This past weekend I turned in my materials for the Certified Professional Resume Writers exam. I won’t know the results for up to 8 weeks, and I was feeling a little anxious. I was reminded of a concept in David Marquet’s book, Turn the Ship Around, called “Embrace the Inspectors.” (To be transparent, my brain recorded it as “don’t fear the auditors.”) This thought turned out to be very comforting to me and maybe you are the one that needs to hear this now or for the future.
Being tested, audited, or inspected can be stressful. In school we take a lot of tests. The exams compare our knowledge of what the instructor intended to teach and what we actually learned. The results are often expressed in how much we got right – 80%, 90%, 100%. When we are audited or inspected, results are often expressed in how much we got wrong – one, two, three findings. When it comes to athletics or racing, measurement is expressed in how close we are to others or to our personal best, or percent improvement in time or score.
What if we looked at tests, audits, and inspections a bit differently? What if instead of fearing we won’t make the grade and pass the test, we use the test to measure our knowledge? Baseline our knowledge if you will. Use the test to ask how close to the mark am I and what needs to change to improve the score? This is what David Marquet was getting at when he described embracing the inspectors. When the results of an inspection were complete, they would ask the inspectors what other crews had done to score well in areas they had scored poorly in. As a result, their crew went from worst to first in the fleet.
I applied this concept to my own situation. I knew I couldn’t brew about the results for 8 weeks, but what could I do? I could look at the situation differently. Instead of wondering if I am going to pass, I am looking forward to the results-pass or fail-and the feedback that will accompany it. If I find I need to shore up some part of my work, I will. When I feel comfortable, I will retake the exam and look forward to the feedback again.
If I pass, then I still hope they give me feedback that I can use to get even better. I look back at my undergraduate studies and there was so much to do and not a lot of time to do it. There wasn’t time to explore or dig deeper into a subject or topic. We might take that mindset with us after graduation. That is, learn what is taught, take the exam to see if you met the intent of the course, then move on.
Now that we’re out “in the wild” (or about to be for the students reading this) what if we take a different approach? What if we use certifications and other tests to baseline our knowledge, to gain feedback, and to improve on where we are? Improving not only to get the certification, but to go beyond the minimum for the standard and into excellence.
I can say from experience there are some exams I didn’t want to take twice. The Project Management Professional (PMP) certification exam was 4 hours long and I really didn’t want to have to take that one again. Had I applied the “embrace the inspectors” concept at the time I took it, perhaps I wouldn’t have been so stressed about it.
Is there a certification or course you’ve been thinking about taking? Are you hesitating because you are afraid you might not pass? What if you changed your approach and committed to preparing the best you can, and then allowing the feedback to guide your next step, whether it be to go back and practice in an area you are not strong in, or to start looking for more things to learn or practice to exceed the certification standard?
Let me know if this change in thinking helps reduce stress when you are looking to gain a certification! Best to you on your path.