The Frontiers of Humanity: Art, Science, and Entrepreneurship
Here’s a theory I’ve been playing with: all of the ways that humanity can progress fit into one of these three buckets: Art, Science, Entrepreneurship.
They are each in their own way a pursuit of new or more precise truths.
Science: Pursuit of Objective Truths (understanding the universe)
Art: Pursuit of Subjective Truths (understanding ourselves)
Entrepreneurship: Pursuit of Market Truths (revealed preferences through behavior)
From these disciplines come massive improvements in quality of life for the rest of humanity and future generations.
Science has given us massively increased lifespans.
Art has given us self-reflection and beauty in our lives every day.
Entrepreneurship has given us comfort, safety, and joy.
Think of some of the most renowned humans in history:
Leonardo DaVinci: painter, illustrator, engineer, scientist, theorist, sculptor and architect. Most famous as a painter, he was also technical and something akin to a sci-fi concept artist taking nascent technologies and designing possible uses.
Benjamin Franklin: writer, scientist, inventor, statesman, diplomat, printer, publisher and political philosopher. After his early years focused on entrepreneurship, he became a diplomat and inventor, creating organizations, products, and even… a country?
Something these fields have in common? Tinkering pays off.
Good art comes from a process of experimentation and craft. Great entrepreneurs are often shocked by the turns a business takes as it evolves to meet real market needs.
Scientific discoveries often come as a complete surprise. In Academic Science, a PhD is supposed to represent a clear reward for novelty, for adding a new piece of knowledge to the human colossus. However many tinkers and amateurs make meaningful contributions outside of academia. (Taleb even makes the case that real progress ONLY comes from tinkering.)
What I do with this idea… is give myself permission to tinker and play. My midwestern work ethic sometimes prevents me from doing “art for art’s sake” or tinkering just to see if something works.
When I remind myself…
1) art, science, and entrepreneurship are the frontiers of progress, and
2) that these are all best done casually instead of rigidly
…I become happier in the moment and more productive in the long-run.
Some of the most engaged and passionate people I know are engaged in one or more of these 3 pursuits. Thinking about my work as pursuit or support of these disciplines, with my own unique talents, interest, and assets has been a real shift.
While I’m not much of a scientist yet, I admire the polymath’s career journey we see in some of the greats. Tinkering our way toward a world a little more beautiful, and little better understood, and a little more comfortable.