Mr. Everything
"What else would you like on your sandwich, sir?" the attendant behind the counter asked a young man after putting roast beef on his foot-long Italian bread.
It was supposed to be a routine interaction at a Subway shop that had the sweet, herby, bready indoor scent, brown floor tiles and glass-fronted counter with all of the toppings for display.
"I would like everything!" he eagerly replied with an optimism that caught her off guard. I was the next person on line behind him, looking at the standoff exchange between the two.
"What do you mean?" she replies, dumbfounded.
"I am feeling adventurous today! Just put a little bit of everything on!"
She examined his adventurous spirit with a staredown. He must have been a first or second-year student from Fordham University across the street by the looks of his young face and eager attitude.
"Alright, Mr. Everything," she quipped as she rolled her eyes and started to slap the toppings on.
It was a perfect example of a micro-moment that shows how society generally penalizes people that it can't put into a simple box.
In content creator and entrepreneurship circles, I am often told to niche down and have a personal monopoly so that I have a competitive advantage and it's clear to people what value I am adding to them. All great advice, but it starkly contrasts my many identities vying for the limited space in my mind like children for a mother's love.
Questions like "Where are you from?" or "What do you do?" are meant to be nice icebreakers. Still, I often struggle to answer these as I grew up in multiple cultures (born in Ukraine, grew up in New York, and am currently living in Mexico), have various professional interests, and have been shaped by many different experiences.
I am a part tech bro, new age hippy, Latin dancer, fitness geek, explorer of experiences and ideas from eyebrow-raising tantra to monotheistic traditions, who likes a drink at times but also will enjoy a week-long yoga retreat.
I meet people like myself all the time, and the benefit of having so many interests is that we are often very intent on what we want but flexible in our approach. My personal intent is often to learn, explore something new, or connect with people. For instance, as long as there is a good chance of connecting with another person on a deeper level, the location or medium is less important to me. I can have a drink at a local seedy bar and talk to strangers or go to a sober game board night at a friend's house.
Now, it is true that most billionaires and people on the covers of magazines have dedicated their lives to a business, a movement, or an art form for decades, but that doesn't feel right to me with my ADHD personality.
On the other hand, many other successful people have a wide variety of interests, from Leonardo da Vinci and Benjamin Franklin to Marie Curie and Elon Musk. I am not close to being in the same stratosphere as these individuals, but when I read more about their work and process, like Leonardo's interests as a painter, scientist, engineer, inventor, anatomist, and writer, I see eternal curiosity and willingness to learn and explore.
With the advent of books and the modern internet, the opportunity to explore, share ideas, and immerse myself in completely different ways of life is something that I find too hard to resist.
"Learning never exhausts the mind" - Leonardo da Vinci.
Concepts like "Mr. Everything," "Jack of all trades, master of none," and many others are meant as a pejorative, a way to define someone inconsistent, hopping from one thing to another, or someone who hasn't found their footing. But many people like myself, archaeologists, love exploring what the world has to offer across many mediums and experiences. If these labels are the price I have to have a grin on my face, then so be it.
Thanks for reading and hope that the many of you that are USA based are having a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend!
Cheers! Andriy
PS, thanks to Derek Wong,
, , for helping me edit this essay!