Why you should never call yourself a "generalist"

As a coach who has dozens of conversations each week with people looking for clarity about their next career move, I want to be sure we’re clear from the beginning, here, about the only time it’s appropriate to say you’re a “generalist” in your career search. 

Never. 

That is to say, unless you’re applying for one specific job, with the title of “HR Generalist”, there is not a single time when this word should appear in your cover letter or resume.

Ever.

Find and replace it, my friend. You’ll thank me later. 

Now, before I tell you what to do instead, let’s make the most of this teachable moment by asking: What does it say about you when you describe yourself as a generalist? 

Not good things, I’m afraid.

Although I do actually find humor in the word as a nasty flourish coming out of the mouth of a comic character with a tendency to belittle people. Imagine a restaurant critic curling up his nose and muttering of the chef, “what a generalist…” 

But as your career coach, I don’t want anyone describing you in those terms. 

Being a generalist can connote that you’re presenting the generic version of yourself, like the kind of toilet paper at the supermarket that is one-ply and rough to the touch. Even if your customer is seeking to spend at bargain rates or determine how to price you, I don’t want you to communicate that you’re “functional” at a basic level. Instead, I’d like you to communicate some other more valuable attributes. 

Perhaps, to continue the analogy with toilet paper, you’re soft as a cloud, multi-plied, or sweetly scented? Or perhaps you’d really rather your would-be employer didn’t consider you in toilet paper terms at all? 

Whether they’re looking for toilet roll or for ketchup, recruiters never want a generic hire, because they’re aware that each of us has our strengths and weaknesses. They want you to be honest about your distinctive brand, and then, they can make their decision.

You may not be right for a given role, but if you present yourself as the generic brand, you’ll rarely be right for anything. If recruiters want to make the cheapest hire, they may have a brand in mind. You are better served by sharing yourself as an extreme value than as a milquetoast one. 

You may think being a generalist makes you sound broadly qualified, as if you’ll be casting a bigger net for any available opportunities.

But it chiefly makes you forgettable.

I don’t know what job you aspire to, but I assume that being forgettable isn’t the impression you hope to make. This comes back to the branding issue:

You need to put time in to figure out what does make you distinctive, before you go out and apply for anything—more on this in a moment. 

You may think it makes you sound more impressive, but actually, being a generalist makes you sound like you don’t know what you’re good at. When I read it I think “here is a person that can do a bunch of things at a four on a 10-point scale.” That’s the backstory I have created for you. Why would you leave it to me or anyone else to jump to a perception about you, based on such an inexact word? 

Most people making hiring decisions want you to be able to do a few things really well. I have been involved in hiring for positions where the skills and experience don’t typically come together very often, for example, someone who can handle all of the logistics for national conferences and has expert human resources knowledge. However, most of the time, we want someone who does a few things that go together somewhat often. 

The job description will let you know pretty exactly what those things are, and you need to do your best job of getting across your skills and successes in that role. If you don’t demonstrate what you’re good at, then perhaps you lack self-confidence. Or worse, you’re not actually good at anything, in which case a recruiter would probably prefer you came back to them in due course when you’ve figured it out! For some roles and individuals I may dig deeper, and so might others, to assess you further, but why hurt your odds of landing the interview on the way to getting the job?

Can you think of a single time you’ve been hiring for a position, or part of such a process, where you’ve said: “what we really need here is a nondescript candidate who won’t stand out, just tick all the boxes and be uninspiring?” Me either, although if you have been involved in such a search, you have my most sincere apologies, because they only happen when employers have an impossible-to-fill role that pays poorly and turns over quickly.

My apologies for continuing to flog this horse, but I am in full-throated making-a-point mode. So.

If you say you’re a generalist, it also implies that you’re not very good at representing yourself to a specific audience: The recruiter. There are so many jobs, not just sales or communications, in which your ability to represent the entity you should know best — YOU — will serve you well. Depending upon the position, one strike on this score is enough to cost you the opportunity, so don’t offer it up. 

Okay, there is one tiny exception to when you can use the word “generalist”, and that is when the job description mentions the word first. But I would question whether you really want to go for such a job. They may be looking for someone who is willing to fill in around the edges for other people who aren’t doing their jobs properly, for example. So: Beware. 

Now, how can you free yourself from even the temptation to describe yourself as a generalist?

This is not an answer you’re going to like, but it takes time and work. One of the things many folks like about most career websites is, they offer the opportunity to fantasize about escaping from your current role, without necessarily forcing you to put in the work it might take to get there. 

There is introspection associated with knowing what you do well. You have to get feedback from those who have standing, and then you have to do some intentional crafting of your work narrative. This is something we do with everyone we work with through Clearly Next, and it may be the most fulfilling part of the work that I get to do with others. 

With or without career coaching, the sad truth is that far too many of us would rather continue doing what we “fell into”, and be moderately dissatisfied at work rather than dig in and figure out what we’re really good at and passionate about, and how that aligns with the available job market. 

You may have to ask other people what their perception of you is, and many of us don’t like to do that, because it not only takes effort, we may also hear about things we’re bad at, into the bargain. But what’s the opportunity cost? If you continue to think of yourself as a generalist, you’re much less likely to find fulfillment in your career. 

Call me revolutionary, but I really do think you have the right to be fulfilled at work.

Of course, I’m now ready for the comments from the “suck it up” crowd who have defined work as a necessary evil. But it’s true. You deserve fulfillment at work. 

Rather than simply looking for jobs you can apply to, scattershot style, do the work, and be clearer about your next move. Remember, a different job is often not a better job. An informed choice is far more likely to lead you in a happier direction. 

My name is Russ Finkelstein and I am a rebel, because I believe that your work can be better. You have the ability to make your work more fulfilling and less “general.” The question is; will you choose to?

Russ Finkelstein is a Co-Founder and Managing Director of ClearlyNext, a guided online program that helps people figure out what to do next in their careers. Russ is also a co-founder of idealist.org, a coach and advisor at the Roddenberry Fellowship and board member of YNPN. He is all about helping people find their way – advising and coaching for free far more than his mother would like.