Qualified by Experience

Qualified by experience is a term I’ve only recently heard. People have suggested that I should use it to describe my own experiences.

To be honest, I’m reluctant to do so; I’m already dealing with enough imposter syndrome. When I’ve had conversations about being qualified by experience, I often face polar opposite views. Some think it’s hugely valuable and relevant; others scoff and disregard it altogether.

This year, I had the opportunity to attend Web Summit Lisbon. I was there as the founder and developer of EaseeDo. Several times, I have needed to fit EaseeDo into a category or classification, which I find challenging. It helps people be more organised and productive, but I don’t think it’s truly a productivity app; I feel that category leans more towards business. It could be a lifestyle app, but on balance, I think it fits best in the ‘Health and Wellbeing’ category, especially as the emotion-tracking feature is designed to manage anxiety. But often, this category will be included with MedTech, and there strikes the imposter syndrome. I’m not a doctor or psychologist; I don’t have any medical qualifications. I built EaseeDo as a practical solution to an everyday problem many parents of neuro-diverse young people face. I can do that because I am one of those parents.

At the Summit

This year’s Summit featured ‘Meet Ups’. People with a common interest in an industry are herded into a small pen for a short time to start a conversation and exchange contact details. It felt like speed dating but way less organised. I had just entered one of these pens for a ‘Health and Wellbeing Tech’ meet-up and was yet to start a conversation. I heard a lady beside me holding forth about how terrible she thought it was, “all these people with a bit of experience and no qualifications think they can solve anything.” A fraction of a second later, she looked my way and asked, “What do you do?” I’m not a confrontational person, but for some reason, I decided to say what I was thinking. “I think I’m one of the group you were just describing”.

It was awkward for about 10 seconds, but after that, we had a very constructive conversation. Maybe lived experience has no place in conducting open heart surgery, still, there are many areas, such as being neurodiverse or living with depression or anxiety, where much can be learnt from lived experience.

My takeaway from this is that communication is essential. Individuals with both academic qualifications and lived experience are rare. However, both are incredibly valuable. In an ideal world, everyone working towards a common goal would actively listen to people with experience, both lived and academic.