Tag: Idea Machine

Gaining Prospective with Gratitude

Image Credit: Pixabay

I realized recently, I have a problem. (No comments from the peanut gallery). It started when I read Walden on Wheels. The further I got into the book the happier I realized the author, Ken Ilgunas, was becoming and, the crazy part was, by the end of the book, he didn’t have much of anything. He had a beat up Econoline Van, some clothes, and other random possession. From the outside looking in he looked like a hobo, a vagabond, or a shifty lay about with no dreams or ambitions. Funny thing is, he couldn’t have been happier. He had nothing and everything all at once. He had freedom.

By the end of the book, I found myself dreaming of being Ken. I wanted his adventures, his determination, and his grit. He’d did what I could only imagine. He got an idea in his head and was determined to see it through to the end. He was the poor man’s Richard Branson (and I mean this as an amazing compliment).

As I read, I wondered what lessons I could learn from Ken. He had a certain “Je Ne Sais Quoi” about him and I needed to figure out his secret. My mind traveled back to my single days and the thought of moving into a van to drive cross-country. Having a family I love, however, made these continued thoughts a little difficult.

It recently hit me like a ton of bricks. I’ve been extremely ungrateful lately. Here I was wishing I was someone else when I had a wonderful life around me. My perspective was all wrong and it needed a change.

It tends to be a cyclical problem. Every so often I realize I’m significantly unhappier and more frustrated than is healthy. I find I needed a reality shift. I needed to change the way I think about my life. I needed to be more grateful for my life.

The Gratitude Journal:

Being grateful, for all the good in my life, isn’t easy for me. I tend to be a “glass half empty” kind of person. If I’m stuck in traffic due to a traffic accident I become angry for the delay instead of being grateful I’m not in the wreck. Why should I be grateful though, the universe is out to get me, right?

The unfortunate part of this level of thinking is it makes it more difficult to enjoy the good moments. Had a good weekend with the family? It gets overshadowed by the impending thought of work on Monday. Go out for a drink with friends? The focus is on the amount of money we spend or the hangover and not the quality time we spend with them. It doesn’t stop here. Work is always terrible, our spouse and kids are a pain, we don’t have enough time to ourselves, and everything is awful.

This is why I started my gratitude journal. Every night before I go to bed I write down 10 things I’m grateful happen during the day. This can be anything big or small. It could be something as simple as enjoying my breakfast to something epic like winning the lottery (though I’m not sure I’d need a gratitude journal if I won the lottery), to anything in between. The important thing is to write down at least 10 gratitudes for the day.

“10 sounds like a lot, Joe. Why so many?” Good question. I borrowed the idea from James Altucher and his writing on becoming an idea machine. Here’s why the number 10 is so important. Most people can easily come up with three things they are grateful for each day. Coming up with 4-5 becomes a little more difficult. Gratitude numbers 6-10 really makes the brain sweat. It forces us to really think about our day and find the little things we can appreciate. Maybe it’s a much-needed hug or an unanticipated thank you. It’s about digging deep.

The journal can be on anything. It can be a notebook, on the computer, on our smartphone, on a scrap piece of paper, or taking time to reflect on the day and come up with 10 in our head. This list can be a onetime thing or be saved to reflect on later. Personally, I use Google Docs on my phone and save each one I write. This allows me to put gratitudes in my phone throughout the day I want to reflect on later.

Here’s an example. Monday my wife reminded me, right as I was walking out the door for work, we needed to bring snack to preschool for my middle son. I was pissed she didn’t remind me sooner. We had all weekend and I could have found time this morning. Now I’m going to be late for work.

After taking time to cool down I realized two things. First, I’m grateful she remembered in enough time for me to help her out. Having to get two kids to school with a baby and having to stop by the store would be extremely difficult for her. Second, I’m grateful I have a boss who’s understanding and was okay with me being late. I was able to turn a negative into two positives. (Did I use them? Of course, I did. Waste not, want not!)

If it wasn’t for my gratitude journal I could still be bitter about it. This would create resentment which isn’t healthy in any relationship. Now I get to be thankful I have a wife who remembered and an understanding boss.

This is why this practice is crucial. There is so much going on in our lives it can be easy to forget about all the little moments which brightened our day. Most of us have plenty to be grateful for, starting with waking up each morning. As my Dad likes to say, “I woke up this morning and put my hand out to the left. Then put my hand out to the right. When it didn’t hit wood from the coffin, I knew it would be a good day.” While it can be a little embarrassing, as a teenager, to hear your Dad make this comment to strangers, I think it’s an incredibly powerful statement. We should be grateful we’re alive because the alternative doesn’t sound pleasant.

I’m not saying we aren’t allowed to be sad or unhappy. Of course, we are but focusing too much on the negative can be detrimental to our health. It’s amazing how a little practical optimism can go a long way. At the very least it helps keep things in perspective.

Don’t think it will do you any good? Try writing done 10 gratitudes every night for two weeks and see what happens. I’m certain it will make a different. Enjoy.

 

Why We Should Want to be a Generalist in a World of Specialists

Image Credit: Pixabay

I’ve always considered myself a Jack-of-all-Trades, master of none. It’s something I’ve taken great pride in throughout my life. While most people would only focus on one or two major areas of interest, I was all over the place soaking up knowledge like a sponge. I didn’t care where it came from, I like learning fun facts and how things work.

I’ve never wanted to be a specialist because it’s always felt a little too restricting. Why be force into learning one particular thing when there’s so much out there to learn on such a wide array of topics. It always felt like a waste.

For a while, I started feeling my manic knowledge acquisition was becoming quite burdensome.  I felt like other people saw me as flighty, uncommitted, and undisciplined. I’m sure they felt like they were on an episode of Pinky and the Brain where I was trying to come up with schemes to take over the world. It’s been stressful to say the least.

Unfortunately, over the last couple of years, I’ve come to face an uncomfortable truth. Companies don’t want generalists. They don’t want the “utility” player who can do a little bit of everything but is still willing to learn everything they need to know about their job. Companies want specialists. The purveyors of a “particular set of skills” companies can leverage for rapid integration of new personnel. The person who spent the last 10 years acquiring knowledge in a particular area to beat out the competition. They want the “best in their field.”

Generalists are often seen as flaky and undisciplined by the outside world. We are unwilling to put in the hard work to pursue excellence and be the best. Our flippant disregard for specialization makes others feel we are a liability instead of an asset.

This level of thinking was detrimental to me for years. I would bounce from thing to thing hoping to find my “one” thing I would be interested in to make a long-term career out of it. But of course, nothing stuck. Sure, there are interests I gravitate towards like business development, nerd culture, fitness, and, obviously, personal development but not enough to make anything land.

Recently, the stars aligned, and my thought process changed. Being a generalist isn’t a burden. Jack-of-all-trades isn’t a scarlet letter I need to wear in shame. It’s a superpower. It’s something I should embrace.

It 2007, Tim Ferriss wrote a blog post on “The Top 5 Reasons to be a Jack-of-all-Trades.” In the article, Tim gives his readers five excellent reasons to be a generalist, summarized here:

  • “Jack-of-all-Trades, Master of None” is an artificial pairing. Using the 80/20 principle we can learn all we need to know about a subject to be considered an expert.
  • In the world of dogmatic specialists, it’s the generalists who ends up running the show. Companies, organizations, the military, and countries are run by generalists who have specialists as sidekicks.
  • Boredom is Failure. Becoming overly specialized can lead to boredom while generalizing creates keeps things interesting.
  • Diversity of intellectual playgrounds breeds confidence instead of fear of the unknown. The more we want to learn the easier it is to connect with those around us.
  • It’s more fun, in the most serious existential sense. The more we find interesting the more unique experiences we can enjoy.

It is a great, short article which is worth taking the three minutes out of the day to read. The thing is, after rereading this article for this post, I felt he missed come critical positives of the generalist mindset. Some added bonuses generalist shouldn’t overlook.

Here are five more reasons to be a Jack-of-all-Trades:

They Better Problem Solvers:

When a problem arises for the specialist they want to solve it using the only way they know how, through their specialty. This could work for them, but it might not be the best solution. Having a broad sweeping knowledge of a greater number of areas allow the generalist to come up with creative ways to problem solve. This could wind up creating an even better solution than any specialist could.

They Pioneer New Industries:

One of the most important ideas, in my opinion, to come from the author/podcaster James Altucher is becoming an Idea Machine. This is where individuals brainstorm at least 10 ideas per day to build up the “idea muscle.” In this daily practice he brings up the notion of “idea sex” where two or more ideas are combined to create something new and different.

This is how entire new industries born. Think about the smart phone. It’s a combination of the mobile phone, the personal computer, and the internet. Now we have faster computers in our pockets than I didn’t when I went to college. Generalists have a great ability to use idea sex to pioneer new industries, due to their vast interests, then the specialist.

They are more creative:

Much like with pioneering new industries, generalists have a broader range of knowledge to use with their creative endeavors. New worlds, art styles, and passions can come by combining two or more areas of interest. Imagine if the movie Independence Day took place during World War 2 instead. It would probably look a lot like the PlayStation 3 game Resistance: Fall of Man. Two seeming different genres were melded together to get something completely unique and interesting. Even a Lord of the Rings is a blend of Norse Mythology, Medieval Fantasy, Tolkien’s experiences as a soldier during World War 1, and his observations of the changes in the world around him.

They make better Specialists:

Contrary to most of this posts message being a specialist isn’t a bad thing. Getting into the nitty gritty of a topic or subject has it’s on set of rewards for those willing to take the time to dig deep. If, however, a specialist decides to broaden their worldview by looking outside of their discipline it could create some interesting opportunities. Especially when the other discipline is completely different.

In a YouTube video discussing the documentary Free Solo about Alex Honnold who was the first person to ever free solo Yosemite’s El Capitan, the director makes an interesting but throwaway comment. Director Jimmy Chin stated, “We needed elite professional climbers that were also incredible film makers and cinematographers, meaning there’s only three or four people in the world you can call.” These individuals were using knowledge and expertise in multiple areas to help with a unique experience they wouldn’t had otherwise.

They are specialists in disguise:

Generalists specialize in the world. They can find something interesting where others might find it unappealing or boring. They like to learn from people who are passionate their interests and try to bring out their excitement. Generalist specialize in “fun facts” and know just enough about various topics to be dangerous.

They may not be concerned with becoming the best in a field of study, but they are happy knowing they can hold their own. This allows them to take what they’ve learned in a variety of areas and combine them into their own unique specialty. Vagabond, dilettante, dabbler, jack-of-all-trades are badges of honor for the specialist who “specializes” in everything.

 

The best part is history is littered with successful generalists. People who took their love and passion for the world and became immortalized. Three of the most famous being Leonardo DaVinci, Thomas Jefferson, and Benjamin Franklin.

Even as the world has gotten small and the demand for the specialist has grown there are plenty of famous generalists including Tim Ferriss and Ashton Kutcher. If someone told me 20 years ago that guy from That 70s Show and Dude, Where’s My Car would become not only a famous actor but a successful investor, philanthropist, and activist, I would have said they were nuts. Here we are, and he is killing it.

It can be easy sometimes to see our generalist desires as burdensome. It’s easy to feel bad when we are unwilling to focus on one thing. It’s easy to listen to the nay-sayers. The thing to remember is it’s okay to be a generalist. This super power of ours gives us strength if we are willing to embrace it. Sure, if we are not careful it will control us, but, with practice, we can become stronger than any specialist. If we continue to learn wherever we can, there is no limit to what we can create. So, let’s get out there, read a book, watch a YouTube video, or have a genuine conversation with someone to learn something new.