You Don’t Need to Choose a Lane

You know that question. The one adults have been asking since you were five. “So, are you a science person, or an art person?”

We’re taught to pick a box. The analytical-minded go left, the creatives go right.

I just think it’s a bad question.

My world is deeply technical. I’m spending my time figuring out how to get Botryococcus Braunii to produce more oil. It’s all IB Chemistry, Biology, and lab protocols.

But my supervisors will also tell you I’m talented in the visual arts. For a long time, these felt like two separate lives. One was “serious” (science) and one was “hobby” (art). This is, honestly, a pretty boring way to think.

During my internship at Cento, one of the first comments I got was about my “intentional notes by hand” and “natural perceptiveness of… social dynamics.”

That’s not a chemistry skill. That’s an artist’s skill.

Art is just the practice of radical observation.

You don’t just look. You have to see. You see the negative space, the subtle shifts in color, the composition, the relationships between the objects.

Turns out, that’s also the #1 skill in a VC’s office. You’re not just listening to the pitch; you’re observing the dynamics in the room.

It’s also the #1 skill in a lab. You’re not just running the protocol; you’re noticing the tiny, unexpected change in the culture.

My art background isn’t a distraction from my science-and-tech focus. It’s my main advantage. It’s what lets me take a complex research assignment and present the findings with clarity.

You can’t explain what you haven’t truly seen.