|
|
My |
|
|
|
I’d love to meet Andrea McQuillin. She is the editor of Shambhala Magazine and she is quitting that job to become an apprentice lineman with a power company. She simply said, “Outdoor work appealed to me.” We tend to think we should choose a goal (meaning a line of work) when we are young and constantly move in that direction. Some people do that, of course. As far back as childhood my brother wanted to be an engineer. He went from the 11th grade to college because he had taken all the math offered in the school system. He wanted to get on with his goal. On the other hand, I am still not sure what I want to be when I grow up. I am certain I could quickly list 25 things I would enjoy doing. Some of those interests may sound silly because I have never shown the tiniest trace of talent for them. For example, take cartoonist. I cannot draw good stick figures. If I have any drawing talent it has never made an appearance. I have a respect for cartoonists that borders on reverence. Yet, so far, I have not been able to do it. How I would enjoy doing a strip called “Ztgmund Frogg.” I have ideas for strips and can sit for hours sketching them out. I have tried to hook up with a good artist who doesn’t have the ideas and work a duet. I think Andrea McQuillin must be a lot like me. Here she sits in a cozy job for which she is immensely talented and longs to climb power poles! Some of us have rainbow souls and yearn to do a lot of things in our journey here. There’s nothing wrong with us. There’s nothing wrong with those who select their work early and pursue it methodically. It’s a big old world and there’s plenty of room for all of us. Chances are those who select their work and go for it day after day will make more money. Job sampling is fun but wisdom says it may not pay as well. Speaking of wisdom, if you have a rainbow soul, you will need a lot of it. Each new and interesting job you take requires a whole new set of skills. It requires that you organize your personal toolbox differently. Wisdom means that you will inventory those skills accurately and use them in the most effective way. I look back on all the things I have done and feel I would have been much poorer if I hadn’t done them all. Just a partial listing are paperboy, bush hooker, mowing machine operator, drill press operator, paper cutter, house painter, building guard, night watchman, teacher, guidance counselor, school social worker, special education supervisor, public relations director, job training specialist, nightclub musician, songwriter, politician and columnist. You might ask, “How did cutting right-of-way with a bush hook help you to be a better politician?” It helped me to understand how hard some people have to work. It made me appreciate and respect them. Take everything on that list and it helped me be a better politician. It also makes writing a column much easier to have tasted so many pieces of life’s cake. I have relished every minute as a columnist. If there are things you want to do, do them. If you cannot break free and do them fulltime, find a way to play with them as an avocation or hobby. Take a night course or buy a library of books and immerse yourself. I only worked as a fulltime musician for about six months but I am certain I have 50 books on the music business. If you don’t have a specific goal and want to live a rainbow life, be like a bee and go for all the flavors you like. Stay out of boxes. They put dead people in boxes.
|
