CAREER: No Experience? No Problem!

In the early stages of a new career, many people get stuck in a cycle of needing to gain experience, but not yet having enough experience to get the jobs or projects that will give them that experience. You can’t get the job because you don’t have the experience. But you can’t gain the experience if you don’t get the job. To counter this, talent expert Jason Shen encourages you to highlight your ability, not your experience. He argues that hiring systems that only value experience miss out on a wealth of fresh, untapped talent. He suggests expanding your search beyond the conventional channels; look for work in unlikely places. Increasingly, young and progressive companies are hiring based on portfolios rather than resumes. Because they know that experience does not always guarantee talent — but passion and solid work samples do.