How hybrid are you in your work? A self-assessment
If someone says, "I'm a hybrid professional," how do you know how hybrid they are? (And, if you've never heard of a hybrid professional, read more here.)
Think about it. All hybrid professionals are different. Right?
Some hybrids are MORE hybrid than others.
That's where it gets interesting.
How do we measure and assess someone's hybridity?
Ultimately, the more hybrid you are, the rarer your professional identity and the more unique you are. (Which also comes with its own challenges, like how to explain who you are).
If you say you're hybrid in your work, then it matters how much hybridity you possess.
A little or a lot?
How are we supposed to know?
For instance, someone who is a writer/speaker/educator, how hybrid does that sound to you?
We need a more concrete way to measure hybridity.
An example of someone who is a highly hybrid professional is Neri Oxman. She's the epitome because she's a technologist/ biologist/architect/designer. In fact, her work has been featured in MOMA and on the cover of Wired Magazine, two very different spaces.
On Neri's website, she uses the exact phrase I teach hybrids to say:
"Work at the intersection of" is my favorite and easiest way to signal your hybridity.
In this statement, Neri reveals how she combines four disparate disciplines, which covers two of the seven indicators that show she's highly hybridized in her professional identity.
HOW TO MEASURE HOW HYBRID YOU ARE
Through my research, I assembled a list of seven indicators that matter for assessing how hybrid you are.
Also, I've included a free handout you can download by clicking here.
7 Key Indicators of Highly Hybrid Professionals
Number of primary professional identities you possess. (These are the foundational identities that form your hybridity. Low is 2 and high is 4 identities)
Amount of disparity between your primary professional identities. (This is the amount of opposition, incongruity, or contrast between your work identities, a lot versus a little)
Amount of expertise in each primary professional identity. (Deep knowledge in only one identity versus depth in all your primary work identities)
Amount of time on a daily basis spent at the intersection of work identities. (An hour a day versus many hours per day)
Amount of competence at the intersection of work identities. (Ad hoc and unsure versus full command and assuredness)
Amount of consciousness at the intersection of work identities. (Not aware versus fully aware)
Amount of overlap between primary professional identities. (Some crossover in a Venn diagram versus fully merged together)
Think of all the ways you can use these indicators.
Not only do they help you self-assess, but these can become interview questions, ways to manage or understand an employee's hybrid performance, and ultimately a way to understand how to increase your hybridity hence increase the RARITY of who you are.
Fun to think about, huh???