“Jack of all trades, master of none…”

Have you heard or seen this quote before? It’s usually used to passively aggressively insult someone’s inability to be masterful at one specific thing. But did you know that there’s another part to the full saying?

“Jack of all trades, master of none, but oftentimes better than a master of one.”

Sometimes, in our fast-paced society, especially as high-schoolers and future college scholars, we are inclined to believe that we should hone in on one ability- or a talent of ours and stick to that… solely. Don’t get me wrong; it is really important to know where your strongest areas are so that you can become as masterful and grow as possible in your desired interests. However, our brains can really take advantage of a broad toolkit of skills. These include a boost in self-esteem, higher levels of confidence, and brain plasticity. 

Maybe you’ve taken a look at sport and said, “Oh, that activity isn’t for me.” or “Learning this language is really difficult! Maybe I’ll stick to what I’m good at instead…”. Don’t limit yourself! Break your barriers, let your fears loose into the depths of space. You don’t know if this new activity could be something that relaxes you, or something that makes you feel happy or accomplished. On the other hand, there’s always the possibility that it could go horribly wrong and you might never want to do it again. However, this is just part of the three-part cycle of learning. As Amanda Hill once said, “Try. Fail. Learn.”

As students and young adults, we still have ample time to go out into the world and experience the wonder of learning new skills. As we become older, that time gets compromised as piling responsibilities and work start to fight for most of our attention. Let’s make the most of it.