Mastering My Unmastery

Jacks of all trades can have it good

The phrase “jack of all trades, master of none” intrigues me. I often hear it in a pejorative manner, disparaging the fact that the “jack” knows many things but not good enough to be an expert in any.

I don’t understand why it is disparaging, though.

I took Gallup’s Clifton Strengths assessment several years back. It assesses someone’s strength in 34 categories and reports his top 5 strengths. When someone uses his top 5, he feels happiest and performs at his best.

One of my top 5 is Input. People with this strength are described as inquisitive and needing to collect — information, ideas, even objects. Basically, I find many things interesting and want to have a piece of them all.

This encompasses almost all aspects of my life. I like to try many things — new food, new music genres, new games, and hobbies. I learnt a few foreign languages, enough to show off some phrases but not to converse with natives.

In short, I am a natural jack of all trades. And I am proud to be one.

For those using the term to refer to themselves in a self-deprecating manner, I’d say accept being a jack of all trades as a positive. Embrace it as a strength, a skill that you can build on just like any other skill.

I repeat, Input is a Strength.

It’s possible to pick a few trades and go deep, to eventually be very good in one or several of them. Congratulations, you graduate as an expert, possibly in multiple areas.

But I contend you can grow without focusing on trade under your umbrella. Instead, grow the umbrella. Why not be the “jack”-est of all jacks?

For me, that is building Input strength. Instead of reversing your lack of mastery, harness your unmastery.

Rather than benchmarking yourself on how well you can perform in one area, you can measure the reach of your skills. Aim to increase the number of distinct trades that you are exposed to.

Or if uniqueness is your thing, aim for increasingly obscure niche areas in your catalogue of trades.

Or even find a combination of the most divergent trades that may create something new so wild and creative. Imagine the novelty of something like heavy-metal music crossed with knitting. (Oops, sorry, that has been done.)

This breadth of interest can distract, as my mind roams everywhere. I have had to figure out ways to manage it when I need to focus.

But other times, I am happy to unleash this roaming tendency, consciously even. Focusing on unfocus, that’s how I think of it. It lets me enjoy a rich life with satisfaction from various minor accomplishments. Something I cannot imagine experiencing through mastery of a single area.

Who says jacks can’t go more places than aces?