5 min read ⌚ 

Life design for people with too many interests and talents

There is such a thing as too many talents, after all.

In this summary, we reveal how you can cope with your constant need to acquire new skills, and finally find the field in which you will become an expert.

Who Should Read “The DaVinci Curse” and Why?

Do you envy people that seem to have so many talents and are good at everything? Or are you one of them yourself?

Having a wide array of talents is not something as good as you think.

In fact, it is a curse, since these people never end up developing one specialty, and as a result are Jack of all trades and masters of none.

We recommend “The Da Vinci Curse” to multi-talents who want to stop hopping from one hobby or interest to another, who want to stop learning just the basics without never really developing any particular skill.

About Leonardo Lospennato

Leonardo Lospennato is a writer who has studied engineering and formerly worked for IBM and e-Bay.

He is a multi-talent himself, who ultimately ended up following his passion: making custom basses and electric guitars.

“The DaVinci Curse Summary”

Specializations have never been more important as they are today.

The amount of information and knowledge available is growing rapidly, and the world needs people who can act on it with absolute precision.

This change brings around a wider array of job profiles, but at the same time makes it hard for people who feel like they have more than one passion.

These days, it is crucial to choose where you focus your attention. You want to be the best in one specific area.

Being the best there is is not possible if you allow your attention to scatter around.

It is a hard time for multi-talented people since all of them feel a need to realize all of their talents.

However, usually, when they do decide to chase some of their passions, they lose their interest once they master the basics.

And basic knowledge is not enough.

Another reason why Da Vinci people switch hobbies, jobs, and interests is that they fear competition.

They do not feel motivated by someone pushing them to attain a new level of competence.

Instead, they decide to switch once things get turbulent and interesting.

They tell themselves that having the basics of skill means that they can master it whenever they can – if they want to.

Doing this allows them to maintain their self-esteem and continue believing their talents.

However, a lack of clear direction does not yield extraordinary results. Moreover, it makes these Da Vinci people unhappy.

Being Jack of all trades does not make them masters. It just gives them a superficial understanding of a subject which they cannot actually use in practice.

And of course, after some time spent changing hobbies and interests, they inevitably start feeling like they wasted time.

Even worse is that they do not know which is the field they genuinely want to get devoted to.

When they realize that it is not possible to bring all of their talents together, they start feeling overwhelmed and stressed out.

So, how do you escape this cursed path?

The answer is much simpler than what you might have expected.

The key is to find a single activity which is complex enough that it incorporates all of your interests and talents.

Just finding a simple task will not be enough, since if you are a Da Vinci person, you will be satisfied only f a task is complex enough.

Okay, the answer is clear, but how do you go about finding such a vocation?

The author has the answer in the form of a three-step approach.

The first step is preselection, which is actually creating a list of all the activities we would like to do.

After creating this inventory, you have to evaluate each activity focusing on three questions: do you have the talents for it, is it fun, and last, but not least, can you make money from it?

Those activities that do not match some of these criteria have to go.

When the stage of preselection is over, you will have to do a more systematic evaluation of the activities that are left.

You can do this by refining the questions you ask. Pose questions like how much fulfillment each activity brings and how much income potential does it have.

The last step is what is crucial to the plan not to fail.

In this step, you have to evaluate the fears you feel when you think about your plan. Does it scare you too much? Then you are too ambitious. Does it not scare you at all? Then you will not progress.

Work on the plan until you find the sweet spot of fear. Also, avoid procrastination. Find a way to beat it, since procrastination is the worst habit you can develop.

Dream on, but at the same time, stay as realistic as possible.

Key Lessons from “The DaVinci Curse”

1.      Having Many Talents Makes You Feel Like You Do not Fit In
2.      Focus on One Activity
3.      The BCG matrix

Having Many Talents Makes You Feel Like You Do not Fit In

The world we live in requires specialization.

People that have many talents want to develop them all, and as a result end up developing just the basic understanding of every skill, without getting deep enough to become specialists.

Ultimately they feel like they do not fit in and like they cannot find their calling.

Focus on One Activity

Find one activity that you will pursue and specialize in.

When you are looking for this activity, make sure it is not simple, since multi-talented people are drawn to complex tasks.

So, find the activity that incorporates many of your talents. To find it use the BCG matrix.

The BCG matrix

Use the BCG matrix to find your calling. This matrix is consisted of:

• • Cows – activities that produce cash flow but are not fulfilling

• • Dogs – activities that provide neither fulfillment nor cash

• • Stars – activities that bring both

• Question Marks – activities we enjoy doing but are not likely to bring in money

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“The DaVinci Curse Quotes”

Our Critical Review

The message this book conveys should echo all around the world!

I myself am a Da Vinci person, and I have found it hard to concentrate on just one of my passions.

This book resonated with me in so many different ways, so I warmly recommend it to all people who want to finally find the dream that is worth pursuing, and to become the best they can be when it comes to the calling of their choice.

Emir Zecovic

Emir is the Head of Marketing at 12min. In his spare time, he loves to meditate and play soccer.