Data-driven research can challenge long-held economic assumptions.
"The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it."
I was asked to act when I couldn't act. I was asked to sing 'Funny Face' when I couldn't sing, and dance with Fred Astaire when I couldn't dance. Do things that you don't know you can't do.
Mathematics is a creative endeavor, just like art or music.