Do you know the difference between a generalist and an expert? Listen as Tom and Yana disagree on whether you should be one or the other and when it is best to be both. They volley back and forth until the very end where they finally found consensus both elements are essential. This is an entertaining conversation, as always, and you won’t want to miss it.

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Today’s Episode:

• [00:23] Hello and welcome back to the show!
• [00:30] Tom shares the topic they are discussing today.
• [02:23] Tom defines a generalist as someone who specializes in many areas.
• [03:22] Tom believes an expert specializes in a few domains, one who can dig down to the nitty-gritty.
• [04:57] Yana respects what Tom said, but she feels they are missing the big picture.
• [06:22] Have you heard of expert tunnel vision?
• [06:45] Yana believes that tunnel vision means something different.
• [07:37] Yana shares when she believes being a generalist is essential.
• [09:19] She believes that it is good to start as an expert, but the higher you get the more you need to be a generalist.
• [10:11] Tom explains that he agrees with some of what Yana says, but he shares his own insight.
• [13:09] Tom chats about being able to evaluate different situations is a level of domain expertise.
• [14:29] Tom’s point of view is that you can’t get by with being one or the other; he feels you need to have both.
• [16:00] Yana states that the longer she is on this entrepreneur journey and the longer she learns to solve problems, facts don’t help as much.
• [17:19] They agree that both elements are very relevant.
• [18:37] What was a fact two years ago isn’t a fact now because they operate in a fast-paced environment.
• [20:17] Thank you, and we will see you next week.

Show links:

• How to get in touch with us, if you’d like to tell your startup story: Yana on Instagram, Tom on LinkedIn