• Blog
  • Archives
  • Bio
  • Awards
  • Speaking
  • Book
  • Contact

Be a fool

Published: Monday, 23 February 2009

When you learn something for the first time, everything is new to you.

So you explore, you try different things, you fall down, you fail, you fail, and you fail some more… But you keep persevering and you get up again and again and give it another go. There are no expectations and there are no critics, there’s only you and the work you are toiling away at. Then, people start to notice your work, comment and compliment you.

And suddenly, people begin to expect a certain style and excellence from your work in that field. You’re recognised and you can no longer be a fool - you’re an expert!

Now that you’ve learnt how to make it in that field, your once steep learning curve plateaus and your learning step increments shrink.

When this happens, find something new. Start something you can be arrogant about for not knowing, something where there is no expectation, where the only person whose curiosity you want to satiate is your own. Be playful, rejoice from and learn so that you grow. Branch out into something new and dare to create genius in what you know not.

About Me

Marita ChengForbes named me a world's top 50 woman in tech & 30 Under 30. I founded Robogals and Aipoly and was Young Australian of the Year 2012. Currently working on robotics company Aubot. I'm the youngest Member of the Order of Australia (AM) and I give speeches around the world.

I tweet @maritacheng and I'm on Facebook.

Subscribe

Enter your email address to receive my latest blog posts: 

 

Random Articles

  • Your work is never done

    When I started Robogals, I thought going to schools and teaching girls robotics should get more to choose physics, chemistry and advanced maths;...

  • Don't focus: search for something that sticks

    During my second to fourth years of university, I worked on Nudge, mew and Robogals.  I did various projects with all those initiatives over that...

  • Australia-Israel Chamber of Commerce Trade Mission

    I led a trip to Israel with Wyatt Roy, Assistant Minister for Innovation, for a group of 45 entrepreneurs, politicians and business people, in order to...

  • Stop the world, I want to get off!

    Uni, business, studies, networking- like clockwork, life never seems to stop moving.  Rushing through breakfast to get to lectures on time, quick...

  • Jevaroo’s neck

    Jevaroo’s neck is my favorite part of the robot. Jevaroo’s neck has a movement range of 25cm, allowing Jevaroo to reach for objects up to 170cm high...

  • Robogals: Handing on the CEO baton

    There comes a point when it's time to move on and seek out new challenges. On 31 December 2012, after a year of transition process, I handed over my...

  • Seek, not given

    I used to think that someone with my character, with my determination, my ambition and my IQ would mean that I would be successful in life because...

  • Don't career plan

    No one knows what will happen in the future.  Just do your best at what you're doing now.  Then consider your options at the end of this project....

  • Unless people you’re working with support you, you are going to fail

    Who are the guys that you are going to have pizza with when you successfully raise capital? Who are the guys that are going to inspire you? Who are...

  • Remo Office Visit

    Remo Giuffré, Founder and Director of TEDxSydney and Founder of General Thinking, and his lovely daughter Lola (an engineering student at the...

Enter your email address to receive my latest blog posts: 

 

Scroll to Top