Comments on: Generalist or Specialist?

By: Bret

Bret — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 15:01:00 +0000

I would like to be a specialist.because “I’m not afraid of a a fighter who knows a 10,000 kicks but i’m afraid of the one who has practiced one kick 10,000 times”
So be specialist in one field and glow like a moon.

By: Devlounge | How Do You Pick a Standard or Format to Stand Behind?

Devlounge | How Do You Pick a Standard or Format to Stand Behind? — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 21:56:09 +0000

[...] and Movable Type, Windows and Linux. This means I am definitely no expert, and have always been a huge generalist when it comes to acquiring knowledge. I am always worried that I will chose the wrong format, or [...]

By: Jermayn Parker

Jermayn Parker — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 05:45:46 +0000

Somewhere between the two!!
Be an expert specialist in a field or two (eg: xhtml and css) and then be a ‘good enough to get by’ in other areas like graphics, php etc

By: beckley

beckley — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 19:35:40 +0000

I have a design background and hand-code xhtml/css. I picked up Javascript, PHP & MySQL from working in a web app development environment for a few years, and reading books & the web. I love knowing enough to get by in programming. I can create sites top to bottom that have light duty scripting involved.

I’ve found though that true programmers are invaluable for complex projects. My head just doesn’t work that way, or not fast enough to be effective anyway.

I say learn everything you can. It can’t hurt. With programming, knowledge crosses lines too. Many concepts I learned studying FORTRAN and Pascal in college are the same in Javascript and PHP.

One thing I find is that the more I learn across boundaries, the harder it is to define myself in a job search. Small price to pay though.

By: Aaron :: miLienzo.com

Aaron :: miLienzo.com — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 10:59:04 +0000

Personally I think its best to start off with the more generalist approach. Lots of people ‘specialise’ in one area or another so to set yourself apart from the competition its best to widen your skillset. Once you have established yourself i think is a better time to start focussing on becoming a master of your trade rather than a jack of all trades.

By: dan

dan — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 08:43:02 +0000

Great article, I’ve always considered it to be a good idea as a specialist, however recently have noticed the benefits of specializing in column A while knowing a little from column B and C.

As a freelancer I can forsee being a generalist more beneficial to some degree. Obviously there are many factors involved in being a freelancer and that work that is being produces is one of those majors.

I’m currently at a fork in my career where I am wondering whether I persue and try to improve my design side, or whether I improve on my front end capabilites. All food for thought. And perfect timing for me to see the article.

By: Rick

Rick — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 02:18:31 +0000

What all of you are asking is… what kind of “T” should I be.
http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/95/design-strategy.html

Short and fat or tall and skinny? Maybe I can make an “H” out of myself.

Good luck to all of you.

By: John Leschinski

John Leschinski — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 21:36:37 +0000

Be a generalist, market as a specialist.

By: Daoro

Daoro — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 21:18:02 +0000

Well, I do prefer being generalist, but I believe it depends of your behavior too.

For one thing I find it useful being capable to tweaks lots of different things and being capable to explain exactly what I need, understand and judge the quality of the work of others.

Add it to the fact that I’m fascinated of all the things you can do, have many interest and want to try everything… well simply said I can’t focus enough to because a specialist.

By: Michelle

Michelle — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 20:47:53 +0000

I have been pondering the same thing. After recently finishing studies I am looking for my next direction, and wondering if I should focus on excelling at ASP VBScript and carry on from my studies, or learning PHP (that we did not cover in my studies) as I too have noticed a lot more jobs wanting PHP experienced people.
But perhaps learning AJAX is the smarter option, and the future of things to come?

By: Joe

Joe — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 18:47:59 +0000

I’m sort of in the same boat as your friend. I’ve been learning JavaScript, particularily the DOM aspects of it, while learning PHP. I’ve found that as a front-end guy I can do a lot more with some pretty basic programming skills than I ever could with straight XHTML and CSS.

By: Chris Poteet

Chris Poteet — Wed, 13 Feb 2008 18:24:56 +0000

I was just thinking about this. To be honest, there are new specialties created almost every day. Being a “generalist” is a far safer methodology I believe. Tons of people can do JS, CSS, PHP, etc., but very few know enough to get the job done in all of them.

Remember it’s not about knowing everything but knowing where to go when you need something.