.

Hermesbirkin · 3 months ago

Two years ago when I got my job I almost know nothing about it. Just as an IBM executive told ztoryteller - by consistently reading the latest literature of the field for half an hour every day, without fail, one can become an expert in that field within two years. I totally agree on that. Anyway, thanks for your nice article.

geld lenen · 3 months ago

Well that figure is pretty realistic

Peter · 3 months ago

The graph at the top rules. :) I agree completely.

davidyin · 3 months ago

Thanks for the post!

Rome b&b · 3 months ago

It's a very interesting article...I was thinking about that the other day when I was looking for an MBA about my studies. I truly believe that people need some "school" basics, however, in some cases people can become specialists just by living and working on the area. For instance, advertisers, the career is new comparing with medicine and despite that, there are (and were) many old great advertisers who didn't study for that.
Now we have the opportunity to have both: studies and life experience in our hands (however, I think we still cannot match the "old school")

Carmellita · 3 months ago

Very valuable information here. Thank you so much for writing this article. Some times we can have a very powerful message or just some good information and people do not accept it because we are not considered "experts" in our field. This information you have provided shows that with time, effort, and consistency, you can become an expert in your field.

Had I not wrote articles online for several years and wrote online courses for Universal Class, when I started my site Blue Lotus Living, I probably would have had little credibility. Some people fail to realize the value of the work we do online and how it builds credibility in our fields.

Again, great article. And great site. Thanks so much,
Carmellita
http://www.bluelotusliving.com

Frank Tagesgeld · 3 months ago

Very interesting posting and it's title is great ;-)

Mark · 3 months ago

Good article. Setting goals is very important to become good at anything, let along an expert. Once you have achieved your first goals, raise the bar then repeat.

fake diploma · 3 months ago

i try to setting goal for next 3 years...in 2012, i will come back and comment this blog about my success...LOL

AndyBeard · 2 months ago

I seem to be on a "M" curve

Rise in expertise, then at least from external appearances throw in the towel for 9 months and now climbing again.

In marketing often the best approach is a series of sprints, and that may also be the case in any field of expertise as well.

cluelessmediabuyer · 2 months ago

I think the 3-year rule is exactly right.

I will make over $200k in the coming 12 months - and I am about 5 years into my online advertising career.

At the end of my first three years, I was $3000 in debt.

At the end of my fourth year, I had netted $80k and had $20k in the bank.

At the end of this (my fifth year) I will have netted $200k within 12 months, and have $95.468 in the bank as of right now.

To be honest, I think I could probably make at least $500k in the next 24 months - though with tax being what it is, it's hard to say how much capital I will have.

The funny thing is that at the end of three years, I thought I was done, and would never make any money in online advertising - ever. (first as an entrepreneur, and now as an executive after my business got acquired).

The first three years were a f-ing painful desert of zero results, wasted time, and lost money, and even more heartbreak. It wasn't an easy road, that's for sure.

Also, I think to be an "expert" you probably have to be one of about 50 people in the world who know as much as you do, and also have the relationships to execute. Im not one of those guys yet... but I can see a time when I will be.

Poquer · 1 month ago

I am always looking for thoses articles that have quality content.i am very happy to see your article because you gave very nice and helping tips.i think online advertising is a best way to earn online money and SEO is also another way to earn more than your expectation.

Red Cross CNA Training · 1 month ago

I'm ashamed to admit it, but I think that personally I'm not even at an amateur level. I will learn something, and then instead of building on this, I will either go about simply using what I have learned, or worse, forgetting it and going back to square one. It's definitely something I need to work on.

Smithy

Luke R · 4 weeks ago

To me this article raises a slightly different point - the ease with which information is available today, compared with even 10 years ago, means you can become (or at least appear to become) an expert very quickly. The statement 'knowledge is power' doesn't really seem to hold anymore. With the aid of Google and the WWW you can rapidly get up to speed on topics that would have taken days of trawling through hard-to-read texts in libraries in the past. I am perfectly willing to believe that you can become an 'expert' in 3 years.

lc32 · 3 days ago

Your work is fantastic looking, the site is a snap to navigate… Consider me a fan!