From the world of B-schools, this professor says being a polymath learner is the new normal for college grads. He neatly encapsulates just why being a specialist is simply no longer enough for 21st century learners.

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Many of us confuse generalists and polymaths, so it’s important to understand the difference.

‍Generalists are people who, having done a bit of everything, have picked up a bit of everything. You’ll find them in every company, but seldom at the very top.

Polymaths, on the other hand, have a good – if not high - working knowledge about multiple subjects, and do specialize in one or two of them. What really sets them apart from specialists or generalists is their ability to inter-connect seemingly unrelated concepts to create new or unique ideas.

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‍It’s how Elon Musk can run multiple billion-dollar companies in totally different fields; how DaVinci could be an artist, inventor, scientist and sculptor at once; and how Steve Jobs used his knowledge of calligraphy to invent a world-changing computer.

Polymaths have a learning pattern: they read a lot and are fearless learners. They are comfortable questioning the narrative, and are great at inter-disciplinary thinking. In essence, they have the perfect set of effective learning skills one needs in the 21 century.

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Because of their ability to connect atypical ideas in unique ways, and think about problems in new ways, Polymaths see the world differently. Their unique, well-informed, well-reasoned perspective is a prized competitive advantage, especially in an AI-powered world that doesn’t need humans as repositories of information or even unusable knowledge.

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Why 21st Century Learners Need to be Polymath Learners

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