Generalist or specialist?

The world has become so full of career paths that we are spoiled for choice. What do I become? Where do I leave my mark? What is the point of it all? A graduation, a post-graduation, some work experience, a lot of money, and then what? Back to the same old question: what is the point?

I will not pretend there are no obvious answers. Survival, money, fame, respect. But there is no finesse in them, no grand scheme. Survival is basic. Money and fame fade. Respect is the bigger challenge, because it cannot be bought and it cannot be rushed.

Start with what you refuse to become

So first things first: what should I become? The easiest way in is to find out what you definitely do not want to become. Cross those off honestly, and a surprising amount of the map clears up.

The old argument

That leaves generalist or specialist. Here is where I have landed, for now.

Specialists go deep, and the world needs them. But most real problems do not respect job titles. A pitch deck is a strategy problem, a writing problem and a design problem at the same time. Someone who knows only one of those hands the rest to someone else, and the thread gets dropped in the handoff.

The generalist's edge is the thread. Knowing a little of how a boardroom thinks, how a sentence lands and how a layout guides an eye lets you see the whole problem at once, and carry it all the way through. Sixteen years across strategy, marketing and visual storytelling taught me that. It is not about being average at many things. It is about being good enough at each to connect them.

If you are choosing a path right now

Do not start with a title. Start with what you refuse to become, follow what keeps you curious, and let the combination become your specialism.

I may well change my mind. If you have chosen differently, or I have missed something obvious, I would like to hear it.