I walked into a conversation at the Radisson Blu Ikeja, where a brand owner was arguing with his employee. Apparently, it was an argument about a specific design that had been posted on the company’s website.

I leaned in and tried to eavesdrop on the conversation, even though I knew that was not ethical; I couldn’t help it since it was an interesting one. That conversation led to this article today.

 

Details of the conversation:

John the employer: Why do you continue to post designs that were made with just templates?

Daniel, the employee: Sir, it’s not about using the template; it’s about getting the job done. And as of the last time I checked, the job has been delivered.

John: Your definition of “work done” differs from the work culture in our company. Didn’t you go through our company’s induction process?

When you joined us, you made many promises about what you could do, but your performance so far tells a different story. You need to improve because every design you create represents our business, and, as of my last review, the feedback hasn’t been positive.

Daniel: Sir, I’m sorry; if that is how you feel about the output of my work, I will improve on it.

John: How long have you been in this creative space?

Daniel: I have been in the creative space for 3 years part-time and 1 year full-time after my NYSC, and this happens to be the first place where I’m getting my full experience.

But, sir, I had worked in a commercial business centre as a graphic designer, creating all sorts of designs for clients.

Immediately after Daniel said this last statement, I knew what the problem was.

He obviously possesses the skill of designing, but he needed to understand certain guiding principles for design creation and the necessity of grasping each project’s goal before starting the design process.

Obviously, in one word, John is a qualified “rookie”.

Now let’s talk about who a rookie is and how to spot them even in your organisation.

 

Who is a rookie?

This can have several meanings, but for the context of this article, a rookie is a professional in his first season, in summary, someone who lacks the requisite experience needed for a role in an organisation.

Today, people often claim to possess certain skills, as technology is now accessible to everyone. But what makes the difference between an experienced professional and a rookie on a job is one word, ‘excellence’, which comes from several years of practice that has led to mastery.

To spot a rookie, you must check for these five traits:

 

 

1. Excellence is a burden:

 

People I classified as rookies see excellence as a burden. When you correct their work, they become defensive rather than doing the work themselves to review the corrections that were made.

Every professional should seek to improve at what they do. For those of us in the creative space, I often say that development and advancements in the creative space are a journey and not a destination. There were designs I did years ago that felt good, and the client was happy about them, but today, when I look at such designs, I see areas where they can be improved.

Since a rookie is just starting out with your brand, they will use them for their own experimentation, which may eventually harm that brand.

 

2. They are not willing to upskill:

In every skill, there are categories; you have the beginners, the intermediates, and the professionals. These categories don’t denote a destination but just a way to put people on their journey.

For instance, I was fortunate to be on an interview where a young man was about to be employed for the role of a digital marketer. And when he was asked about “search engine optimisation” while he was speaking, I realised that all he had was just head knowledge and no actual knowledge about what he was saying.

So, I asked him a critical question about the difference between search engine marketing and search engine optimisation. He became confused. They hired him later, but he admitted that he needed to upskill. Today, in that same organisation, he is still on his journey to fully master that area of marketing.

In contrast, most rookies are okay with the level of what they know about what they do. You get to know this because when someone with higher knowledge corrects a rookie, they refuse to learn.

 

3. Personal Development is a Task:

 

You are as good as the skills you develop every day. In whatever area you find yourself, ensure learning is continuous. Rookies believe personal development is a task too daunting to be needed. Growth is a process that comes with strains, stress, and sometimes pain. People who have mastered what they do take personal development as a daily routine in everyday life.

 

4. Overconfidence:

Rookies hardly listen. A major part of communication is listening. One-way communication is not productive communication. When you try to communicate briefly with a rookie, they already have what they want to do in their head. Therefore, while you communicate instead of listening, they busy themselves assuming you make so many points.

These assumptions often stem from overconfidence in themselves, and then eventually they produce a deficient output, thus delaying your project’s turnaround time.

 

5. Poor Time Management:

Time management is an essential skill that separates the pros from the rookies. When you assign a task to a rookie, most often, they spend so much time on that task that they eventually deliver a poor output.

In my final summary, is it bad to recruit someone who wants to learn on the job?

The answer is “No”, but they need to acknowledge where they are in their journey in the creative space, be willing to learn, and put in the needed work to be a master at what they do.

For brands that are not willing to go that route, we are always here to take on your ideas and help you actualise them.