In Defense of Polymaths

Many of the most successful people — both today and in the past — have demonstrated interest in more than one subject: Charles Darwin, Elon Musk, Steve Jobs, Richard Feynman, Ben Franklin, Thomas Edison, Leonardo da Vinci, Marie Curie, and many, many more. A study of the most significant scientists in all of history uncovered that fifteen of the tw

... See more

Another advantage is flexibility. The polymath approach is about diversifying, and the more varied your resources, the more resilient and adaptable to change. It goes a little further than future-proofing your career—a real polymath designs their own career. They don’t have to worry about being left behind in dying industries; they’re the ones at t

... See more

Polymaths have been called amateurs, dilettantes or even charlatans

New disciplines need serial polymaths, and in the age of specialisation, this was a job that was left polymaths to coin new disciplines.