Twitter was ablaze with discussion about Joe Rogan’s latest move to give Spotify exclusive to his podcasts. Understandably so, because his following is massive. But I’d always wondered about this followers. Who are they? What interests bind them together? Because Joe Rogan being Joe Rogan, his podcasts are the antithesis of the conventional indie maker wisdom of targeting niche groups. Because he don’t do niche in his podcasts. He follows his curiosity, wherever it might lead. Yes, he’s known for some things, like MMA, standup comic. But the topics he cover in his podcasts are anything but specific. I don’t usually listen in when he talks about MMA. My top favourites had been about him talking about tech (most notably with Elon Musk), nutrition, and get this: aliens, UFOs, ancient civilisations and ayahuasca rituals. 

His style goes against the grain of what we were told as content creators, as product makers – be known for one thing, and keep hammering at it. His podcast is emblematic of a generalist’s curiosity – wide-ranging, deep, almost random. He isn’t just flirting around on the surface of things either. His conversations with his expert guests goes really deep. You can see he’s done his reading and research, he’s really into it. You can feel his curiosity ablaze on his Youtube videos, going by how alert and bolt upright he sits while listening intently to his guests, following up on their points, countering them. Even though I don’t enjoy everything he puts out, but I enjoy all of the stuff he puts out that I’m interested in. The quality of his creative output is clear for all to see. But I’m most taken by how un-abashedly himself he is in his podcasts and the topics he pursue. It’s like I can almost imagine him saying in his trademark no-bullshit manner, “I’m Joe Rogan, I’m a complex human being. I contain multitudes. Deal with it.” 

That’s really inspiring to watch. And it makes me want to emulate at least some parts of it in my own creative/entrepreneurial journey. Because why silo yourself narrowly into just one thing? You are a complex being. You contain multitudes. You have hobbies, things that you are curious about, other talents besides your job. Bring ALL of it into what you do. Many great men were that – think Aristotle, Leonardo da Vinci, Thomas Edison, Nikola Tesla. Be a generalist. There’s no need to choose between being a jack of all trades versus a master. 

Be a master generalist.