It's Not All About Skills

“Champions aren’t made in gyms. Champions are made from something they have deep inside them…a desire, a dream, a vision. They have to have the skill, and the will. But the will must be stronger than the skill.” – Muhammad Ali

When friends ask me what I do, it comes as a surprise to them that I am in Human Resources. How did that happen? Being a hot-headed, short tempered teen, an introvert and anti-social young adult; took up Computer studies and landed my first job in the airline industry. It’s just not HR material. And yet, here I am.

When someone questions your ability and skills in getting things done, my simple answer was; 13 years and counting. That’s how long I have been in this profession. It’s true, I may not have the degree in Psychology or Business Management, or whatever pre-HR course there is, and yet, here I am.

When circumstances presents itself and tests your capabilities, it begs the question, are you skilled for this? 

Every time this comes up, I remind myself of the story of Rudy Ruettiger, who played college football in the University of Notre Dame. (His story was made into a movie back in 1993, “Rudy”)

Rudy dreamed of playing football for Notre Dame, but he was never built for football. He didn’t have the size nor the skills for it. But he did have the heart. And in the movie, Coach Parseghian said, “I wish God would put your heart in some of my players’ bodies.” Rudy trained hard more than anyone else in the team, and eventually this earned him a shot at getting a chance to finally play. So on November 8, 1975 against Georgia Tech, Rudy played for the first time, on his senior year and his last game. Rudy only played for a couple of minutes, but in the end he was one of the only two players in Notre Dame history to ever be carried off the field.

Having a degree doesn’t guarantee that you will be 100% successful nor does it ensure that you are hiring the best talent. If the individual does not have the work ethics for it, that degree will be wasted. Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, Steve Jobs. What do they have in common? College drop outs. And where are they now? They are visionaries. They built a new age empire. They are PIMPED.

In one of the leadership summits that I attended, they shared with us how one should be PIMPED:

Passionate, Inspired, Motivated, Persevering, Energized, Dedicated.

Hiring someone who is PIMPED but not too skilled has a higher probability of making wonders for your company. Technical skills can always and easily be injected into someone. But getting them PIMPED is exhausting if their behavior is not even up to it. Try hiring someone who is highly skilled, but lacks the will…let me know how that works out.

On the other hand, no matter how daunting the task, no matter how tired I may be, no matter what other people say that I am not skilled for it…

I am PIMPED and I’m gonna RUDY it.