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Math & Science Whiz
but I'm an Artist at Heart Dear Dr. Mark, I'm a math-science whiz, but both subjects no longer interest me. My passions are much more about art and writing, in which I am slightly above average. Am I wrong to go with my heart and major in areas that suit me, even though I am not well suited for them? (I'm sure you know what my parent's opinions are.) _ Major Misfit at Michigan State University
Dear Major, Yeah, your parents want you to follow your aptitude and not your heart. It's a tough question, but I'll give it a shot. As I think of the adult patients I have seen, many have felt regret about not going with their heart and instincts in their careers and personal lives. Then again I have also seen just as many people who did follow their heart, only to achieve marginal success, and who regret not doing something that paid better and made them better providers for their
family.
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Wealth may not make you happy, but poverty is nearly guaranteed to make you unhappy. So here's my suggestion: Try to define and determine what success, both financially and personally, would look like in your heart's chosen field. It will help you to go out and talk to people who have succeeded in those areas (and ones who haven't) to hear firsthand from them about their satisfaction and regrets about their career choices. Ask them what they would do differently in their career if they had the chance to do it
over again. You might speak with the professors in the art and writing departments at your college. After this exercise, if your choice of focusing on art and writing passes the "sniff" test, then come up with a detailed plan to get you from where you are now to that level of success that will pass the "sniff" test of your parents. It will be easier to persuade them if your step-by-step plan makes sense, feels right and seems doable. Also give try to anticipate what their objections will be and decide how to
effectively respond to them. If the saying: "People regret more what they didn't do, than what they did," means anything, I would listen to your heart. Finally, just to confuse you some more, it might be worth seeing a therapist to see if there is some underlying reason for losing interest in math and science that is temporary and can be worked through so that you can restore your passion for these areas that you once enjoyed. CC Hint: Math, Science, Writing,
(including music) and most Drawing forms of Art (engineering, design, portraits and painting) use the same side of the brain. If you are good in one and develop your talent, you will likely become good in the others if you can overcome the societal stereotypes which separate these talents and skills. Society may say Art & Writing...Math & Science are incompatible because we associate the touchy-feely type of people with art and most scientists and mathematicians are not touchy
feely types. The truth is, most great artists are not either. Eccentric yes, which is a hallmark of genius (whether in art, business, sports or even on the streets). Eccentricity just means he or she thinks differently than the average person, therefore we find them strange. We don't understand why. Eccentricity is not touchy feely. That stereotype has been nurtured by Hollywood, the theater and celebrity, (allowing for emotional immaturity, selfish behavior,
sexual preferences or narcissism to pass as 'creative' and thus form our expectations). Don't allow social misconceptions to get in the way of your dreams. |
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Math Whiz to Nobel PRIZE |
for LiteratureAlexandr Solzhenitsyn
You can be a mathematician and artist at the same time!
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Considered the greatest conservative writer of the 20th Century, Alexandr Solzhenistsyn received his degree in mathematics because due to the Russian education system in the 1930's, he was not able to attend university in Moscow. "I had considerable aptitude for mathematics," writes Solzhenitsyn for the Nobel Prize biography. "But although I found it easy to learn this subject, I did not feel that I
wished to devote my whole life to it. Nevertheless, it was to play a beneficial role in my destiny later on, and on at least two occasions, it rescued me from death. For I would probably not have survived the eight years in camps if I had not, as a mathematician, been transferred to a so-called sharashia, where I spent four years; and later, during my exile, I was allowed to teach mathematics and physics, which helped to ease my existence and made it possible for me to
write. If I had had a literary education it is quite likely that I should not have survived these ordeals but would instead have been subjected to even greater pressures." Censored, persecuted and imprisoned for what he wrote, vindication came in 1970 when Solzhenistsyn was awarded The Nobel Prize in Literature: "for the ethical force with which he has pursued the indispensable traditions of Russian literature"
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Your brain does not separate art from math and science.
Both writing and drawing are logical, spatially and rhythmically oriented skills...just like the ability to excel at math and science. Consider two of the great artists/scientists: Galileo and Da Vinci. Look to careers that allow you to do both, Science/Math and Writing/Art such as paleontology, archeology, architecture, medical illustration, science writer/journalist, teaching, developer of educational toys, entrepreneur...let that impressive mind of yours consider the possibilities. With your
math propensity...the future is yours. You write your own ticket. Take the show CSI. The creators had to love science to come up with that idea and they figured out a creative way to present science, make it interesting and entertaining, while making a fortune and having a blast. Their passions for science and creativity merged, giving them the best of both worlds. The lesson: Think outside of the box, beyond the stereotypes keeping you there. Stereotypes are simply roadmaps for the uninformed and
cerebrally stagnant. They lead to dead ends because unlike math and science, or art and writing, they ignore alternate possibilities through the incursion of pre-formed conclusions. You don't need to choose between math and science or writing and art. You can do both. And since most people are weak in math and science simply because they are afraid of it or have bought into the idea it is 'hard', you're already years ahead of the competition!
Related Article: But Dad, I Hate Math
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