The way your parents raised you up.

The way you got schooled.

The way you developed beliefs about God or no God.

The way you learnt to pray to that God or worship that God.

The way you learnt to work.

The way you learnt to exercise.

The way you learnt to play an instrument or even practice an instrument.

The way you learnt to play in general.

The way you learnt (or perhaps didn’t learn) to relax.

The way you learnt to think or were told not to think.

The way you were told to speak.

The way you were fed or learnt to eat.

The way you breathe.

The way you think people expect you to behave.

The way you think.

Habits you developed in life.

The way you think about good and bad.

The way you think of yourself and who you are.

The way in which you learn (to learn).

How (much) you listen.

The way you talk (to yourself).

The way you observe.

The way you understand what is important and what isn't.

All these ‘ways’ were the ‘layers of your indoctrination’ which define who you are.

Changing them is one of the hardest tasks in life.

It is also one of the most valuable, if not the most valuable things we can do.

One moment I would be playing table tennis and another I would be practising accordion.

Few hours later I would be making things out of clay and then I would write my diary.

My interests were always wide.

From arts to engineering, architecture to military arsenals.

I was always interested in pretty much everything.

I was never sure whether this was even normal.

I just knew I liked learning about everything.

It's almost as though I was addicted to knowledge of all kinds.

Nowadays these kinds of people are referred to as geeks or nerds.

In the past it was almost embarrassing to be a geek.

People basically looked down upon those who where interested in knowing everything.

In the last decade or so the idea of being a geek has become highly celebrated.

You might hear phrases like 'geeks rule the world'.

I don't like the word 'geek' and I don't like the idea of celebrating geekery.

The underpinning meaning of the word geek is negative, irrespective of the context it's used in.

I also don't like the use of the word 'hack' for everything (life hacks, code hacks, productivity hacks, etc.)

The reason for it is that both of these words trivialise what is essential in today's world.

As people and society evolve, our ability to blend different skill sets is more and more important.

Products, services, businesses and systems are all becoming ever more complex.

The only way in which we can effectively design for this new reality is by being aware of as much as possible.

So it is almost as if by intuition I knew this way back when I was a little boy.

Today it makes absolute perfect sense to me why I'm interested in everything.

More knowledge and awareness I have the better decisions I can make.

If I look at London today, it is a small world in one condensed place.

It is a perfect place where I can continuously learn about everything.

I'm always observing and learning.

Every conversation I have with people raises my awareness of what is really going on in the world.

If you take an approach to life where everything is relevant, eventually you will start noticing that you can learn about one realm of life from another realm of life.

For example, it is common to hear venture capitalists talk about poker or chess playing as an insight into business.

Chess is the ultimate strategy game.

Those who play chess can transpose that mentality from the chessboard to the board of directors.

Those who can harmonise musical notes can transpose that skill to harmonising people into teams.

Those who can architect financial systems can transpose that ability to architecting their families.

In other words, everything is relevant.