Where Does It Lie When It Comes To Being An Expert?

 Across the internet spectrum when it comes to fitness courses and the foremost authority on training, where do you draw the line of finding someone with expertise in their field that is worth pursuing? Many claim to be an expert in this or that along with even going as far as calling themselves masters of the craft or even a level beyond mastery which in reality, an extreme few even hold up.

Speaking for myself, I can't call myself an expert or even remotely someone with authority when it comes to fitness; yes I have been around it off and for 25 years, more so in the 16 years where I've trained everyday trying all kinds of stuff under the sun. Do I know some things? Very much so. Do I have a good opinion on what works and what doesn't? Yeah sure but as an expert, get real. When it comes to "expertise" or having some kind of knowledge, how would it be defined? By the amount of years you've had within it? By how many certifications you have? By forming an opinion after decades of READING a book? Where do you draw the line of calling someone or yourself an expert?

Ego, willing to stomp on the competition or even going as far as humiliating someone in order to get by doesn't help in becoming an expert in something. Some people are very knowledgeable like Bud Jeffries, Steve Maxwell, Ed Cohen, Dan Gable and Ed "Strangler" Lewis all have/had strong and treasured knowledge in their respective fields and yes I would consider them experts. Their ability to learn from trial and error, failure and success and driven to be the very best, made many people under them very successful in what they were taught. By far, when it comes to wrestling, conditioning, progressive training, building mental toughness and which spots to work with for various individuals, these guys are the very best.

Certifications have their place which is true but real expertise comes into play on how you apply your knowledge with your sense of character and understanding of not just the field but to help give people opportunities to develop their own skills is the mark of an expert. Granted not many guys in their 20's and 30's (myself included) have a complete authentic level of expertise and from the level of that age range they do have a great skill set that they can get by on. This isn't a knock or an insult to anyone, I firmly believe that when someone who has a great sense of knowledge and skills in their field can help me whether it's 20 years or 100 years of experience and I want to learn, I give them a chance and see what comes of it.

I can give an opinion and share my experiences since I've been around this since I was a teenager but not at the level of high end expert. I never claimed to be one and I don't believe in having authority over others who have way better experience and knowledge than I do. I want to help as many as I can who ask for it and sometimes I can't answer or give someone something to learn because my knowledge does only go so far and direct them to someone way more qualified than me. Sometimes my answers for people can be heard as crude, maybe too basic and downright weird but I do what I can. 

Some claimed experts are complete assholes and like to use this narcissistic mindset that because they're an expert should be treated like a god and whoever doesn't agree with them is scum. Very few experts in the world have a great sense of morality but are firm in their beliefs due to their experiences and who to work with. 

Being trained under someone like Bud Jeffries up close, he makes you feel like you can understand what he teaches and makes it relatable so you can learn and succeed in your own line of training; that to me is an expert I want to continue with. My session with Garin Bader back in 2010 still gets me to this day in a good way because as odd as he was, it made me feel like he could be one of the guys and show you stuff that is exciting and enthusiastic. Garin is a very unique person, like Bud, he puts a stamp on training that is often times off the wall but makes it fun and enjoyable while learning how to value the true aspects of creating something not just physical but emotional, mental, spiritual at times and you can't help but smile about it. 

So one last time, where does it lie when it comes to being an expert? For me it boils down to great knowledge, the ability to understand people, have extensive wisdom from experience and proving that success is real with proper applications of the field you're in. Some people can get away with it by just on certifications alone and the ability to manipulate by showing credentials that in reality are sketchy but go over someone's head. Credentials can only get you so far, the proof and the authenticity of that proof tends to show the true nature of an expert.