Revisiting Range, by David Epstein

Range: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World by David Epstein

As is the case with many of my current and former colleagues, I have been revisiting my career trajectory and accomplishments. A dramatic career change that suddenly requires you to spend significantly more time on your resume and LinkedIn profile often prompts some reflection. What, exactly, have I done for the last 20 years? And did it all add up to something tangible in terms of career capital that can be leveraged for a career shift?

I have often been referred to as a Utility Player and “Fix-IT Person” throughout my career. My specialty has been stepping into offices or units that have undergone some kind of dramatic or traumatic change and helping to rebuild them and deliver on mission. Though I spent 18 years with the same agency as a federal employee (and even longer as a contractor before that), I have held a number of roles that, on the surface, may seem somewhat scattershot. At least, that’s what I feared. This feeling reminded me of a book I’d read years ago, so I decided to re-read (or rather, re-listen to the Audible version narrated by the excellent Will Damron) Range during a long drive.

It's not just me. It turns out that many people feel they have been too scattered in their careers to create a path that is understandable to others– really impressive and incredible people who didn't commit their lives or careers to a single minded path–they built range. I have often advised those who have come to me for a career discussion to focus on building skills and experiences more than climbing a ladder of obviously related positions. As I face this new life outside of government, however, I wondered if all of those accumulated skills and experiences would hold any value for those outside my old agency.

Range is full of examples of highly successful professionals from various fields who took winding roads to reach the pinnacles of their careers. The author, David Epstein, has a fascinating career story himself, having been a college athlete, a biology student, and then a writer for both Sports Illustrated and ProPublica. Figures like Roger Federer, Abraham Lincoln, Van Gogh, and SEAL team operators inspired Epstein’s narrative because of the diverse experiences they leveraged to achieve incredible success.

Epstein's theory is that generalists are capable of great success precisely because their experiences are so varied. I have negotiated agreements between federal agencies to share information in order to prevent terrorist attacks, worked on security screening processes during a major refugee crisis at the National Security Council, led a major IT transition, optimized budgets, and managed really hard personnel problems. For almost every position I held in the last ten years, I was either asked to apply or was directly selected for those roles because I had a lot of experiences that equaled a sum greater than the constituent parts. I know a lot of really incredible professionals who have had similar careers, and I assure you they can do really hard jobs really well.

After revisiting Range and thinking a bit about the people I know who have had incredible range in their careers, it seems like the following skills are (among others, I am sure) are common: 

1. Relationship Building: Working with a lot of people in a lot of circumstances is critical to getting things done. People with range may not immediately be able to fix a problem, but we know who can. I have built deep and lasting relationships with people across the government, and I am there for them when they need something, as they are for me. That’s a skill that is applicable to any circumstance, and people with range can do that really well in a new industry with new colleagues. 

2. Curious Learning: People with range seek new challenges because they offer opportunities to learn something new.  Curiosity drives them. They are the people who stop to look things up or say “Let me look at the policy.” They ask questions, read extensively, and ask more questions until they learn. They intentionally apply the accumulation of skills to hard problems over and over again, and they acquired those skills by being curious and willing to try a lot of different things. 

3. Complex Problem Solving: The two skills above combine to facilitate complex problem-solving. Asking the right questions of the right people is how you identify what went wrong, what may go wrong, and why. Once you understand the "why," it becomes fixable– and probably more preventable in the future. Having a lot of experiences gives you a lot of perspectives, which translates to a lot of ways to tackle complex problems. People with range are also the ultimate problem solvers because they have encountered a diverse array of problems.

Your employees with range may not be the one who directly solves a problem; rather, they are the one who anticipates it and knows who CAN fix it, reducing stress for their leadership or principal and enhancing productivity for everyone involved.

If you’re looking for some interesting and useful summer reading, consider picking up Range by David Epstein and reflect on whether you need more utility players, fix-it professionals, or people with broad experience on your team.