I think, maybe, I got it!

[Zwynd]

I've been doing a major overhaul in my life. Something about my career finally clicked.

For many, many years I have been trying to find my ideal career. I never really fit in anywhere. I'm an illustrator, storyteller, I craft with clay, knit, I love gardening, I like writing, I love languages, playing/creating music/videos, I also like networking (well, I can do it in games.) While I could focus on one, it seems that I get discouraged or something holds me back or it just doesn't feel fun enough.

With that, I've always called myself a Bard; the 'jack of all trades, master of none.'

I think though, maybe I got it.

I realized I had a 'click' the other day when I was writing up some stuff for my guild's website. I'm their web admin, I'm also an officer in the guild and help people to help themselves. I delegate, teach other officers as well as members how to be more effective with their character class, time and so on. I'm wonderful with networking in the game. I do it more than I actually play online. I've brought people together in a positive way that shouldn't actually be possible because of guild/faction restrictions.

Yet, for years I had been sitting at home irl looking at half-finished drawings and go "This doesn't make sense. Why can't I get a career going? How come I can be productive in the game yet I can't be productive with <task> irl?"

You know what my passion is? It's to continue doing what I'm doing in game but have it also done irl. I don't want to lead a club that goes out dragon-slaying...though that would be interesting. I want to network irl. I want to bridge gaps that some people think impossible to attempt. I want to pull in resources and teach others how to do the same. And I hadn't thought of what I could network or focus on till this week.

Languages. By the gods. It's my bridge. I could be a multi-lingual translator that also teaches. Like a walking diplomat of no country. A true bard. I love languages, cultures. I love talking with people and hearing their stories. I hate gossiping/negative small-talk and that hasn't been much of an issue for people who I help teach English to.

I hadn't seen it. Till recently. It's still all hitting me now. My storytelling could go into my languages. I can craft and share my knowledge with other cultures/people without worrying if someone is mis-translating me because -I'm- doing the translating. I can be a life coach all the while learning from each culture I'm visiting.

How far/high can I go with this goal? What is the furthest someone's gone? I want to get there, and then go past it. I seriously feel the strongest desire to pursue this. I'm thrilled at the thought.

I've decided today I want to be fluent in at least 5 languages in only a few years (right now I know a smattering in a whole bunch.) I already know how to do this, I just never had the courage to do it. I'm going to set some time tonight and figure out a rough time-line to start with. Goals. Maybe a crash course of learning 2 languages before the end of the year. I know I can do it, I have all the resources or at least the knowledge of how to find them.

I actually feel there's clarity in my future. Not a solid "I will work here, retire here" but a feeling of "I can really use my skills, have fun with it, it's very easy for me and damn it get paid to do it."

My future is uncertain but my true happiness is guaranteed now that I believe I've found my passion. There will be ups and downs in my life, as is natural, but that I actually feel I can be of use in this world and will enjoy such a passion...man that's it right there.

Anyone have any insight they'd be willing to share? It's more than welcome.

In the meantime I'm writing out my lists. I've got this motivation going and I need to get everything down and recognized so I can start focusing on this new path.

I'm not going to be sluggish with this anymore. I'm going to pursue it. It's the most clear passion I've had since ever. If it turns out it's not my thing I'll still have gained a lot from it. Win-win. Finally.

[Matt Willard]

This is a great step. Just keep your senses about you and things ought to get very interesting.

[rosegold]

Why learn languages? I know Jefferson said you are as many persons as you know languages, and I agreed at first, but you are going to forget it at death anyway; all those long hours of effort crumbling down to nothing.

Steve is smart in that he doesn't learn foreign languages, unlike Brian Tracy; he knows from learning computer languages that it is useless because it will be gone when you die.

Learn Personal Development 100%. Clarity, more mature mindset, more happy.

[Zwynd]

Originally Posted by rosegold

Why learn languages? I know Jefferson said you are as many persons as you know languages, and I agreed at first, but you are going to forget it at death anyway; all those long hours of effort crumbling down to nothing.

Steve is smart in that he doesn't learn foreign languages, unlike Brian Tracy; he knows from learning computer languages that it is useless because it will be gone when you die.

Learn Personal Development 100%. Clarity, more mature mindset, more happy.

Ouch. Rosegold, you fail to see the long term effects for all aspects. Yes I technically lose them when I die. However, I'm still here and the more languages I know means I can reach out to more people = more personal development for all.

I really don't care if I don't remember a language when I die. But who knows, there are people who say they've had past lives and can somehow speak another language as if they were from that culture. I'm not counting on it or a next life, but already having a grasp on a few languages would be nice if it occurred.

[Parthon]

rosegold: I'm not sure if Steve does or does not know another language. I do know that in his article Self-Help Junkies he lists "learning a foreign language" as a way to measure your personal growth. He's also mentioned many times that it's a good way to improve yourself, and stretch your mind.

Learning a language forces you to think in a new way, it also gives you another tool in which to solve problems. Many problems are also the cause of specific language deficiencies, which learning another language would solve. On top of that, learning another language you can communicate with people who speak that language. You can learn about the culture and the history in the language it was written and you can enjoy things like foreign film and music more.

Personal Development isn't just something you focus on, because by itself it's meaningless. It's something you apply to the content of your life. You enrich all parts of it by following your own personal path of growth. You don't have to either, it's an opportunity, and only us humans have it.

As for "you lose it when you die", then why grow at all? You can't keep anything that happens when you are alive, except, perhaps, maybe, possibly, your experiences.

Zwynd: Awesome! You sound inspired, go out and do it. If you get discouraged by it later, great!

I'm not sure if you have to stick to one thing, although out modern society keeps telling us we have to. I want to do 50 different things, or more, but I need to facilitate a way to do it as well, that's really the big question. Leonardo DaVinci had close to 100 hobbies from painting, sketching and sculptin to maths, physics and the sciences. He's unquestionably a genius and he didn't stick to just one subject.

As for advice, the only advice I can give is to follow your dreams, because they are yours and noone else can fulfill them. Also, make a list of everything you'd like to accomplish, then use that to get a map of where you'd like to go next.

[Zwynd]

Originally Posted by Parthon

Zwynd: Awesome! You sound inspired, go out and do it. If you get discouraged by it later, great!

I informed my Spanish speaking buddies today in game that I'm going to jump straight into Spanish as the next language I want to know. They were thrilled! I have helped some of them with their English skills over the years and they are very eager to return the favor. Now they get to giggle at me as I mispronounce things. It'll be fun!

I was in vent for a couple hours today just listening to them converse with each other in their native tongue and you know, I recognized a lot of the words. I could tell what topics they were talking about and the feeling of the convo but couldn't really understand how to put it together.

However, I realize it's not so intimidating as I first thought. Just bring up my vocabulary and SPEAK! They're friends and are very wanting to help me out. I don't think I could find more supportive Spanish teachers than them. The resources were there all along, it just took my courage and desire to focus on it.

I'm not sure if you have to stick to one thing, although out modern society keeps telling us we have to. I want to do 50 different things, or more, but I need to facilitate a way to do it as well, that's really the big question. Leonardo DaVinci had close to 100 hobbies from painting, sketching and sculptin to maths, physics and the sciences. He's unquestionably a genius and he didn't stick to just one subject.

I never knew that. Now my 30 or so hobbies don't look that bad at all. I feel even more inspired!

And no, languages won't be my only focus. It'll be my bridge to help bring all the skills and things I love together. I don't think I could see myself -just- as a translator.

As for advice, the only advice I can give is to follow your dreams, because they are yours and noone else can fulfill them. Also, make a list of everything you'd like to accomplish, then use that to get a map of where you'd like to go next.

Thank you very much. I'm not normally a hugging type of person but I felt like hugging you just now. *laughs*

A map like that...that sounds amazing. A HUGE map of the world with pins to places I want to visit with notes dangling from each one stating what I want to do/try out in each place. Just wow, I hope I can buy enough pins!

[Kura Ookami]

Zwynd: Awesome! Languages are easy. Babies do it all the time. And you obviously know possibly the hardest language of all already - English. I've got a feeling that learning 5 languages isn't too difficult. I believe french and spanish for example share a lot of vocabulary so learning either of those helps you in the other. I say go for it!

One technique I've read about though I've never tried it myself, is laddering. Learn one language then use that language you've learned to learn your next language. So for your first language you'd use your native language. If you learned Spanish as your first foreign language then you'd learn the next one using Spanish.

Focus on what you've achieved, how far you've come rather on how much you still don't know, or how far you still have to go to reach your goals. Someone said that you have to do things with difficulty before you can do them with ease.

As for doing a lot of things at the same time, isn't it better to focus on one thing at a time and master that one thing rather than focus on lots of things and master none of them?
Someone said: I don't fear the man who has practised 10,000 kicks once each. I fear the man who has practised one kick 10,000 times.

Parthon: How does one measure their personal growth with learning a new language?

[Parthon]

Zwynd: Hugs returned with gusto!

I plan on drawing, writing, dancing and playing piano, plus many, many, many more. Learning languages and travelling are high on the list too. It's just a matter of affording it. Perhaps I could find a sponsor. :P

Originally Posted by Kura Ookami

As for doing a lot of things at the same time, isn't it better to focus on one thing at a time and master that one thing rather than focus on lots of things and master none of them?
Someone said: I don't fear the man who has practised 10,000 kicks once each. I fear the man who has practised one kick 10,000 times.

I'd fear the man who has practised one kick 10,000 times, but I'd want to sit and talk with the man who has practised 10,000 kicks. One kick can be mastered, or many kicks can be experienced. Plus, being human, we can master some pursuits, learn others, and merely enjoy or lightly experience the rest.

Parthon: How does one measure their personal growth with learning a new language?

I don't think you can measure it on a scale, except intuitively. You will know deep down whether you are growing or not, and by how much. Objectively though, you are either growing or not, and learning a new language is one way that you can. The article I posted - Self-Help Junkies - gives a good view of what I mean.

[Zwynd]

Originally Posted by Parthon

I plan on drawing, writing, dancing and playing piano, plus many, many, many more. Learning languages and travelling are high on the list too. It's just a matter of affording it. Perhaps I could find a sponsor. :P

See that is it right there. My urge is to want to assist in your dream, to help bridge that gap. Being able to know many different people across the world... if I were already fully living in my passion I could find a sponsor for you or anyone else I'd like to help.

Which brings me to another issue I have been struggling with for quite a while now. Networking.

I'm great at networking in video games. Oh boy can I network there. But irl I'm shaky and don't feel useful at all. Why's that? Maybe I had felt if I fail in a game, it's okay but if I fail someone irl then I would be cast out of the network circle forever.

It's a silly belief and it comes all because I just quite simply don't know how to network irl. If I knew, I'm sure I wouldn't be worried.

And understanding that problem also gives me my solution. Today I've begun eating up every useful site I can find on networking. My first plan (along with focusing on one language starting this week) is to start networking irl; out of video games, not necessarily off the Internet though.

I don't want to limit myself anymore. I'm going to see how far I can go with this. I'm already starting to set up plans and prepare appointments with people who can help me achieve my goals. Yet I won't solely depend on them to change my life. It begins with me.

I now see my dreams as something I can grasp at in a very short time frame. Much effort, but much reward. It's exhilarating yet very sobering in that I realize I've been 'drunk with laziness and fear' for far too long. My mind was numb, but now it's clear and I intend to keep it that way.

[bbdream8]

Zwynd

Congrats! It is really great that you found a win win situation and your true passion. Work hard towards it!

Cheers
Vincent
Personal Development Blogger