Dan Arnautu

How do you distinguish a real polymath from a dabbler?

4 posts in this topic

This question really fascinates me and I've been trying to find an answer to it for quite a while.

How do you distinguish a person that is genuinely passionate about multiple domains of life and for whom combining skills would be the right thing to do, from somebody that is just confused or that hasn't tasted enough things to find his/her real domain of mastery?

I really see polymaths as being stigmatized in our modern society. From my perspective, they are seen as people that can't commit to one thing, as jack of all trades and master of none. And most successful people say that you have to pick one thing because Leonardo da Vinci was one in 10 million people. But what if a real polymath hears that? He may doubt himself and stick to one thing because he doesn't believe he can be a polymath like Leonardo, because the odds are against that, even if his/her heart tells him or her that.

I have friends who have college degrees in multiple different domains and they have to leave things out of their CV out of fear of being seen as a person that can't commit. But these people are just passionate about everything in existence. They just have a trouble of finding a middle path and make the domains they study somehow work together.

And I see that it's pretty hard for them to find a job.

Not only because they are not committed to one thing, but because the job pulls them in a direction that is different from all their other equally fulfilling passions. And that's why they often can't fulfill their full potential until they go do their own thing - until they find some sort of way to combine all their passions.

In addition, I remember Sadhguru saying something like "How can you not be passionate about everything in existence? It's a limitless possibility. If you are not passionate about everything in existence, you are a constipated life. That's what you are."

What are your thoughts on the topic? Do you agree that you have to master one thing even if you feel you are a polymath? Or how do you think one can figure if he or she is a real polymath?

Edited by Dan Arnautu

”Unaccompanied by positive action, rest may only depress you.” -- George Leonard

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I googled what polymath means and in my native tongue it translates to "a common genius". Thats on hell of a title :D I would not consider myself as a common genius, but I am involved in multiple unrelated hobbies. Mastery indeed is a tough one. It would be easy if I were good at just one thing, but I'm good in many things but master at none.

I think this issue comes down to your life purpose, as few of my hobbies lose significance when the scope of things is my whole life. Mastery is not some separate thing from your life, it should be integrated to it. I have not studied Leonardo, but I would guess that if you ask him: "what is your life's purpose" he would have answered in some way "the things I do". But was he happy? Was he enlightened? How about family life?

I could spend my whole life mastering all my hobbies, but I know for certain I would not be happy and I would burn out. 

Considering the "job interview" issue, I don't know, sometimes you need to manipulate people if you WANT some outcome, like a job. Thats how social situations often are, unfortunately. 

There is nothing wrong with dabbling with some thing, but dabbling with your life is another thing entirely. What do you want out of life? I would drop the idea of "I am a polymath/ I want to be a polymath" as an idealized version of yourself and focus on life purpose and pursuing your passions. If your hobbies are your life purpose, well, there you go :D

Edited by molosku

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@molosku Great input. 

Well, if one has 10 hobbies for example it's very hard to turn that into a life purpose.

Balancing broadness with depth is indeed a very tricky balance to make and it can take years or even decades to resolve the confusion.


”Unaccompanied by positive action, rest may only depress you.” -- George Leonard

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@Dan Arnautu but as you discover your life purpose, you see that some or most of them are not in the core of your life purpose. Those are the ones you dabble with. That, or you find out your purpose is to be leonardo. 

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