In the newspaper business, the most valuable person isn’t the reporter who knows everything about tax law. It’s the editor who knows enough about tax law to see how it will ruin a local music festival, and enough about music to explain why the readers should care.
We’ve been taught that being a “Jack of all trades” is a bad thing. But in 2026, being a “Master of one” is a recipe for narrow-mindedness. Here is why you should start leaning into your “scattered” interests.
1. The “Intersection” is Where the Money Is
Innovation rarely happens within a field; it happens at the collision of two fields that were never supposed to touch.
A chef who understands coding builds the next great restaurant app.
An accountant who loves psychology becomes the world’s best negotiator.
The Editorial Rule: If you only read what everyone else in your industry reads, you can only think what everyone else in your industry thinks. Cross-pollinate or die.
2. Range is Resilience
The more specialized you are, the more fragile you are. If your “lane” disappears or the market shifts, you’re stuck. A generalist, however, has Transferable Logic. They understand the patterns of success, not just the rules of a specific game. In the newsroom, we call this “having good instincts.” Instincts are just the result of a brain that has seen enough different types of “fires” to know how to put out a new one.
3. The “Translator” Advantage
Most experts are terrible at communicating with the outside world. They are trapped in their own jargon. If you can be the person who translates “Tech-Speak” into “Human-Speak,” or “Legal-Speak” into “Strategy,” you become the most important person in the room. You are the Connector.
The Action: Stop trying to hide your “unrelated” side-hustles or hobbies. They are the metaphors that make your professional work relatable.
4. Curiosity is Better than Certainty
The specialist is often blinded by what they “know.” They have a hammer, so everything looks like a nail. The generalist has a toolkit. They are perpetually “curious beginners.” This humility allows them to see the changes in the wind long before the experts—who are too busy defending their old theories—notice the breeze.
