“Skill stacking is simply utilizing various skills that you have acquired throughout your life and combining them in a unique way that is individual to you and far more useful than the sum of each skill separately.” -Jason Link in “The Shortcut Talks” Apr 7, 2019 

Many people battle with the problem that they are not extraordinary in any one particular skill, but rather average, or a bit above it, in many things related to or around said skill. I myself can very much relate to this problem, being quite good at a multitude of artistic hobbies but not excellent in any of them. This has long been a bit of an insecurity of mine, since I’ve grown up in a time and age of people mastering only one thing but mastering it so well that they separate themselves from others simply by being so good.  

It is comforting to know, that even though I’m not so much above average at anything that I could make that one thing mine, I am good enough in a multitude of things that I can stack and use to create one unique thing. For example, I’m studying to be a goldsmith, but I already have experience with social media, a unique style, a lot of eye for beauty, a bit of a knack on simple photography and if I do say so myself, a lot of skill in customer service. I think this stack is optimal for me to create my own jewelry business and reach customers from social media and beyond.  

The other comforting thing about skill stacking is that you don’t have to already have a set of skills that would compliment your one main thing. You can always take short courses and educate yourself on things that you think may help you create your optimal stack, without having to go through years and years of schooling to be perfect at any of them.  

Your own stack can be categorized to so called soft skills and hard skills. Soft skills are essentially skills that a person has learned during their life subconsciously. For example kindness, empathy and good social skills. Then there are the hard skills, that are skills that a person has learned through schooling and work. Examples of skills like these could be language and coding skills, building machinery, or personnel managing. The great thing about skill stacking is though, that we don’t have to differentiate the value of hard skills and soft skills, cause both of these can be equally as important in building your business.