"Genius is made, not born."

~ Michael Gelb from How to Think Like Leonardo da Vinci: Seven Steps to Genius Everyday

Did you know that da Vinci was not only the leading artist (Mona Lisa, Last Supper, etc.) of his time, he was also an incredible inventor, military engineer, musician, and scientist (not to mention the fact that he was, apparently, also one heck of a party planner and one of the strongest athletes as well)?! And, if that wasn’t enough, you needed a mirror to read his writing!

Yep, that’s our kind of guy.

In How to Think Like da Vinci, Gelb boils down da Vinci’s genius into seven attributes and provides a fun and powerful framework through which we can integrate each of them into our lives and awaken our renaissance genius.

The seven attributes of da Vinci? (Yes, you need to say these out loud in your best Italian accent :))

• Curiosita: An insatiably curious approach to life.

• Dimonstratzione: A commitment to test knowledge through experience.

• Sensazione: The continual refinement of the senses, especially sight, as the means to clarify experience.

• Sfumato: A willingness to embrace ambiguity, paradox, and uncertainty.

• Arte/Scienza: The development of the balance between science and art, logic and imagination ("whole-brain thinking").

• Corporalita: The cultivation of ambidexterity, fitness, and poise.

• Connessione: A recognition and appreciation for the connectedness of all things and phenomena; "systems thinking."

You like?!!?

Let’s rock em.