HomeAbout a month ago, I was interviewed by two different sets of high school students. Their questions mostly revolved around my background, my current position, what steps/events got me to where I am now, and what advice I had for them. One of those pieces of advice that I gave at the time was that they should find some Art that they could find a passion for and cultivate that as a hobby. (an aside is that most of these students were interesting in physics or engineering) I found out after that this was very similar to what many of my fellow interviewees had said.
I have been thinking about this advice since then. I feel it is common advice given to folks. No matter what you do find some creative outlet and cultivate that to make yourself more well rounded. This is very similar to the Liberal Arts education I received at St. Mary’s College (and one that I am very thankful for!) However I am beginning to think that it is a bit flawed. Yes, we should encourage students to take some arts class in college (and hopefully beyond) whether it is a photography class, set design, painting, dance, etc.
BUT this only targets the creative side of our brain, the non logical, often chaotic side. Which we do need to stimulate otherwise we run the risk of becoming cubicle zombies. But we should also flip that and in the same way we encourage study of the Arts, we need to encourage study of the Sciences. Just as there a wide range of Arts so too are there a wide range of sciences. And a varying degree of depth to them! Just as we tell people to grow their creative and intuitive skills we need to be telling them to remember the scientific method and apply that to problems in the workplace. I am a firm believer in creative and intuitive problem solving, but logical progression has its place as well.
In addition, by finding the right scientific interest we can pique those same creative juices! Imagine the wonder of reading and learning about the solar system or having a passion for the depths of the ocean?!
Many seem to think that in order to be interested in Quantum Computers and to know about it, you need some combination of computer engineering, physics, and advanced math degrees. And you would most likely if you wanted to get into that field professionally, but there are many books, videos and websites that make Quantum Computing accessible to average people, but as photography can be made accessibly to those people who do NOT want to be professional photographers for the New York Times.
To wrap up, in order to create a fully balanced person, one truly able to adapt and appreciate their surroundings/life, we need to encouraging in equal measure exploration of the arts AND the sciences not as career paths, or life long quests but as things that can hobbies, can be explored on an hour long commute or on the weekends.
