Which one is better?

Which one is better

  • Total voters
    40
  • Poll closed .
anjoo said:
Which one do you think is better- to be jack of all trades or be master of one?
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brahmtewatia said:
i would like all those self-proclaimed “masters” to list at least one trade/discipline where they really consider themselves to be masters.
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Sir g i think Anjoo g asked our view it doesn't mean that people who are in favour of Master of one in real life they r masters i think:rolleyes:. And even i wonder if there is anyone who is jack of all trades?
But i have pointed out whom we can consider as masters of 1 trade and i like to be them thats my wish only. Like Tendulkar, Tigerwoods, Aryabhat and so on.
 
rajivsp said:
Let me try ( and its also true for all Indians )
1)
Al Barouni, the famous Arabic logician and traveler of the 10th century, who spent about 30 years in India from 997 AD to around 1027 AD. According to him, during his visit, most Indian pundits considered it below their dignity even to hold arguments with him. In fact, on a few occasions when a pundit was willing to listen to him, and found his arguments to be very sound, he invariably asked Barouni: which Indian pundit taught these smart things!

2) Indians done a very good job in IT and recognized by the whole world. Many times I have seen Indians are ready to accept any kind of job whether they know it or not. And not only they accept the job but do it in perfect manner.

3)
Here on JL most of the people are ready to express their opinions in each and every thread whereas topics discussed here on varied subjects.
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Sorry for sounding rude on this , but my answer to all of the above is :


SO ?

What I mean is that it still does not prove anything to me. I think it would be person speicific to if he is master of all or none or etc , generalising is too difficult. :)

I would agree with you that the sharpness and the work ethics of Indians make them preferable to any manager in some jobs ( IT , quant etc ).
 
anjoo said:
The context is our professional life.
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Kind of knew that , still wanted to calrify.

Well let me put some real life examples for the discussion to progress.

I choose 3 persons from the organisation I am working in. A , B , C.

Profiles:
A is 16 years on job , jack of all and master of most(infact all) , really admired everywhere in the firm , he is an SVP. From top down , he reports to an EVP who reports to Tech Head(MD).

B is an SVP , 11 years on job , master of 1-2 , does not involve himself in anything else. He reports directly to Tech Head.

C is 9 years on job , jack of all , master of none, very good at coordinating , finding people who can do the job for him. He is an EVP andd reports to Tech Head.

In terms of position: C > B > A
In terms of work/knowledge : A > B > C.

and to substantiate what Brahm said , it is the "generalist" C which runs the show! :)

Probably that gives you some hints on what do you need to do ? :)
 
I agree with USP and also with the "Generalist", that is why i said , I would prefer master of one(few) and jack of all.
 
anilsinghd said:
Sorry for sounding rude on this , but my answer to all of the above is :


SO ?

What I mean is that it still does not prove anything to me. I think it would be person speicific to if he is master of all or none or etc , generalising is too difficult. :)

I would agree with you that the sharpness and the work ethics of Indians make them preferable to any manager in some jobs ( IT , quant etc ).
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I don't see any rudeness in your answer. And we can not generalize things because each and everyone is different from others. When two real brothers are not same how can we say something for everybody. But still I have feeling ( may be again fail to convince) people here in India know ( or just pretend) tooo much about everything and very reluctant to listen other's opinions - Masters of all trades why to listen ( My personal feeling ) .
 
very silly question :D its like asking what do u prefer legs or hands

everyone knw a bit about smething or they can always knw a bit if they r interested nd everyone knows lot more than a bit about something.
 
Umm...interesting question...

be a jack who can convince anyone to be master of any trade.... LOL

RK^2
 
but then no one would allow me to grow roots and become stronger.[/QUOTE]

Hello Anju,

May I ask how does the answer to the question (Jack of all Trades vs. Master of One) help you deal with the actual issue at hand i.e., quoted above ? I see a mismatch here.

Perhaps a more appropriate question would be:
What is it that will allow me to grow roots and become stronger in an organization?

Asking the right question is important to finding the right answer.

Cheers and all the best to you!
 
Last edited:
Urmila ji,

Appreciate your comment and guidance, thank you.

I just presented one of many scenarios while explaining the context to carry the discussion forward.

Taking cue from your post, please allow me to rephrase-
"What is it that will allow me to grow roots and become stronger in an organization- be a jack of all trades or a master of one?"

Regards
Anju
 
I guess one goes from being 'jack-of-all-trades' to being an 'expert'[ Master as a word exist in degrees only because its relative] in growing. First stage helps in learning and second one helps in strengthening your roots. First stage throws ideas/thoughts/insights/ about one's 'Naturaly gifted capablity'. From generalisation to differentiation. Its inside out. I excluded the 'genius'.
 
Actually there is nobody in the world who is a jack of all trades, It is an expression often used but there isn't a human being in this world capable of knowing something about everything so your question becomes kind of redundant. It is more a figure of speech and that's it.
 
Could the thread starter please give real example's of jack of all trades and master etc..?
Orrrr .. don't bother ... it does'nt matter
 
hi

Life isn't about trying to be an expert in everything.
It's about being an expert in one thing
and sharing it to others.
 
ram-ram everybody

i think it totally depends on a person's nature whether s/he want to become jack of all trades or master of one........some people find it interesting to explore new things, whereas other want to know everything about a single "entity or object" it is also situation specific that which one is better....
take the example of IAS exam .....only those persons clear the exams who have a thorough knowledge of all their subjects , they cannot clear the exam by mastering only one subject......on the other hand to prepare for their exams they need a person or tutor who is master of that subject........
so we cannot compare which one is better.......it is my personal interest which make one better than the other and for me only , not for .others......

and for me, being master of one is better than jack of all.
 
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