Do you have credentials, or are you competent? There’s a big difference. It used to be that going to school and earning credentials was how you built competence, but that system is being bypassed by a new way of learning, thanks to the microchip and the internet, that develops competence without necessarily qualifying you for a credential.

This matter came to mind this week as I dealt with a business executive who frankly, didn’t do a very good job of selling me and servicing me, but who wanted to be sure I knew they had both a Juris Doctorate and a Masters in Business Administration. Frankly, I’m not impressed. I needed skilled assistance, and I cared not a whit about the qualifications of the person who provided it; only that they were able to get the job done.

Competency produces value. Credentials produce certificates to frame and hang on your wall. One matters. One doesn’t.

Personally, I have a fair number of credentials; a big wall of certificates indicating that I’ve got degrees, designations, licenses, and titles. At one time I was proud of those. I thought they qualified me for something. But they didn’t. They only gave me entry into the competitive arena where the gatekeepers have arbitrarily decided that you must have that particular credential to enter the playground, but with the advent of technology allowing delivery of content “around the system” of gates that the institutional gatekeepers have installed, those gatekeepers and what they keep inside the gates are becoming increasingly irrelevant.

Credentials give you confidence. You don’t know what you are doing, and you know it. But, because you have a credential you are able to psych yourself onto the playing field because you “feel” like you know what you are doing. That’s why young people are so proud of their credentials, and while middle aged professionals can’t find their certificates, degrees and awards. They have learned that the credentials don’t do anything for anybody. It’s knowing how to use what you know in order to deliver an effective result—that’s what people pay for.

Credentials are optional. Competence is required. If you are a consumer of education, you need to ask yourself whether you’ll be earning a credential, or becoming competent. If you are an educator, you need to ask whether your curriculum which leads to a credential is creating competence. If it’s not, your institution is going to join the dung heap of those that missed the point.