

Is specialization good? - ericthegoodking

I am thinking about specializing in front end development.Would anyone of you with experience advise this? Thanks
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mswen
Many people talk about the "T" employee - the person who acquires deep
knowledge in one area but then acquires skills and experience very broadly but
at a much more shallow level. And if it is a serif font - you have a couple
other areas where you also develop some depth.

A second approach might be more like an "H". You develop two strong
specialties, either of which on their own are valuable. But then you figure
out the cross-disciplinary bridge that ties them together and makes you more
productive and valuable than either would by themselves.

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ericthegoodking
interesting! so are you a T employee or H?

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mswen
I am more like an H with significant skills and experience in multiple areas.
I kid around that I have about a 4 year attention span for learning and
getting pretty good in a new domain. Finding the bridges between domains
generally happens pretty naturally for me.

I have sometimes wondered if very narrow specialization might have been better
from a career standpoint because you are easier to categorize and understand.
However, over some period of years I have come to accept that I am more
interested in a multidisciplinary career.

