I admire Tesla, Einstein, and Nietzsche. But I’m also disappointed in them. The more I understand their lives, the clearer it becomes that brilliance isn’t enough. Intelligence without sharp judgment tends to get exploited. Each of these men changed the world fundamentally, and for the better. But they also fell victim to their own ideals. Painfully, that matters to me. It matters because I’ve seen the cost of being too principled or self righteous in a society that doesn’t reward "purity." I’ve lived it.
Tesla gave up generational wealth to keep Westinghouse afloat. He thought loyalty and friendship were more important than leverage. In some way, I respect that. But to throw away your well being for a so called principle? That’s not noble to me. That’s reckless. I understand why he did it. I would have felt that pressure too. But part of me wants to shake him and say, "You needed to be smarter." You had the future in your hands. You could have protected your position and still helped people. Instead, you died alone, financially ruined, and erased from the public mind for decades. It didn’t have to end that way.
Einstein also had a sort of moral high ground. He opposed war and stood up for civil rights, which I deeply admire. But he also lived with a strange detachment from real consequences. He didn’t protect the people closest to him. He had addictions. He hurt his wives. He abandoned his daughter. He seemed more loyal to abstract ideas than to the emotional realities in front of him. I get it. I know what it’s like to live inside your head and serve something greater than yourself. But that doesn’t excuse emotional negligence. High intelligence doesn’t justify low empathy and self sabotage.
And Nietzsche. He saw through so much. His clarity about power, morality, and human nature was almost supernatural. But he didn’t take care of his mind. He pushed until it snapped. He lived in isolation, then lost everything, drifting into madness while others hijacked his work and contributions. There's an urgent warning to internalize here. When you’re too unwilling to reshape your thoughts and work for others, the world either ignores you or breaks you. Most will never care about brilliance on its own. Nietzsche refused to make the right compromises. I admire that, but at the same time, I don't. There’s nothing romantic about watching a rare mind rot in silence while the mediocre thrive.
All three of them remind me of what I could become if I don’t constantly evolve a better strategy. Not just better ideas. Not just better ideals. Better strategy. Tesla didn’t manage his leverage. Einstein didn’t manage his drama. Nietzsche didn’t manage his health. Each of them sacrificed stability for vision. And each paid a brutal price.
I’m not here to repeat that. I will protect what I build. I will preserve my mind. I will guard my energy and dignity. I’m not afraid to care deeply about the world. But I won’t let it use me. I see what happens when brilliance is unprotected. I refuse to bleed out in service of people who will never understand me. I reject martyrdom.
I still admire the three I mentioned. I learned a lot from what they got wrong. Too many brilliant minds die and suffer unnecessarily.
Tesla gave up generational wealth to keep Westinghouse afloat. He thought loyalty and friendship were more important than leverage. In some way, I respect that. But to throw away your well being for a so called principle? That’s not noble to me. That’s reckless. I understand why he did it. I would have felt that pressure too. But part of me wants to shake him and say, "You needed to be smarter." You had the future in your hands. You could have protected your position and still helped people. Instead, you died alone, financially ruined, and erased from the public mind for decades. It didn’t have to end that way.
Einstein also had a sort of moral high ground. He opposed war and stood up for civil rights, which I deeply admire. But he also lived with a strange detachment from real consequences. He didn’t protect the people closest to him. He had addictions. He hurt his wives. He abandoned his daughter. He seemed more loyal to abstract ideas than to the emotional realities in front of him. I get it. I know what it’s like to live inside your head and serve something greater than yourself. But that doesn’t excuse emotional negligence. High intelligence doesn’t justify low empathy and self sabotage.
And Nietzsche. He saw through so much. His clarity about power, morality, and human nature was almost supernatural. But he didn’t take care of his mind. He pushed until it snapped. He lived in isolation, then lost everything, drifting into madness while others hijacked his work and contributions. There's an urgent warning to internalize here. When you’re too unwilling to reshape your thoughts and work for others, the world either ignores you or breaks you. Most will never care about brilliance on its own. Nietzsche refused to make the right compromises. I admire that, but at the same time, I don't. There’s nothing romantic about watching a rare mind rot in silence while the mediocre thrive.
All three of them remind me of what I could become if I don’t constantly evolve a better strategy. Not just better ideas. Not just better ideals. Better strategy. Tesla didn’t manage his leverage. Einstein didn’t manage his drama. Nietzsche didn’t manage his health. Each of them sacrificed stability for vision. And each paid a brutal price.
I’m not here to repeat that. I will protect what I build. I will preserve my mind. I will guard my energy and dignity. I’m not afraid to care deeply about the world. But I won’t let it use me. I see what happens when brilliance is unprotected. I refuse to bleed out in service of people who will never understand me. I reject martyrdom.
I still admire the three I mentioned. I learned a lot from what they got wrong. Too many brilliant minds die and suffer unnecessarily.