It just floors me when I see people who have a picture of themselves in a judo gi on LinkedIn - and their profession is listed as Project Manager, accountant or software developer. (If you are a professional judo instructor, then it is completely understandable, but these people are not.)
It's bad enough when the person in question is someone young who has recently retired from competition and may not have a lot of professional accomplishments yet. It's still not correct, but it is understandable. When the person in their judo gi is over fifty years old, it just floors me. Seriously, what are you thinking?
Before you point out that, in fact, I have my picture in a judo gi in my profile, let me point out first that this is my PERSONAL blog. I am founder and president/ CEO of two companies. You can see my bio for The Julia Group here and there is nothing there about judo because it is irrelevant.
Above is a photo of my very dear friend, Dr. Jacob Flores. The relevant point here is that he is giving a lecture to staff from a vocational rehabilitation project on symptoms, treatment and prognosis for patients with Type II diabetes. A second relevant point is that he has an MD, is board certified in geriatrics and treats predominantly patients with chronic and terminal illness, with a high proportion of individuals with diabetes on his caseload.
The fact that he is a fifth-degree black belt and had two sons on the world team is totally irrelevant, even though he and I were both in this meeting.
You know where judo is on my resume? Under publications, I include the book I wrote, Winning on the Ground. That's relevant because it shows that I write well enough that someone would publish a book by me. Of course, there are a lot more publications listed on things like comparative factor structures.
When I see someone in a professional setting - say on their resume, company web page, LinkedIn, etc. highlighting their martial arts expertise instead of their professional accomplishments, it leads me to assume that they haven't achieved much professionally, otherwise, they would be talking about that.
I would give a blackbelt with a degree more of a chance than someone who went to school and spent getting their education at a desk all day. Why is this? Because I understand the Martial Arts and the kinds of qualities a high level practitioner has. "Sports are a metaphor for life", and Martial Arts sports do so more than others.
ReplyDeleteI've had my share of office politics with gutless paper pushers who don't understand the power of resolve and persistence and simply make vague excuses like "it's hard...". So what if it's hard? If it's easy and you don't have to do much work for it, then you should do it, but if it's hard and you have to work for it then you shouldn't? I think it should be the other way around. Hard work and sacrifice aren't necessary evils, they're noble virtues and people who understand that are better at everything than those who don't.
Maybe other things being equal and I'm not saying you need to be like me and not mention your accomplishments in martial arts. What I *AM* saying is that the big emphasis should be on the degree. Also, while it is true that martial arts are hard, so are lots of other things that might be more relevant to your job - like attending school while working full time, or starting a business.
ReplyDelete"... so are lots of other things that might be more relevant to your job - like attending school while working full time, or starting a business."
ReplyDeleteI've done all of those things and martial arts and I can say that the Martial Arts are much more helpful because they require immediate responses. I've done more than just Judo, by the way, I've done Kushou fighting, which isn't just getting slammed and tossed, it's getting punched and kicked as well. Some guys in Judo will punch, but since they're not trained as strikers, their punches are soft by comparison. What I learned in Martial Arts helped me in all of those areas and I do think that it does matter. Martial Artists have a nobility about them that makes them resolute to carry out a task.
Some martial artists have a nobility about them. Several good friends of mine jump to mind. Other martial artists are child molesters, rapists, embezzlers, murderers and have the prison records to prove it. Being a martial artist doesn't automatically make you a good person by a long,long shot.
ReplyDelete"Other martial artists are child molesters, rapists, embezzlers, murderers and have the prison records to prove it. Being a martial artist doesn't automatically make you a good person by a long,long shot."
ReplyDeleteWhen you see them at the interview, you'll know if they're really Budo. People who practice true Budo instead of people who just know Martial Arts technique have a certain mystique, a certain modest, yet charm that contrasts them from others.
I don't know that all the good ones I've met have a "certain mystique." That's getting too descriptive of a MA cult to me. I've met plenty in martial arts that came off as crude, insensitive jackwagons to talk to them. These are the same ones who'll give you the shirt off their back if you need something.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Rob. It's when you meet the smooth talkers waving their hands and going on about "the way" and "the art" that you should run for the hills.
ReplyDeleteWould it be advisable for a potential hire to make a website with their side projects? So let's say for a potential hire as an engineer to have a website which shows their fix of a car or a game they have created. Many companies these days want experience in spite of the "entry level" that they ask for.
ReplyDelete