Talent and Artistry

It's no secret I'm kind of a reality TV devotee (alright, junkie).  One of the shows I watch regularly is American Idol and recently judge Keith Urban said something to a contestant that I thought was rather profound:

"Talent shows us what you can do, but artistry shows us who you are".  As usual, I thought about how this statement relates to a job seeker.

Initially, hiring decision makers are looking at a candidate's talent - they look at your resume because you had the right ratio and combination of keywords on your resume.  As Keith described it above - they are looking at your 'talent': what you've done, and they hope it can translate into 'what you can do for us'.  

Your 'talent' is all a decision maker has to go on in the beginning.  It's what gets you in the door to the interview.  

After they know you have the talent and you've 'done the job' and can probably 'do the job' for them, what the decision maker is REALLY interested in is your 'artistry', i.e. who you are.  The aptly described and ever-present 'fit'.  Will you fit in with the organization, group, team, department?  Did we make a connection?  Who are you?!  

The decision makers are also asking themselves: Do we like this person?  Can we see ourselves working with this person every day?  Are you (the candidate) excited and motivated about the possibility of doing this job? 

Just like on American Idol, there are tens of thousands of talented people out there.  But only a few of those have 'artistry' and make the connection with us.  Of course you have to have the 'talent', but focus more on your 'artistry' and you'll increase the chances of making that connection with the person who deserves to have you working with them. 


Brenda

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