Thursday, March 12, 2009

Justification for Lack of Specialization

Robert Anson Heinlein said, “A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, and die gallantly. Specialization is for insects.”

Right.

I’ve got some work to do.

4 comments:

Neighbor Jane Payne said...

Oh, oh! I love this. Just to know it's okay to be a jack of all trades, master of none is a huge relief...because I didn't see mastering in the near future.

Cali said...

Ande,
Heinlein forgot a few... be a friend to all, enemy to none, know how to use excel, be able to set the clock on your VCR (oh wait, humans don't have VCR's any more). Whew... mark that one off the list. Oh, and when you die gallantly in the end, be able to say, "I have NO regrets."

Yup, I think that sums it all up now. ps. I loved that quote. The best part was "specialization is for insects."

Unknown said...

So does this mean I shouldn't go to law school? Or just that I should go to business/medical/dental/every other grad school possible as well afterwards?

Rebecca said...

What planet is this guy from? Will he 'take me to his leader'?