The World Needs Serial Specialists

Generalists have been getting a bad rap in modern times, but it wasn't always like that.

In the early days, many great thinkers, inventors, and philosophers were polymaths. But businesses nowadays seek highly specialized people, failing to acknowledge the importance of generalists in modern times.

Generalists aren't clouded by a single subject. What drives them to solutions is their insatiable curiosity. And when you're too close to a problem, you can only see what's in front of you, like the view of a frog. By taking a bird's view, you can tackle a problem on a larger scale.

What we need more of is not just more specialists, but serial specialists. I came across the term while reading "The Neo-Generalist."

The idea is that we can't generalize all the time, and at some point, we've to specialize for a period, adding to our toolbox before letting our curiosity lead us to something new.

It's like a serial entrepreneur. They start several businesses, one after the other, but don't stay for many years. They either step back from the company or sell it to someone else so that they can start something new.