“We’re all multivariate, but we get summarized in pithy ways in our lives”. Naval sees humans as naturally broad creatures forced into narrow categories by modern incentives.
“Every human basically is capable of every experience and every thought”. But the industrial system reduces people to single functions. “All humans are broad” by evolutionary design. This breadth was our survival advantage.
Each person’s skill stack creates unique leverage. The banker who combines market sense with relationships builds untouchable wealth.
Building products is “hard, and it’s multivariate. It can include design, it can include development, it can include manufacturing, logistics, procurement, it can even be designing and operating a service”. True creation demands synthesizing knowledge across domains. You need multiple tools to build lasting assets.
Naval rejects narrow specialization. He prefers the ancient model: “you would start out and when you’re young you’re just like going to school, then you’re going to war, then you’re running a business, then you’re supposed to serve in the Senate or the government, then you become a philosopher”. Life seasons where you “try your hand at everything”. This builds deep judgment across domains.
Following your natural curiosity develops multiple talents. Each interest feeds the others through compound learning. You discover what you’re authentically good at through direct experience.
His bear on a unicycle approach proves this works. “When you combine things you’re not supposed to combine — people get interested”. Naval combines angel investing, building products, and philosophical thinking. This creates his unique public reputation and ownership position.
Digital tools return us to this natural state. “We’re going to go back to being small groups of creative bands of individuals”. Modern leverage frees us from industrial constraints. Technology lets you own your output across multiple games.