There seems to be two schools of thought when it comes to learning. 

The first school of thought argues that a high degree of specialty is required for one to perform well in one’s endeavour. The second school of thought argues that it’s important for one to acquire skills from many areas of life in order to cope with life itself. As the scope of discussion is very wide, I will like to confine our discussion to the profession of individuals. This will allow us to look at the issue in a more detailed manner.

And the two categories that we are examining are:

• Specialists: These are the individuals who tend to be very focused and specialised in their professions. Some professions that are commonly associated with this school of thoughts are doctors, computer programmers, architects, lawyers and accountants.

• Generalists:  These are the individuals who work using a wide range of skills which are required in their professions. Some professions that are commonly associated with this category include customer service executives, recruit consultants and individuals in the service industries. A common similarity that can be found in these professions is that these are professions whose bulk of work deals primarily with people from all walks of life.

Personally, I believe in both schools of thought as I feel that it’s always good to have a wide domain of knowledge rather than confining oneself to an area of expertise but it’s also important to have an in-depth understanding in certain areas. While it’s true that having too much general knowledge seems not to be useful at first glance (although it does help one to have an edge in some trivial games), someone who have expertise in many areas can be very good conversationist. And many business deals and friendships are created and forged through social interactions.

And it’s hard to imagine the consequences of computers programmers not being adept in design and layout when their clients request for their website to have a more aesthetic feel. Or architects to reject proposals which have asked for a more unique architectural structure. In both cases, it can be seen that not only is it crucial for one to have both depth (specialty) and breadth (scope of knowledge) when it comes to knowledge, it is also vital that we are able to blend art and science together (since these two entities form almost the entire spectrum of the world of knowledge).

Therefore, whenever you feel that you might be learning something that is of minimal use to you now, take heart that what you are learning today will probably help you in the near future.

 So, be curious, attentive and focused in everything that you are learning.