The Modern Renaissance Man
2024-08-11
Special eyes, specialize, special lies
Specialization has long been considered essential for human progress, with society relying on experts in various fields to advance knowledge. However, the past 15 years have witnessed a significant shift in this paradigm. The internet has democratized access to information, creating opportunities for multi-disciplinary expertise that were once limited to the privileged few.
While time remains a constraint, the digital age has made it possible for individuals to learn virtually anything, given sufficient dedication. This development blurs the lines in the specialist versus generalist debate, introducing nuances to our understanding of expertise.
Setting aside the internet's potential drawbacks, it has become a place where one can encounter authorities from diverse fields in a single space. Social media platforms like X (formerly Twitter) have become particularly valuable for following thought leaders and industries that might otherwise seem inaccessible or irrelevant to one's primary focus.
A fascinating phenomenon has emerged from this accessibility: the ability to construct a comprehensive worldview based on insights from experts across multiple disciplines. By engaging with specialists in technology, politics, religion, history, philosophy, and other fields, one can gain a more holistic understanding of various industries and global issues.
This convergence of expert knowledge online creates a mutually beneficial ecosystem. Experts seeking to share their insights find an eager audience, while knowledge seekers gain access to a wealth of specialized information. This symbiotic relationship facilitates a broader, more interconnected approach to learning and understanding the complexities of our world.
What comes with opportunistic eras, is obligation and responsibility. How many say, "Well, I would have [sold a startup during the dot com bubble] [bought Bitcoin in 2011], but I was only [not old enough] years old!"
Imagine what your descendants will say when they learn of this period and realize you were one of the unlucky (or uncommitted?) souls who could not save his bloodline from perpetual poverty. This is why we must learn, create, and produce at rates we have not seen before. None of us will be the ones to create OpenAI (create Facebook), but many of us may find success "building on buildings" (never forget that Zynga, creator of Farmville, was sold to Take-Two Interactive).
