I just want to jot down this thought before it escapes me. One type of skill (Type II) is to know the intricacies of a bureaucracy, set of rules, etc., such as patent law, the structure of government, or the rules of bridge. This can be a valuable asset to an organization. Another skill (say, Type I) is to know the intricacies of (for lack of a better term) natural world, such as scientific questions that could apply if people were not around, or being able to evaluate whether a piece of technology will work, or predicting the effect of a policy on the market. Now, this last example might seem to creep into the first category, but I classify it with the “natural world” because people are part of the natural world, and to some extent act the same way regardless of time, place, citizenship.
OK, all that is rather rough, but in terms of what skills I want and would like to use in a job, I’m pretty sure I prefer Type I skills.
