How They Lived. How They Thought.

We tend to study what great people built — their books, their inventions, their theories — but rarely do we stop to ask: How did they structure their lives in order to create those things?

This series, Polymath Profiles, is an exploration of that question.

Each post examines the life and mind of a historically or intellectually significant figure — not just through the lens of what they accomplished, but how they lived. How they managed time. What rituals they practiced. How they sustained energy, curiosity, and purpose across disciplines.

🧬 What Is a Polymath?

The term “polymath” typically refers to someone with meaningful mastery across multiple fields — science, art, philosophy, invention. But for the purposes of this series, I’m defining it a bit more broadly:

A polymath is someone who structures their life to serve a unified creative or intellectual vision, often by integrating knowledge and practice from multiple domains.

Think Leonardo da Vinci, Buckminster Fuller, or Stephen Wolfram. People whose minds seem unusually broad and unusually deep — and whose daily rhythms supported that.

📚 What You’ll Find in Each Profile

Each post will follow the same structure, using a consistent research prompt to uncover:

• How they managed their time
• What their daily practices looked like
• What disciplines they mastered (and how)
• How they supported themselves economically
• Their relationships, tradeoffs, and philosophy of life
• The tools and environments they used
• What we can learn from the way they lived

In short: a systems-level portrait of a high-functioning, intentional life.

🤖 Transparency & Method

All profiles in this series are generated in collaboration with ChatGPT, using a research-style prompt I developed to surface the exact patterns I’m interested in.

I’ll include that prompt at the end of each post so that you can use it too — to research your own heroes, or even to reflect on your own structure of living.

🔍 Why This Series?

Because in an age of specialization, distraction, and algorithmic urgency, there’s something deeply grounding about revisiting how creative people made time, thought carefully, and acted with conviction. My goal isn’t to romanticize these people, or suggest that we can (or should) copy them.

Rather, I want to study their frameworks, observe the tradeoffs they made, and maybe learn something about how we can think and live better today.

📌 Coming Soon

Expect profiles on: Buckminster Fuller • Jonathan Blow • Nassim Taleb …and many more.

If there’s someone you’d like to see profiled, feel free to suggest them.

✍️ Want to Try This Yourself?

Here’s the exact prompt I’m using for each profile:

Create a comprehensive, Renaissance-style profile of [NAME].
Analyze the individual through the lens of polymathic living and integrated excellence.

Use the following structure to guide deep research and analysis.

Time Management & Workflow

• How did they structure their time, work, or creative process?
• Did they use daily routines, blocks of deep work, or radical approaches (e.g. polyphasic sleep, life-logging)?
• Were they protective of their time? Did they follow schedules or flow states?

Daily Life Practices & Rituals

• What habits, physical practices, or rituals shaped their energy, creativity, or identity?
• How did they balance intellectual and physical pursuits (e.g. meditation, movement, diet, travel)?
• Were there any unique practices tied to health, sleep, or focus?

Domains of Pursuit

• What fields or disciplines did they meaningfully engage with?
• How did they integrate knowledge or skill across domains?
• Did their work evolve in phases, or remain centered on a unified theme?

Employment & Economic Model

• Did they hold traditional jobs or corporate positions?
• How did they fund their work (grants, entrepreneurship, patronage, inheritance)?
• Were they financially stable or did they live on the margins to preserve autonomy?

Family & Personal Relationships

• Were they married? Did they have children?
• How did family or intimate relationships affect their work?
• Did they choose solitude or seek out partnership?

Philosophy of Life

• What core beliefs, values, or questions guided their work and choices?
• Did they articulate a personal mission, vision, or philosophy?
• Were they driven by morality, beauty, truth, or some other ideal?

Tools, Environment & Infrastructure

• What tools did they use or create to support thinking or building?
• Did they design their own environments, labs, or creative spaces?
• How did they shape their surroundings to foster deep focus or expression?

Tradeoffs & Costs

• What did they sacrifice to live a polymathic or visionary life (e.g. stability, income, social status)?
• Did they reflect on these tradeoffs openly?
• Were these sacrifices strategic, necessary, or unconscious?

Legacy & Influence

• How did their way of thinking or working influence others?
• Are they viewed as a polymath or Renaissance figure today?
• What lasting ideas, tools, or cultural shifts are tied to their name?

Structure your response clearly under headings, and cite specific examples where available. Feel free to note any areas where information is lacking or debated.

Use it with ChatGPT deep research mode for the best results.