The Road Not Taken.

The Road Not Taken has been a theme for many of our famous pioneers in human endeavour. What did each of these public figures start out to do, before changing directions?

1. When he published his paper on the Special Theory of Relativity, Albert Einstein was working as:
   
   • A university professor.
   • A patent clerk.
   • A short-order cook.
   • A high school teacher.
2. Before he became Stalin's favourite playwright, Mikhail Bulgakov was a(n):
   
   • Ballet dancer.
   • Rocket scientist.
   • Actor.
   • Doctor.
3. Actor Peter Falk had an early career as a(n):
   
   • Sailor.
   • Railway worker in Yugoslavia.
   • Efficiency expert.
   • All of the above.
4. Before inventing a telephone, Alexander Graham Bell built a:
   
   • Fax machine.
   • Robot head.
   • Piano.
   • Babel fish.
5. Before entering politics, Jimmy Carter had been a:
   
   • Nuclear engineer in training.
   • Peanut farmer.
   • Submariner.
   • All of the above.
6. Which of these jobs did Douglas Adams not have?
   
   • Bodyguard.
   • Chicken coop cleaner.
   • Astronaut.
   • Hospital porter.
7. What was Czech president Vaclav Havel's first profession?
   
   • Shipyard union boss.
   • Absurdist playwright.
   • Science fiction writer.
   • Painter in velvet.
8. Before he was Pontiff, Pope Francis once worked as a:
   
   • Theatre manager.
   • Religious artist.
   • Football player.
   • Nightclub bouncer.
9. Hermann Hesse, author of Steppenwolf, once spent 14 months learning how to:
   
   • Build and repair clock towers.
   • Draw maps.
   • Print books.
   • Tan hides.
10. Robert Burns' day job involved:
    
    • Writing.
    • Preaching.
    • Ploughing.
    • Putting out fires.

Were you able to guess all these early career moves? Click the photo below to check your answers.

Dmitri Gheorgheni

06.07.15 Front Page

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