Reason for RHL
Valentin Perez defends the “generalist > specialist” mode of being, criticizing the concept of “having too many interests is a sure path to mediocrity”. In other words, jack of all trades and master of none.
Besides having more fun and simply coming up with [better ideas at the intersection of multiple fields](why PKM) (the PKM graph experience!), he also argues, “Becoming amazing at the intersection of two or more skills is easier than becoming amazing at a single skill.”
His Renaissance Human Lifestyle (RHL) project is his way of bundling the pursuit of many interests and the cultivation of many skills, all into a single concept or project.
Why Renaissance?
It was a period in history when there was a “rebirth” in art, philosophy and science. The best example was Leonardo Da Vinci, who developed multiple talents and was commonly referred to as a “Renaissance Man.”
Perez’ RHL process
- Listing the areas where he wants to develop himself, not in any order of importance. He also attempts to explain the individual value of each area, even as simple as “I’ve fantasized about X but haven’t really given it much time. I want to change that.”
- Developing a system that enables the lifestyle/project. In essence,
Make several of the areas daily habits.
Have another “dynamic” daily habit called Renaissance Human Activity, where I switch what the activity is, depending on the day of the week. I’m currently thinking of doing either one 1 hour activity or 2 40min activities in this “daily habit”.
Continually think how I can improve the system.
- Document the experience and share.
Perez’ Renaissance Human Lifestyle project appeared to have lasted less than a year (started September 2018) or 28 weeks, based on his Medium blog documentation.