What You Call Yourself and What Others See You As
As a recent college graduate, I struggle to grasp that I am technically an economist. Nothing really has changed from the month before graduation to the month after. Except now that I have a piece of paper claiming I have a degree in economics. Does this mean I can call myself an Economist? Is a bachelor’s degree enough to call myself an economist? Do I need a Master’s? A Ph.D.? A job called “Economist”?
The Greats
There are so many great economists in the world. From Adam Smith to John Keynes to Milton Friedman and Friedrich Hayek. And one of my personal favorites is Thomas Sowell. It’s hard to believe that I have the same title as these guys. These people revolutionized the field and study of economics. I just studied what they did. Their ideas helped stop millions from starving to death and allowed others to live prosperous lives. I just agree with these ideas.
How is it that we are reading books Adam Smith wrote over 200 years and I can say I am an economist just like him? We all know Adam Smith is on a different level in the study of economics than almost any other economist ever. It doesn’t feel right to call myself an economist, it’s almost degrading the word for the ‘real’ economists, the greats.
Imposter Syndrome
This is the idea of imposter syndrome. It is defined as doubting your abilities and feeling like a fraud. These people find it difficult to accept their accomplishments and question if they are deserving of their accolades.
This imposter syndrome is seen in many fields from healthcare to technology. I believe it has a lot to do with how wide the skill level is in the same field/title. If you work in healthcare that can mean anything from a volunteer nurse to a surgeon. Both are in the same field yet have drastically different skill levels. Even more specifically, a surgeon performing a routine surgery vs a surgeon who creates a new surgery or procedure. One is revolutionizing their field while the other is performing basic surgeries, yet both are surgeons.
Do Titles Mean Anything?
Does the title and what you call yourself even matter? It doesn’t matter if I call myself an economist if no one else perceives me as one. The way others perceive you is more important than what you call yourself. This is in terms of respect within your field. I can claim I am a doctor but how many people will actually perceive me as a doctor if I have never performed any healthcare treatment?
I believe being an economist, or any title you wish to call yourself is more about going through the motions of what is to be an economist. Rather a piece of paper claiming you are an economist. Meaning some people who have an economics degree aren’t economists if they don’t do any economics work, but also someone without a degree can be an economist if they go do the work of an economist. If I research and study economics and try to revolutionize the field, I am an economist. But I won’t need to call myself one, if I do the work people will see me as one.
What You Do Matters
A king does not need to announce he is king. If the people perceive him to be a good king they will obey him. If the people do not perceive him as a good king, they will disobey him regardless of the number of times he calls himself king.
I think Elon Musk does a great job of showing how useless titles are and that what you do is more important than what you call yourself. He recently changed his title at Tesla from Chief Executive Officer (CEO) to TechnoKing of Tesla. Proving that it doesn’t matter what you call him, he can be called the janitor of Tesla but still be the one who is revolutionizing the electric car and self-driving industry.
What you do is more important to who you are than what you claim to be.