In a change of direction from scientific content, I’ve decided to expound on some outside readings and inner-thoughts I’ve had over the past six months which have informed my recent actions and future decisions.
At the end of August 2021, I had a conversation with a great friend, Stryker Lewis, about career goals and my plans after graduation. Afterwards, I focused my plans after graduation on assuming “risk” and deviating from traditional career paths, especially as that pertains to science majors. I knew quite well I wasn’t interested in medical school or obtaining a PhD, yet science in general was still a deep interest of mine. And like most college aged males, early 2021 was when I caught the cryptocurrency bug. (If you’re at all interested in the Real Estate/Sustainability space, I’d encourage you to check out Stryker’s writing below)
I recently finished David Schwartz’s book “The Magic of Thinking Big” and one of my biggest takeaways was his characterization of “The Fact Man”. In his story, the fact man was able to answer a niche question about some mountains in Argentina in response to a businessman’s question. Yet Schwartz develops this idea that being a human encylopedia is of little value to a business owner, for the value/knowledge a “Fact Man” brings is just a google search away. The business owner then says “what I want around me are people who can dream and then develop the dream into a practical application”. Since August, I’ve spent time dreaming of ways in which my interests and unique capabilities can address lofty ambitions, all the while trying to remain focused on practical applications and progress.
I don’t believe traditional career paths orient our minds and dreams to solving problems or developing applications. Largely, these career paths are focused on and driven by “credentialism”. Work at _____, obtain a degree from _____, make _____ as a starting salary. Yet when I look at those changing the world, their efforts are centered on the creation of novel applications and solutions. They’re “Idea Men” not “Fact Men”.
As such, I’m choosing to focus my early career on idea generation, not fact accumulation. The university system largely incentivizes its participants to accumulate facts. You may get lucky and have a few professors that drive home the idea of critical thinking/individuality or are bought into your personal development or interests, but in the end the vast majority of academic institution’s purpose is to issue credentials.
Lets briefly consider individuals who break away from fact accumulation and instead pursue idea generation and evolution. I’m most inspired by those awarded Thiel Fellowships, an award given by investor and inventor Peter Thiel of $100,000 to skip or drop out of college to pursue their idea. I think of the way in which incentivizing idea generation led to Vitalik Buterin working on Ethereum instead of merely studying computer science and economics. Accumulating facts and inadequacies about the financial system pails in comparison to Ethereum, which in one way addresses the inadequacies of the existing financial system.
How I Choose Idea Generation Over Fact Accumulation
Unless I chose to pursue a PhD, and the hypothetical contribution of a novel thesis to the scientific community, it might be hard to imagine my plan to build out unique ideas within science and between my interests. My aforementioned conversation with Stryker led me to confidently approach unique minds within the scientific x crypto community. As such, I’ve found myself participating in ecosystems and novel systems at the forefront of longevity and psychedelic research. Both focus on how the unique capabilities of cryptocurrencies and blockchains can disrupt novel drug research and development pathways. I value the ambiquity and current immaturity of these groups, and look forward to putting my own stamp on these ideas.
My two main early career goals that incentivize personal idea generation over fact accumulation:
How my personal participation in D.A.O.’s can address deficiencies in existing scientific structures and institutions, chiefly I.P. ownership and patient-driven funding of relevant scientific research
How my personal experience in a university research laboratory can inform the development of token communities to equally distribute the true “equity” of scientific research.
In the spirit of idea generation, I hope one phrase, sentence, or concept from the above writing sparked a thought or critique in your head. If so, I’d love to hear about it.
Bravo to you on striving to become an "idea man." Some of the most novel & successful people of our time are those who pursued IDEAS! I can't wait to see where you will go on your journey! Wishing you a few more successes than failures - and don't forget to relish what you learn from those failures!!