In our world of digital amnesia, where so many people struggle to remember basic facts, the allure of the modern day polymath is stronger than ever before.
I’m talking about people who dance effortlessly across multiple disciplines.
But not just dance. All kinds of people can fox trot across several interests.
We call such people “Jacks of all trades.”
No, the true polymath dances and leaves footprints.
They make their mark in art, science, technology, the humanities and other fields.
They inspire us because their lives stand testament to what it’s possible for humans to achieve.
Each polymath mirrors back to us visions of our own potential.
And each polymath leaves clues we can use to craft extraordinary journeys of our own.
Let’s take a moment to analyze what exactly it is that allows some human minds to achieve so much in so many fields.
As we go, I’ll “reverse engineer” what I think is going on in each case.
Ready to ignite your own journey towards becoming a polymath?
Let’s get started!
What Is a Modern Day Polymath?
Any individual who excels in multiple fields of study or practice is a polymath.
Traditionally, we consider someone a polymath if they have an encyclopaedic memory, or personality traits that drive them to interconnect multiple areas of interest.
A lot of people think curiosity, adaptability and interdisciplinary learning characterizes the standard polymath.
Although that’s usually true, my research tells a more nuanced story.
Ultimately, what matters is a combination of both depth and breadth across multiple disciplines. And that comes down to three major factors.
The 3 Most Important Characteristics of the Modern Day Polymath
According to Ericsson and Pool in Peak: Secrets from the New Science of Expertise, polymaths tend to combine a few lifestyle factors:
- They use a lot of mental imagery to previsualize various outcomes.
- They engage in deliberate practice over substantial periods of time in each area.
- They know how to leverage their time and resources.
This final point was made by Waqas Ahmed in The Polymath, Unlocking the Power of Human Versatility.
It’s an incredibly important consideration because getting things done through others is common to many polymaths.
We tend to focus on the myth of the individual. But in nearly every case, part of the polymathic characteristics we’re seeing comes how people leverage the time, expertise and resources of others.
Here’s what else makes this point so important:
Often when people use the word polymath, what they’re actually talking about is autodidacticism.
Teaching oneself can make one look polymathic, but it’s not quite the same thing. We’ll see examples of how this difference plays out in today’s examples.
10 Famous Polymaths & Hidden Geniuses
As humans, we’re naturally drawn to familiar faces.
The list you’re about to go through will not disappoint.
However, I also want to introduce you to people you might not have heard before. These polymath examples will help add dimension to our working definition.
One: Elon Musk
When it comes to the idea of going deep and wide, the image of Elon Musk never leaving the office provides perhaps an extreme example.
According to my interpretation of Ashlee Vance’s book on Musk, high energy levels is one of his defining characteristics.
He also has well-developed business skills and a strong imagination.
You can experience his skills with mental imagery by listening to his vivid descriptions of future technologies and various scenarios.
He’s also a practitioner of “first order” logic, a form of critical thinking that helps you cut to the chase very quickly.
Another skill is perhaps a controversial one:
Musk is adept at dealing with the controversy that surrounds him.
You can learn a lot from him about how he leverages time, people and other resources. But managing multiple companies while putting up with so much flack is one of the more interesting tools I’ve noticed in his tool box.
Two: Viggo Mortensen
You probably recognize his face from the Lord of the Rings movies.
But did you know that Viggo Mortensen is a poet, musician, photographer and painter?
And he manages to do all of that while maintaining his reputation as an actor who goes deep when preparing for his roles.
He has brought to life some of my favorite characters most especially in his collaborations with Canadian film director David Cronenberg. The depth of his research and preparation shines through in every movie they’ve done together.
Besides the skills I’ve just mentioned, Mortensen must have tremendous time management skills.
Check out the review of his book Coincidence of Memory above.
Oh, and let’s not forget that Mortensen also founded Perceval Press. He established it in 2002 with Pilar Perez.
Even with a partner, not everything about juggling so many roles has always been smooth sailing for Mortensen. As he told Today, his acting duties have sometimes caused him to drop the ball on the press.
But that only reveals another skillset that we all can practice:
Humility.
Three: Oprah Winfrey
When it comes to dedicated practice, few can claim to have put so much time in front of so many different kinds of cameras than Oprah Winfrey.
From media mogul to actress, producer, publisher and philanthropist, Oprah has gone deep into multiple areas of expertise.
It’s the skill of collaborating with others that makes the biggest mark, however. She not only leverages her own time effectively, but works with countless people to manage her media empire and charitable work effectively.
Someone she also finds time to read widely. Her book club selections have included everyone from self-help guru Eckhart Tolle to the literary maverick Cormac McCarthy.
For more insights on how Oprah manages to pull it all off, read her interesting book, What I Know for Sure.
Four: Peter Christopherson
Let’s depart from the mainstream to examine a more obscure figure.
Peter Christopherson is perhaps best known for being a central figure in the music group, Coil.
Christopherson’s expertise spanned from music production, composition and performance to strong visual arts skills.
He directed music videos, including for the Trent Reznor band, Nine Inch Nails.
In all of these areas, Christopherson specialized in creating immersive experiences.
But there’s also the show business aspect he managed.
Although conducted in a manner characteristic to the fringe, you can learn a lot from Christopherson about how to thrive in niche areas of interest.
I suggest reading the books Everything Keeps Dissolving and England’s Hidden Reverse for clues about how to make it as an independent creator.
As an independent publisher myself, I’ve learned a lot from studying marginal polymaths for clues on how to brand, market and thrive despite existing on the margins.
Five: Mayim Bialik
How many actors do you know who also hold a doctorate in neuroscience?
Mayim Bialik does.
She also involves herself in educational outreach, leveraging her time effectively between academia and entertainment by working with co-authors.
She’s written about how others can integrate multiple activities while still parenting successfully in one of her books, Beyond the Sling.
Another aspect to consider when it comes to the polymathic skillset is dealing with media.
As an actor, you’re essentially representing the shows and movies you star in.
Bialik has demonstrated a high level of skill in how she interacts with the media. You can learn a lot from observing her interviews.
Six: Olly Richards
Imagine learning to speak eight languages and then going on to sell a million books while running two separate online businesses.
That’s Olly Richards.
I’ve been following his career since meeting him at a polyglot conference over ten years ago.
At the time, he was using one of his strongest skills as an English teacher in Cairo.
But when he decided to turn his language learning blog into a career, he went all in.
Since he’s also got a degree in music and years of experience performing piano, he was no stranger to the deliberate practice it takes to make it online.
His skills as a performer translate well to his booming YouTube channel.
But the skill that amazes me above all is his ability to create, organize and manage teams of people.
If you’re interested in mastering multiple areas of talent, make sure you check out everything about Olly you can find.
Seven: Mae Jemison
What’s more impressive?
Playing a character on an episode of Star Trek or actually completing a space mission?
Here’s a better question:
How about both?
Mae Jemison is that person skilled enough to bridge these two activities together.
As she discusses in Find Where the Wind Blows, much of what she has accomplished in science, space flight and even acting come down to the ability to dream.
If all of these accomplishments (including writing a book) didn’t make Jemison polymathic enough, check this out:
She also built her own dance studio.
Then she choreographed several modern jazz and traditional African dance shows.
I wonder if she used some of the memory techniques for choreography to help develop the skills involved?
Eight: Bruce Dickinson
Regular readers of this blog will know I’m an avid heavy metal fan.
And in that genre, Iron Maiden is one of my favorite bands.
Little wonder.
Their singer, Bruce Dickinson does more than head the band with his legendary “human air raid” vocal style.
He’s an author, fencer, broadcaster, alcoholic beverage entrepreneur and even an airline pilot.
That’s no joke.
When he’s in the pilot seat, he takes it seriously.
Not only that, but the fact that he can fly the band’s jet has enabled them to tour to locations musicians normally can’t reach.
There’s an incredible documentary that highlights even more of Dickinson’s skills. While also showing just how much fans around the world appreciate how he’s used his skillsets to bring more entertainment to more people.
And always with yet another skill he’s developed over time:
A wicked sense of humor.
Nine: Amy Tan
We often think that people are famous for just one thing.
But Amy Tan is a lot more than just a novelist.
She’s got a musical background from her youth, one that she has explored in adult in a band with Stephen King.
You can see them performing together in this video and her voice is not too bad:
A lesser known fact is that she’s written business speeches for executives.
Part of her ability to pull this off comes from her own success in running her own author business.
If you’ve never written books or run a business, it can be hard to imagine just how much time and effort each of these areas requires.
But she pulls it off well and even finds time to teach other writers while advocating for causes she believes in.
When it comes to novels, it’s worth noting too that she’s worked on an epic saga.
Taking on long-form fiction requires different skills than short stories and standard novels.
So whenever assessing someone’s creative output as you analyze polymaths, it’s important not to lump all kinds of output together.
Keep in mind that she’s written memoir too, which requires yet another level of skill.
As noted in the book Sparks of Genius, many highly creative people who excel in multiple areas of expertise interleave between various dimensions of related topic areas.
It helps the creative polymath notice patterns with greater ease and then amplify them to great effect in an interdisciplinary way.
Ten: Greg Graffin
We don’t often think of punk rock singers as zoologists.
But that’s exactly what Greg Graffin is.
His Ph.D. in zoology focused on evolutionary biology.
And his incredible intelligence shows up a lot in his lyrics, which often bridge science together with philosophy.
As the only constant member of his band, Bad Religion, he’s developed multiple skills needed to survive in show business.
He’s also recorded solo albums.
And as if that wasn’t enough, he’s taught both life sciences and paleontology at the University of California.
He’s also exercised his writing skills. On top of writing memoir, his catalog includes a scholarly analysis of the problem of population.
A major lesson from Graffin is that he builds upon and branches his skills.
His academic interests serve as a foundational core that are “repurposed” in his art. This is another form of leverage that you can emulate in your own polymathic journey.
Do You Want To Become Polymathic?
As you can see, time management is a key part of how someone develops multiple skills in multiple areas.
But it’s also about leveraging your crystal intelligence so you can compound its value over time.
It’s on this basis that you can practice both dreaming big and critically thinking your way to the core bases you’ll need to cover to make progress across more than one field.
In sum, the skills you need to develop include:
- Deliberate practice
- Combining depth and breadth without sacrificing one for the other
- Working with mental imagery
- Cultivating interdisciplinary skills
- Curiosity and a commitment to lifelong learning
- Collaboration with people who enhance your efforts
Beyond that, it helps to have solid memory skills.
If you’d like help with that, grab my free memory improvement course:
Through four video lessons and three worksheets, it will guide you to create a Memory Palace.
This unique learning tool will help you remember everything you read today.
And deeply absorb everything you need to retain as you take steps to develop and maintain multiple skills.
There’s no way I would have developed my own polymathic skillset without this learning method.
So what do you say?
Are you ready to explore the vast landscapes of human potential as you become a polymath?
One last tip:
Avoid doing it merely for yourself.
Develop your skills for the benefit of others.
That’s how you will truly transform the ordinary into the extraordinary as a polymath.
You don’t have to take my word for it. All of the best philosophy books say so.
