Idea Agent

NOT ALL THE PASSIONATE ARE CREATED EQUAL

It is easy to oversimplify and label practitioners in a field as sharing traits and even personalities. Perhaps the most widely accepted stereotype is that of scientists and engineers as “nerds.” When people think of scientists, they often see them as “left-brain” people: logical, sequential, rational, analytical, and objective. When you take the time to know them, however, you see it differently. Some of the most successful people in scientific, technical, or engineering fields also make room for “right-brain” traits: intuitive, holistic, random, synthesizing, and subjective. They follow their hearts. And such is the case for practitioners in any field. The “impassioned” show a vibrancy in their personal ...