"When you plan something, over-thinking often ruins it." A common error that many people make in trying to plan anything is to underestimate the ingenuity of complete fools, or more appropriately called total amateurs. Most of the time, the folks who are usually labeled as "total amateurs" are the ones who come up with the coolest and most creative solutions to any given problem. It is the ones who were too shy to let their thinking run free and were too lazy or undisciplined to sit down and formulate a proper plan.
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The folks who are often labeled as "foolish" are really just normal human beings. The label is placed on them by society because these individuals are unable to use their full intellect. There is no way that a fool could ever come up with something original. We all fall short in this department and there is nothing that anyone could ever claim as an accomplishment without having used his mind. That said, the entire human species is in general, filled with both foolishness and intelligence, and it is this combination that lead to genius.
When we speak of genius, we are talking about the cleverness of the mind in relation to problem solving, invention, and creativity. genius does not equal foolishness, as those who claim to be "wizards" or "museums" are not necessarily so. The term "wizardry" was probably derived from "magus," which was Latin for men (and fool). This was a common title for magicians during the times of the Roman Empire. In modern times, however, the term refers to the creative genius, which is in stark contrast to the fool.
Now then, one of my favorite sayings (and I say this in the nicest possible way) is "The wise man or fool whirlpools." The wise man or a fool is whirling around in a never-ending circle of foolishness, which is the very opposite of being clever. A wise man or a fool takes things in their proper perspective and does not allow themselves to get distracted by the hubbub of nonsense that constantly swirls around in the minds of fools. They maintain a clear focus on the goal at hand. This is perhaps the most difficult of all the characteristics to cultivate, but it is perhaps also one of the most rewarding.
You see, there are certain times when a fool and a wise man make an ideal pair. For instance, some folks like to say that it is great to be both a fool and a wise man. In other words, you can be a foolish and a wise man at the same time. Of course this only works in certain situations and would not warrant you as the toastmaster at your high school reunion.
But what about when you are amongst people who consider themselves the greatest fools in the world? Can you still be a wise and fool? Yes, of course you can! Let's discuss.
The first condition in which you can be both a quixote and a wise man is if you happen to live in a society where people consider themselves to be quixotic. You will never find yourself in such a society, because most people will consider themselves to be total fools in the eyes of the rest of the world, especially those individuals who consider themselves so smart that they believe that they possess the secret to living a life of grandeur and creativity. Such individuals usually have nothing more than a shallow understanding of the concept of genius, and they spend their lives pursuing goals that do not benefit them at all. To be sure, a society where everyone considers themselves a quixote is not a society that will produce great ideas.
The second condition in which you can be a quixotic fool and at the same time be a brilliant thinker is if you happen to live in a society in which people consider themselves to be very intelligent. In such a society, it will be very easy for you to achieve anything that you want to achieve, because people will not doubt your abilities. However, you will never be able to come up with a system that is truly genius-worthy without taking into consideration the limitations of human knowledge. In other words, you will be able to accomplish a great deal, but only to the extent that you allow those limitations to constrain you. In other words, to truly be an intelligent and a genius, you must learn how to eliminate all of the limitations from your perspective, and that is where the idea of being a quixotic fool comes in.