Compulsion and obsession are not ordinarily well respected personality traits, probably because they're often used to describe either over-zealous fans or the criminally insane. However, amongst those few members of society who manage to be incredibly successful, one of the things we mere mortals are likely to admire is their ability to achieve a laser-like focus. Whether their goals are making huge amounts of money, or winning all-out glory in sports, their single-minded drive is truly inspiring.

In fact, those who are able to achieve this monomaniacal focus are rewarded in the most inspiring way possible: with money. According to Michael LeBoeuf, author of Finding the Millionaire in You, has been quoted as saying, "Winners focus; losers spray." With this statement, LeBoeuf has joined the ranks of authors who are able to sell books by codifying, in simple language, the sorts of things that most people already know (even if they don't know why they do).

Popular opinion, that bellwether of all our own deeply hidden thoughts and emotions, bears this out. We are willing to accept that somebody who is good at something can only be good at that one thing. Naturally, there are a few exceptions, but we can ignore them for the moment, mostly because there are many more examples of popular figures who have their asses handed to them whenever they try to branch out.

Take Ethan Hawke for example. For years, people seemed to accept the fact that he was an actor, and a sort of attractive one at that. An informal poll reveals that he was thought of as, "Ok, but not great." And then he started writing novels, at which point, he became a joke. Really, the outpouring of hatred was something to behold.

Now, before you say, "Maybe that's because he's an not a very good writer," allow me to make a suggestion. Perhaps being a very good writer has very little to do with being a respected author. More to the point, although he's not a very good actor, few people ever actually said that he shouldn't be acting.

In any case, the condemnation was certainly too quick, too knee-jerk, and promulgated by too many people who hadn't actually read any of his first book, for it to be the product of thoughtful literary criticism. No, it's far more likely that the response emerged from the feeling that many of us have that a person should be allowed to be good at more than one thing at a time. It's the implicit message behind the popular phrase, " Everybody's good at something". That is, "Everybody's good at something. Just one thing."

What a lovely, egalitarian phrase – and, how utterly wrong it is. At best, it's an average of the population's abilities. Many of us know, in our heart- of-hearts, that we're not actually good at anything at all. Therefore, it stands to reason, that there must be people out there who are really good at lots of things. And, for some reason, this pisses us off. So much so that when we see an actor who writes novels, or an actor who starts a rock band, or a pro-wrestler who runs for public office, our instinct is to laugh, get angry, or register to vote. Being good at one thing is – well – one thing; being good at two things smacks of hubris.

There was a time when being a well-rounded individual was a desirable thing. Once upon a time, being called a "Renaissance man" was a compliment. A wide-ranging education was once a matter of pride, whereas these days, a Liberal Arts degree can get you laughed out of commencement. But why?

Well, the reason might found in another old saying: No one ever said that life is fair. Yes, that old, thread-bare mantra of the preciously jaded, that old saw designed to silence the complaints of anybody they don't have the time or energy to empathize with, is the fundamental key to this little puzzle. Because, deep down, we sometimes feel that being forced to struggle through life on the strength of our own meager talents while others stride through golden fields, confident in their ability to excel at everything, just isn't fair.

If you find yourself saying things like, "I hate it when actors sing," or, "I hate it when painters write poetry," you are, in effect, saying, "Life should be fair."

Got 'ya.

-B. C. Silvia
-5/11/05