The co-founder and CEO of Tesla has one key advantage that most of us should put into practice.
Elon Musk he is one of the smartest, richest and most powerful people in the world and he is not afraid to take on new projects. The "wizard" behind SpaceX, Tesla and the Boring Company is known for his work discipline and is willing to put in a grueling 85-hour work week for his passion projects and businesses.
Musk is constantly on the hunt for knowledge and has a talent for applying his knowledge to various disciplines. You could say it is the most important modern polyhistor.
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Infographic prepared by Resume.io, provides insights into Musk and other pioneers and entrepreneurs that can inspire you to pursue your own ambitions.
And what key does Musk offer to learning and retaining new information? It is important to look at the knowledge as a kind of semantic tree - make sure you understand the underlying principles ie. trunk and large branches before you get into the leaves/details, as they have nothing to hang on otherwise.
Professional generalist
Musk's statement goes against the traditional advice that to be successful you need to specialize and be qualified in a single area of expertise. "The jack-of-all-trades is master of none", goes the old saying. And yet, Musk has proven many times that this is not only possible, but also beneficial.
A “generalist” is by definition someone who is able to acquire expertise in a variety of disciplines, industries, skills and topics. Polyhistorians such as Leonardo da Vinci, Thomas Edison and Nikola Tesla made innovative use of such broad knowledge.
As a modern polymath, Elon Musk proves that a broad study of different fields of knowledge can give us an informational advantage that drives innovation. Musk can integrate unique combinations of skills and knowledge and transfer his learning across disciplines.
You may not have the time or energy to devote 85 hours a week to improving your skills and knowledge, but it's still worth putting some effort into. The beauty of being an expert generalist is that this is probably easier to achieve and more rewarding than becoming a leading expert in just one area.
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Musk's concept of a "semantic tree"
The concept of the "semantic tree" is intended to deconstruct knowledge into basic principles, so that you can build your knowledge on a solid foundation. From a young age, Musk has read extensively to satisfy his thirst for knowledge, and establishing a varied and methodical reading habit is a useful learning technique for any ambitious individual.
Here's a simple four-step process for approaching a new topic.
1. Define your topic. Take some introductory lessons or find some foundational texts, such as undergraduate textbooks or reputable journal articles, so you can get a solid overview of the basics.
2. Take notes. Summarize key facts and ideas in your own words to make sure you understand what you read. Read the notes until they make sense.
3. Expand your horizons. Once you get the basics from one text, find additional sources by checking the references and citations of the original source.
4. Test yourself. If the information you learned is practical, try it out in real life. If they are theoretical, try explaining it in a simple way to a friend or colleague to check your understanding.
Expanding your understanding of different fields can be beneficial both personally and professionally. You may find that you enjoy multi-tasking after all.
