Securing your livelihood through work versatility
By Patrick Regnault
We are working in a very volatile period, politically and economically. Global change is afoot and as business owners, managers and workers we need to adapt to uncertain conditions. Added to that unpredictability is the real threat of climate change. We need to rethink our working practices if we are to weather these storms. By developing our knowledge, we can be more versatile in our approach and be able to take on a wider variety of work to secure our livelihood.
Specialisation has been a buzz word for the last few decades. Such a focus in our occupations has served its purpose in a world driven by an economic system in which variables were tightly constrained by prioritising market-driven outcomes and deregulation favoured over social, environmental and people-oriented objectives. However, this period is coming to an end. In the landscape industry, some people choose to specialise in structural landscaping, whilst others focus on soft landscaping. Some are what I call specialised generalists; people who can design landscapes and install both soft and hard landscaping. Whilst not quite ‘jack of all trades’, these are people open to new knowledge, and able to successfully integrate newly acquired information into their work practices to ensure their business not only survives but thrives.
Versatility is adaptability
The advantage of versatility over specialisation is that it allows for adaptability, enabling a business owner to respond to competing demands and changing conditions. For instance, ‘John’ has a garden maintenance business and he possesses horticultural qualifications. A client asks John if he can recommend a landscaper for a project including retaining walls and paving. If John had had the foresight to take the steps to obtain the Structural Landscaping Licence and the confidence to do a good job, he could have proposed his services instead of referring the potentially lucrative and interesting work to someone else. The scope of his business would expand, and he could provide his team with more varied and challenging work, thereby increasing their skills and experiences. Taking on and completing this job broadens the scope of work that John can obtain, and potentially helps him weather economic downturns, conditions to which some specialists are unable to adapt. Additional qualifications and knowledge broaden our scope of work.
Understanding limitations
Versatility needs three companions: knowledge, ability and labour. When one of those components is missing it can land us in hot water. ‘Alex’ has very good structural skills but little horticultural knowledge. He told a client that he would undertake the planting behind a retaining wall to screen them from their neighbour. Alex chose a Ficus species for this hedge, which over time caused the wall to fail given its vigorous underground growth. He is liable for the repair of this wall as he recommended the selection of this plant. He could have asked for advice from a horticulturist or undertaken research to help him find the right plant. However, Alex chose not to acknowledge his lack of expertise in this space. Understanding one’s limitations helps develop knowledge. Not knowing is not a sign of failure, however, not seeking knowledge is a sign of an inflexible mind. If you do not know the answer to a problem, find someone who does.
Cooperation not competition
Sharing knowledge is part of human collaboration. When we share our knowledge with others, we increase our conscious understanding and create a bond of mutual trust. Whilst competition may help us progress, adopting such an approach may make work life hard and unyielding, i.e., ‘me against the world!’ This stance can be very stressful at both a mental and physiological level. Cooperation might appear to be more difficult as it requires adaptability, flexibility and a certain negation of one’s ego. However, taking a cooperative approach to a problem helps us to realise our strength and weaknesses, enabling us to adapt and to work with others to build a new and stronger unit. We can learn and achieve more together, with potentially less stress, achieving the same, or perhaps even better results compared with when we work alone. Sharing knowledge multiplies its benefits ten-fold.
Curiosity
Similarly, closing your mind to new information only harms or hinders your business or work. Adopting the right type of curiosity will help you to broaden your knowledge. There are two types of curiosity: interest curiosity and deprivation curiosity1[GS1] . Deprivation curiosity is defined as the desire to reduce the unpleasant feelings associated with uncertainty. It is associated with memory errors, intellectual confusion and a reduced openness to new information that contradicts one’s existing belief. It leads to a lack of intellectual humility. On the other hand, interest curiosity leads to greater general knowledge, better accuracy in recognising new information from that you have already acquired, and an ability to embrace the fact that an individual’s own conviction could be wrong, that is, intellectual humility. Curiosity allows us to find solutions where others see problems, to see every challenge as a possibility to learn and to grow.
Problem solving
In any field, in life in general really, we are called upon to solve problems, from the simple to the complex. The larger our knowledge, the more likely we are to find solutions. People ask me why they should be interested in history and in particular garden history. Over the years, an understanding of this history has served me well in landscape design and construction. I have used ancient methods such as berms to reduce waterflow and limit erosion, designed hedgerows for both ornamental and food production purposes, and even installed a fish trap inspired design to direct traffic in a garden. We do not need to reinvent the wheel; we simply need to adapt practical methods that have worked in the past to fit our garden designs now.
We can be discouraged by the vastness of knowledge that we will never acquire, or we can be exhilarated by how much we can learn. Fear or adventure; which will you choose?
Patrick Regnault FAIH RH0062
Interactive Landscapes
E: patrickregnault@hotmail.com
References
Zedelius, C.M., Gross, M.E. & Schooler, J.W. (2022). Inquisitive but not discerning: Deprivation curiosity is associated with excessive openness to inaccurate information. Journal of Research in Personality, 98.