I felt "lost" the day I decided not to be a doctor, in my 3rd year of college and had no idea what to do instead. But, now, at age 50, with a successful business and entering the exciting pre-retirement years (where we get to decide how to spend our days), I know that very few people knew what they were going to do early in life, and even fewer have been able to follow a straight-line trajectory in their work-lives.
This thought-proving post reminds me of a book that I have read and recommended countless times to friends and colleagues who are on a non-linear (i.e.: scribble-shaped) career path and wondering where they "screwed up"... "The Art of Work" by Jeff Goins. (link is below)
I just added this book to my Substack recommended book list because it is so relevant to business and the crazy journey that entrepreneurship and freelance work brings.
Bottom Line: feeling scattered is normal for people who actually give a shit about their lives and want to live the best ME they can. We learn along the way and build upon our experiences to make the next step possible.
Oh, I feel that so deeply. And my experience in companies is: It's a really long way before the people around you, your superiors, your colleagues, recognize and acknowledge the richness that you have to bring certain issues forward in a big way.
And of course it is painful to be pigeonholed in the meantime. I have even experienced being unhappy in such a box because my interests have changed or evolved.
This was great. I’ve always had a difficult time sticking to one topic; I am only now figuring out how to balance several in such a way that the outcome is unique & interesting!
Love this idea of intersections. I think this has often been why I have been hired and pivoted a lot in my career and I like this term to define them. And yes who would tell Michelangelo to stick to sculpture!
Andi, I am reading this article of yours, when I was busy lamenting about how I am too scattered in my interests, and abilities and I am feeling scared to reposition/ realign myself now that I don't want the conventional 9-5. My first article here on Substack was about embracing my Multihyphenate self (writer, artist and educator) a term I was elated to find in Emma Gannon's book! That was last year, and now as you rightly mentioned the growth has been slow but consistent-(had my first 3 paid subs- which is wild!). Over time I have moved on from topics around mental health to creativity, identity and representation which is also the theme of my upcoming creative non-fiction book. I know that I shouldn't feel scattered when I am simply evolving, but of course reading your article on it is the reassurance I needed today!
I love this so much. Up until a few months ago, I felt ashamed because I liked so many things. Every time I would post about something new, I felt like I would be judged. But now I’m realizing that this is who I am & it’s okay! With my publication, the catalyst was my motherhood story & how I’ve coped with life transitions…which has shaped my writing about mindfulness, strength & rest. I’ll be incorporating somatic practices into my work as well. My intention is to share authentically & help others in the process.
This is totally me, and a big reason why I work in Change Management. It allows us to design our own life and work changes to include what matters to us.
I totally relate. And things have been getting worse as I grew up. I realized how much I sacrificed of my multipassionate nature to follow society's expectations.
I think multipassionate is the wrong term, though. Most people have multiple interests and passions. But they may be just topics, like soccer and ancient Roman history.
The problem arises when you are multi-skilled. When there are multiple things you like doing and excel at.
Then, focusing on one thing only feels really like you're sacrificing too much.
I'm very quick at learning and acquiring skills (except dancing...). Then, I easily draw connections and find patterns.
But I never found people who appreciate this. So, it's hard to leverage my multiple passions.
I can definitely relate to being multi-passionate and thinking back I've always been since childhood. Thank you for sharing yout thoughts and insights on this topic.
A beautiful way to describe “synthetic creativity”.
We have our radar on wide sweep but alsibwith high-fidelity and sensitivity. Picking up the feintest signals where thecworld tells us,”That’s intriguing.”
Then you describe our ability to draw together apparently disparate threads to have an idea or see things others don’t.
My challenge wasn’t starting it was finishing. The most rewarding work has always beed collaborative.
This speaks to how I landed on my current path. I chose creating a remote based bookkeeping business with the intent that a small steady set of clients could keep the bills paid with what would be about a 1/2 job in something I enjoy. This frees up the rest of my time to explore my creative passions for additional opportunities. Travel, writing, cooking, and photography are at the top of the list. I'm new on this journey, but am looking forward to the road ahead.
I felt "lost" the day I decided not to be a doctor, in my 3rd year of college and had no idea what to do instead. But, now, at age 50, with a successful business and entering the exciting pre-retirement years (where we get to decide how to spend our days), I know that very few people knew what they were going to do early in life, and even fewer have been able to follow a straight-line trajectory in their work-lives.
This thought-proving post reminds me of a book that I have read and recommended countless times to friends and colleagues who are on a non-linear (i.e.: scribble-shaped) career path and wondering where they "screwed up"... "The Art of Work" by Jeff Goins. (link is below)
I just added this book to my Substack recommended book list because it is so relevant to business and the crazy journey that entrepreneurship and freelance work brings.
Bottom Line: feeling scattered is normal for people who actually give a shit about their lives and want to live the best ME they can. We learn along the way and build upon our experiences to make the next step possible.
p.s. In case you are curious, I linked to this book in my recommended book list here: https://giglfin.substack.com/i/157152247/growth-optimization-and-pivoting
Oh, I feel that so deeply. And my experience in companies is: It's a really long way before the people around you, your superiors, your colleagues, recognize and acknowledge the richness that you have to bring certain issues forward in a big way.
And of course it is painful to be pigeonholed in the meantime. I have even experienced being unhappy in such a box because my interests have changed or evolved.
This was great. I’ve always had a difficult time sticking to one topic; I am only now figuring out how to balance several in such a way that the outcome is unique & interesting!
Love this idea of intersections. I think this has often been why I have been hired and pivoted a lot in my career and I like this term to define them. And yes who would tell Michelangelo to stick to sculpture!
Andi, I am reading this article of yours, when I was busy lamenting about how I am too scattered in my interests, and abilities and I am feeling scared to reposition/ realign myself now that I don't want the conventional 9-5. My first article here on Substack was about embracing my Multihyphenate self (writer, artist and educator) a term I was elated to find in Emma Gannon's book! That was last year, and now as you rightly mentioned the growth has been slow but consistent-(had my first 3 paid subs- which is wild!). Over time I have moved on from topics around mental health to creativity, identity and representation which is also the theme of my upcoming creative non-fiction book. I know that I shouldn't feel scattered when I am simply evolving, but of course reading your article on it is the reassurance I needed today!
I love seeing more and more of us multi-passionates finding, and sharing, our voices!
You have no idea how seen I feel in this article. Thank you for writing this!
That’s the most important feeling when reading something!! I’m so happy, thank you!
Thank you for this….Michelangelo is a great example! Over here I’m worried about “Being a Jack of all trades &…..”
I love this so much. Up until a few months ago, I felt ashamed because I liked so many things. Every time I would post about something new, I felt like I would be judged. But now I’m realizing that this is who I am & it’s okay! With my publication, the catalyst was my motherhood story & how I’ve coped with life transitions…which has shaped my writing about mindfulness, strength & rest. I’ll be incorporating somatic practices into my work as well. My intention is to share authentically & help others in the process.
This is totally me, and a big reason why I work in Change Management. It allows us to design our own life and work changes to include what matters to us.
I totally relate. And things have been getting worse as I grew up. I realized how much I sacrificed of my multipassionate nature to follow society's expectations.
I think multipassionate is the wrong term, though. Most people have multiple interests and passions. But they may be just topics, like soccer and ancient Roman history.
The problem arises when you are multi-skilled. When there are multiple things you like doing and excel at.
Then, focusing on one thing only feels really like you're sacrificing too much.
I'm very quick at learning and acquiring skills (except dancing...). Then, I easily draw connections and find patterns.
But I never found people who appreciate this. So, it's hard to leverage my multiple passions.
I can definitely relate to being multi-passionate and thinking back I've always been since childhood. Thank you for sharing yout thoughts and insights on this topic.
Oh, I feel this article hard. I refer to my multi-passionate-ness as having 'The Skill Set From Hell', but maybe I should re-think that. Hm..
A beautiful way to describe “synthetic creativity”.
We have our radar on wide sweep but alsibwith high-fidelity and sensitivity. Picking up the feintest signals where thecworld tells us,”That’s intriguing.”
Then you describe our ability to draw together apparently disparate threads to have an idea or see things others don’t.
My challenge wasn’t starting it was finishing. The most rewarding work has always beed collaborative.
This speaks to how I landed on my current path. I chose creating a remote based bookkeeping business with the intent that a small steady set of clients could keep the bills paid with what would be about a 1/2 job in something I enjoy. This frees up the rest of my time to explore my creative passions for additional opportunities. Travel, writing, cooking, and photography are at the top of the list. I'm new on this journey, but am looking forward to the road ahead.
Thank you
You’re welcome, Janine!