If you’ve heard of the circle of competence, it’s probably because it’s been posted about on Twitter thousands of times and discussed in various books. In this article, I discuss an extrapolation of the idea: circles of improvement & circles of ignorance.

To give a brief background of the circle of competence, in Warren Buffet’s 1996 shareholder letter, he wrote,

This concept of a circle of competence has been used and extrapolated all over the internet since then because of its massive importance.

We can’t be good at everything. We don’t have the time. So we must choose what we want to be good at, and also choose what we’re ok being bad at.

In addition to the circle of competence, I added the circle of improvement and the circle of mediocrity. The circle of improvement lists the skillsets or knowledge bases that I am actively working on, whereas the circle of mediocrity lists everything I’m okay sucking at. There is some overlap between circles; for example, I think I’m competent at SQL, but want to improve, and I think I’m abysmal with history, but would like to improve.

Check out my circles. And after you’re finished reading, let me know in the comments what’s in your circles in the comments or on Twitter.

Circles of Competence

Stuff I can do pretty well:

• SQL, Python

• Running Facebook/Google advertising campaigns

• No-code web design (Squarespace, Shopify, Bubble)

• Photoshop, iMovie, Final Cut Pro

• Designing and printing stickers and posters

• Being a dog dad 🐶

• Hitting a baseball between 40-65 MPH

• Writing tweets, articles, haikus

• Reading in English

• Cooking gyros, burgers, shrimp scampi, crab legs, oatmeal

Circles of Improvement

Stuff I am actively working on:

• Python, SQL

• Twitter growth

• Chess

• Dating

• Meditation

• Yoga

• Weightlifting

• Communication

• Dog training

• Wellness-tech

• Writing about probabilistic thinking

• Thinking rationally 😂

• Printmaking with linocuts

Circles of Mediocrity

Stuff I suck at.

• Physics, chemistry, biology, food engineering

• Painting, singing, acting

• Basketball, football, badminton, soccer, lacrosse, running, hide-and-go-seek

• History of most kinds especially biblical, ancient, roman, greek, or non-American

• Political discussion/debate

• Hacking, hardware, soldering

• JavaScript, C, etc.

• Astronomy, astrology, ophthalmology

• Sewing, knitting, candle-making

• Repairing a car, camera, phone

• Stealing/burglarizing

• Any video game that is not Super Smash Bros

Takeaway

It’s cool to suck at useless skills.

Notice that the circle of ignorance is the largest on the list. I am actively alright with being terrible at these things. I’m the worst astrologer in history, and I’m 100% content with that. In fact, I’m proud of how little I know about astrology.

I get paid well for my knowledge of SQL and Python, but if my employer needed me to do anything related to C#, Java, or legit anything to do with hardware, I’d be starting from absolute scratch1. It’d be like asking a car mechanic how to fix a toilet. There’s similarities in the parts of the brain used, but I don’t know the knowledge to write a line of code in C# or Java yet.

The circle of improvement is probably the most important sub-list. For Twitter growth, I read newsletter such as Alex Llull’s Steal Club where he dissects popular Twitter users’ strategy. As for SQL, I practice on www.learnsql.com and continue to look up new terms whenever needed. For Python, I find DataCamp helpful.

In order to be decent at something, you have to be ok being bad at a lot of things.

There is a popular debate over whether it is better to be a specialist or a generalist that is exemplified by a pair of famous friends: Tim Ferriss and Josh Waitzkin. Tim is an author, salsa dancer, biohacker, weightlifter, cartoonist, etc. whereas Josh is a world-champion at chess and tai chi push hands. One learns many seemingly unrelated things whereas the other focuses on a specific craft for years.

Personally, I consider myself a generalist. I love the novelty of learning something new and have trouble sticking with skills past the point of utility. This may be a character flaw, but I think it can be used as a strength. In the tech world where everything is changing constantly, it’s useful to be able to pick up enough skills to operate competently enough to get a job done.

In a March 2021 Forbes article, Kumar Abhishek analyzes the two views and closes by writing his own advice: “Be a jack-of-all-trades and master of some”. I stand with that. Be scary good at a few things, be good enough to get by at many, and be awful at the rest.

Best,

Jason