What differentiates the genius from the common person? If we start from the immutable principle that ensures that all people have the same level of intelligence, the best answer to that question must be:
That the genius learned to wonder why and to look for the answer while the common person wonders why and waits for someone else to give him the answer.
But the answers to any question are not given in pots, nor are they available in all books, and much less do they come easily from the mouths of those we consider wise.
The answers to the questions are found thanks to the effort and dedication that goes into investigating them and, above all, to creating them if the elements found are not convincing enough.
In order to find answers, you must have enough information and, at the same time, have extensive knowledge. Knowledge arises from experience, contact with reliable, measurable and sustainable data that enjoy logic, acceptance and a good dose of opposition that drives man to continue inquiring.
The knowledge acquired through experience is of great interest because thanks to it the consequences of an event or the depth of a reflection have been documented and transferred and, with this, the data that make academic education possible have been created, which is nothing more than a compendium of information ordered and adjusted to a part of the reality that you want to explore and of which you are expected to be a specialist.
Sería sencillo para la mayoría si los datos que generan el conocimiento fuesen estáticos y repetitivos, pues al igual que una oración que se reproduce constantemente sin alteración; se aprenderían de memoria y no sería necesario escudriñar más en su concepto. Pero, tal y como lo afirmó Heráclito “lo único constante es el cambio” y esa verdad inevitable es lo que ha permitido al hombre alcanzar el nivel de conocimiento que posee en el presente aún cuando un importante número de paradigmas que había logrado desarrollar han sido prácticamente erradicados del inconsciente universal y, por lo tanto, hoy no se goza de tantas ventajas como alguna vez pareció ser el día a día.
In the past, man was subjected to a kind of knowledge storm that made him a true possessor of a 360 vision of the world in which he lived. He knew languages, science, calculations and everything that was necessary for his creativity to generate the ideas that have made possible the advances that humanity enjoys today.
About five thousand years ago knowledge and knowledge ceased to be simple figures drawn in caves and became writing thanks to the Sumerians.
This shock wave reached civilizations such as the Egyptian, the Greek and the Roman, while in an inexplicable way to the same in America and Asia.
There are records that show that ancient man was educated in all the sciences known for the time, the historical Moses, for example, was instructed and trained by the most important sages of Pharaoh, although such a situation suggests, and with good reason, that few they had access to existing knowledge.
Another example of how diverse, extensive and important to be properly formed in the ancient world was subtly depicted in Mel Gibson's film Brave Heart, when in the portrayal of a real character, Sir William Wallace (1270 - 1305 AD), introduces a Dialogue where his fiancée tells him that he cannot read and asks Wallace to teach him to do it and he asks "in what language? Throughout the film you can see events where the complex education received by the character helped him to successfully face most of his company.
But one of the most significant examples of the scope that knowledge possessed in the past is found in the life and work of the ingenious Leonardo Da Vinci (1452 - 1519 AD) who became the obligatory reference of the Renaissance and who, without a doubt It must be the role model in the 21st century and in the years to come.
Leonardo stood out in almost all the disciplines known for his time, he was a writer, scientist, painter, sculptor, researcher and above all a great inventor. All that versatility gives Da Vinci a place of honor in history that claims him as a true genius, but the truth is otherwise. Leonardo was an ordinary person who simply did not expect to get his questions answered from other people, nor did he settle for the dominant paradigms of his time. He studied, questioned and answered many of the questions that were asked and developed the ability to look beyond the limited borders of his time.
When humanity was just entering the world of modern anatomy, Da Vinci had already discovered the cause of arteriosclerosis and some of its possible causes. The man did not even think about the use of sophisticated machines to face the battles when Leonardo had already devised the War Tank and the Diver Suit.
It was his curiosity that prompted him to extend the limits of the known and to leave a legacy that still amazes the world today.
But what does this have to do with the modern professional?
The dominant paradigm of the present is oriented to the specialization of the professional, knowing well about a particular something apparently ensures a stable and promising future, or at least those are the expectations around this statement. Despite the present reality in that immediate future that awaits is completely different, markets and companies are increasingly oriented towards having trained personnel in multiple areas in order to face the challenges that constantly appear due to the inevitable advance of competition, technology and knowledge.
The world no longer requires people with a one-dimensional vision of the environment, that worked in the past and was the basis for the creation of large multidisciplinary teams that attacked problems or challenges in different areas. But the trend that began in the 1980s calls for doing more with less, and that includes people. If you have a limited number of collaborators who have a broad and complex vision of the organizations and the scenarios where it operates, it would be the equivalent of having a wide group of specialists in the same area offering their opinions and hoping to achieve the consensus of the organization. most.
Leonardo Da Vinci was a complete professional in various areas and his condition demonstrates the limitless capacity that man possesses in any setting if he stops acting like an ordinary person and begins to develop the attitude of genius.
In the present, one of the most successful means to achieve that 360 vision that thinkers and inventors experienced in the past in different times, is found in the constant and diversified completion of postgraduate studies and in the personal and particular exercise of the knowledge arising from those activities.
For example, a personnel management professional cannot limit his knowledge only to what refers to human capital, his decisions, plans and strategies affect the company in areas such as finance, accounting, marketing, sales, production, services, advertising and image, therefore, the person in charge of that area must know enough about each of these disciplines to be able to make more accurate and even extraordinary decisions that generate results and consequences of high significance. That is why today it is not strange to observe doctors, lawyers, engineers and other branches that seemed to be divorced from the administrative issue present in master's degrees in business administration (MBA).
The foregoing means that a professional in a particular area cannot limit himself to seeing things from his knowledge niche, because even though he sees he will never have all the information he requires to take on the business he undertakes with real success. It is necessary to know and know about other disciplines.
Possessing a university degree does not form the genius, that is another immutable truth, it simply gives the individual tools and data so that they can put together a part of the puzzle with some ease. But not all. For this, it is necessary to be in constant preparation, to be able to observe the scenarios from a three-dimensional perspective that allows not leaving all its sides unexplored. Only then will you be a true professional.
A complete and multi-skilled professional. The professional required by the markets, companies and organizations of the 21st century and who, ironically, is not at all different from the profile of a renaissance man such as Leonardo Da Vinci.
