Different Hats

Throughout life, we are constantly taking on different roles. We start out as children and move on to be students, friends and neighbors. We might then become graduates, employees, partners, etc. Whether we choose to or not, we morph into whatever role is fitting per the stage of life. Eventually as adults, this switching of roles may occur throughout the day. I usually start the day as a parent and then continue as a manager, until the phone rings and then I momentarily switch into my wife role to better relate to my husband for the duration of the conversation.

Throughout my career, I've also transferred to various roles. At the start of my career, I wasn't sure which direction to take. I developed both soft and hard skills. At my first job, when asked if I could do something, I always answered, yes!

Jack of all trades, Master of none

One day, my coworker commented to me that I am a Jack of all trades. She didn't finish off the quote, but I wondered to myself, does that make me a Master of none?

Sometimes when she would ask me questions, she would ask me to use my other hat, referring to the other role that I held. We joked about bringing physical hats in to help identify which role I was playing at the moment.

Job Security

Years later, I worked at a company where the common refrain was "Job Security". Which meant, do the whatever the task is because it means that you will keep your job. It wasn't a great part of the culture and it was usually said somewhat sarcastically.

Recently, I was meeting a colleague for the first time and he mentioned that he has two roles in the company. He felt that it gave him more security within the company.

This left me wondering, is it better to be a quantity or quality contributor?

Not every job role is full-time and some roles do complement each other. However, at some point, one of them is going to be the primary role and the other will be secondary.

• Do you hold multiple positions?
• Have you had to chose a primary role?
• Which do you see as most valued in your company?