What do Indiana Jones, Ferris Bueller, James Bond, Barney Stinson, Angus MacGyver, Westley (as you wish!), Buckaroo Banzai, Tony Stark, Batman and many others all have in common? They are the Competent Man, a stock character of literature that’s best summed up by Lazarus Long, a character in Robert Heinlein’s novels.
“A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects.”
— Robert Heinlein
What have you learned to do today?