In ancient Greece<\/p>\n\n\n\n
the Olympus was this place where,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
up on a mount,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
people considered to be \u201cGods\u201d in their field…<\/p>\n\n\n\n
like in trading (Hermes),<\/p>\n\n\n\n
warfare (Ares),<\/p>\n\n\n\n
or farming (Demeter), for instance…<\/p>\n\n\n\n
lived,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
and enjoyed a range of upsides (vf: avantages, bons cot\u00e9s) their past successes had brought them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
All while,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
down in the valley,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
the townsfolk would do their best to deal with everyday life struggles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMaking it to the next day\u201d was sure part of what these people hoped for.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As well as wanting to know \u201cWhat\u2019s life like from up there, at the top? How things look?\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So they, too, could experience something better than what they had for a life (in the valley).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The same kind of hopes we have these days,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
you and I,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
when you think about it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Even if words like \u201cBest\u201d,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cTop\u201d,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cGreatest\u201d,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
and \u201cG.O.A.T\u201d have replaced \u201cGod\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the way we talk about someone who has \u201creached the top in his or her field\u201d,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I mean.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Let it be in chemistry (Rosalind Franklin),<\/p>\n\n\n\n
boxing (Muhammad Ali),<\/p>\n\n\n\n
sci-fi writing (Isaac Azimov or Arthur C Clarke),<\/p>\n\n\n\n
architecture (Frank Lloyd Wright or Frank Gehry),<\/p>\n\n\n\n
car design (Giorgetto Giugiaro),<\/p>\n\n\n\n
advertising (David Ogilvy or Mary Wells Lawrence),<\/p>\n\n\n\n
pop music (The Beatles),<\/p>\n\n\n\n
or else.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The main difference with our Greek great-great,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
great-great-great,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
great-great-great cousins being this:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It\u2019s easier today to find information about the people we look up to,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
or want to be as successful as,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
than it was in ancient Greece.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Also,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
to get a sense of an \u201chow to\u201d…<\/p>\n\n\n\n
of a blueprint-for-success to follow,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
than it used to.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
now,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
we can learn as much as we\u2019re capable to read,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
listen,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
watch and remember.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
All that from a few books and a few clicks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In some cases,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
the amount of details-to-be-found can go down to what time this hero of ours woke up,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
up to what time she went to bed,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
at night.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
at the same time,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
be so wide,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
for a range of information,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
that it can allow us to understand what,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
both,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
the worldview of that person,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
her thinking process and work habits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Making for truckloads of anecdotes,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
insights and loose ends.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Loads we\u2019re tempted to keep growing,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
at some point.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Cause we\u2019re not sure if what we\u2019ve gathered is enough,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
to get us started on the same path our hero took.
<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And, moreover,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
if these loads are also enough to give us some guarantee.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That we\u2019ll succeed as much as she did,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
if not more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Yet…<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In all these information loads we end up with…<\/p>\n\n\n\n
about those who \u201creached the top of their field\u201d…<\/p>\n\n\n\n
there\u2019s one piece that gets overlooked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Which one?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The \u201cdrive\u201d that those who end up being called \u201cBest\u201d or \u201cGOAT\u201d have,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
to put what they learn to the test.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Over and over.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So they can find out the true value of an information.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cCan it help me reach the goal I\u2019m working on? If so, in what way?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Cause not all information are equal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Some are worth more than others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At least,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
it\u2019s what someone realizes when he goes from \u201cletting things he learns pile up and go unused\u201d,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
to starting to \u201ctake action based on them\u201d.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Not all info are equal. Some show their true value only when you take them for a test-drive<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":1015,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[373],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1016","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-work-life"],"yoast_head":"\n