There is undoubtedly an irresistible drive and a seemingly unquenchable thirst in every human person to attain the status of genius – a quality by which one is said to be exceptional. William Shakespeare is the envy of many a writer; Isaac Newton and Albert Einstein have become deities in the sciences; Socrates, Plato and Aristotle are household names in the philosophical circle; too many people wish to become a Bill Gates, a Steve Jobs, a this or a that. Oh! If wishes were horses, beggars would ride ahead of royalty.

But genius is a state of being, a way of life, an attitudinal disposition, a value orientation, the product of consistency in the rightness of our choices and the soundness of our decisions.

Genius is multidimensional. A shrewd businessman is as genius as a distinguished academic; a spiritual avatar is no less than a scientific trailblazer; and just the ability to be exceptional is genius. To some, such as the whizkids, genius is a birthright – they couldn’t help but become one. But to some others it is a struggle to becoming, evident in the longing for and the motioning towards.

At this juncture, those that have genius for their heritage are at liberty to quit reading this piece. Although the idea of natural genius is highly debatable. However, for those of us that share the fate of having to work out genius by the sweat of our brow, this piece is a must-read.

The 3 Steps

1. Interest. That you were attracted to this piece is the very first step: that thirst, longing or drive that propels one to seeking after genius. However, too many people score an A or even A+ here. Let’s progress.

2. Count the cost! That genius is not bought for cash does not mean it costs nothing. Indeed it costs more than mere cash can ever afford. However, the nature of the cost is so complicated that even a beggar could pay without having to go abegging. The cost is time, energy, and old unproductive habits; the cost is you – because all of you is involved.

3. Do the treasure hunt! If genius were not a treasure, then becoming one would have been as simple and as common as to having to fetch a sack of sand from a beach. But it is a treasure, sought after like diamond and gold. Where can it be found?

… in the words of our fathers, on the lips of babes, on the pages of books, in the gossip of the neighborhood, in the cresting on shirts, walls, and vehicles, on that sheet of paper you just stepped on, on that newspaper you just set on fire without reading, in that argument that ensued between your cab driver and the traffic warden. It is written all over you: your very life whispers it to you, the trees around chorus it, and our dreams reaffirm it

Now, all you need do is get the right tools for the hunt: your senses and your reason. Like every other human being, use your senses to collect the various data of perception, but employ your reason to make unconventional meaning out of them – for which you become exceptional.

When you see it from a different angle, when you listen to it with rapt attention, and indeed perceive it beyond the average man’s compare, then genius is not far away.

In the final analysis, you won’t fine genius anywhere because genius is not found; you become it! And we move from genius to more genius as we intensify our quest for it. Sounds bad? I would have told a lie if I said something different.

Become genius? Yes, you CAN!