Spotlight on specialization: a three-part medley

Medley review

Specialization is often lauded as one of the keys to success, but seldom do we hear much aside from the heavy hitters of business, finance and medicine. Not so at this MET Medley, which showcased subject areas known to many but mastered by few: beauty, sport and food.

Simon Berrill, our able medley host, began by outlining how and why to specialize, suggesting paths to take. He then handed over to our speakers: Ruth Simpson (beauty), Laura Bennett and Timothy Barton (sport), and Michael Farrell (food). All four speakers illustrated their expertise, divulging insider knowledge and detailing their journeys into specialization.

Proving that those journeys are unique, our speakers peppered their talks with career-defining anecdotes: Ruth working in the Doncaster Body Shop as a teenager, Laura reliving bittersweet memories of Italia 90, Tim limbering into the world of Graeco-Roman wrestling and Mike chowing down on priest-stranglers.

Interactivity is a hallmark of MET events, and all speakers took questions from the Zoom floor in the Q&A sessions, tackling the critical topic of money in terms of pricing (per hour or project?) and higher earnings.

We thank our specialization team, Simon, Ruth, Laura, Tim and Mike, for sharing their stories and inspiring attendees to carve out their own niches.

On that note: one key aspect of specialization is getting to know others who work in your field. To that end, MET has created a dedicated Facebook group, MET Niche Chat, to help members make connections and share their knowledge. Join the group now to meet other specialists working in your area. All welcome, beginners and experts alike.