Well-Rounded or Pathetically Distracted?
Monday, August 2, 2010 at 09:56PM | 10 Comments It's all a matter of how you look at it, I guess.
While I was unschooling my brood, I quietly railed against the pedagogy of the public school system's insistence that a child excel or at least be proficient in all the 'required subjects':
Reading. And math. And science. And history. And sports. And music. And....
And.. really? Because a good argument would be, say you had to go in to have a brain tumor removed, would you want a surgeon who was really REALLY good at brain surgery to the point of obsession? Or one who balanced his proficiency in medicine with that of Civil War trivia, cello-playing and algebra.
I mean, a person should have a healthy variety of interests. But if my kid showed an unwavering interest in building airplanes, or computer programs, or practiced playing music every flippin' day, I say, let him at it! Let him enjoy the luxury of being consumed with a passion before he has to get a day job.
And, dare I say, maybe he won't have to get a day job because he'll be so darn good at what he loves, he could make a career out of it.
Made sense to me.
And so, here I am.. having been vocally defensive of my reluctance to get certified in other modalities, because, one, I believe the study of shiatsu could keep me busy for a lifetime, and two, I'd rather be really REALLY good at that, than have a smattering of a lot of other therapies under my belt just to impress people.
And besides. Single-mindedness of purpose is the only way we can reach our goals.
Right? RIGHT?
Diversity is Survival.
So, for those who are paying attention, you may have been aware that my life situation is changing. My husband and I are parting ways after 21 years, and sooooo, I have to make a living that actually pays for things I need. Like my car. And my house. And maybe some food and stuff.
The shiatsu biz waxes and wanes, and can be largely undependable in the steady-income department. In times like these, it's good to be resourceful.
I have other skills to draw upon. My website-building experience. My somewhat-shiatsu-related knowledge like qi gong and macrobiotic cooking. My herb gardening experience. My graphic arts degree (oh yeah, remember that...?).
I've decided to revive some packed-away interests, and nearly-forgotten dreams in the hopes of creating several income streams, thereby avoiding getting a Real Job at which I might get paid only slightly more than the cost of having said job.
But I struggle with feeling like a scatterbrain. Like a jill-of-all-trades/master-of-none. Of being accused of jumping all over the place, with no focus, no aim, no expertise. No Goals, or Impressive Single-Minded Determination.
*gasp*
Renaissance Woman.
I worry about unhealthily indulging my insatiable restlessness and boredom, but Damn! I like doing a lot of different stuff! And I really think I can elevate much of it beyond hobby status to being able to feed my kids and all their friends whom I keep finding on the couch.
So, does that make me a bad person? Am I ADD? Am I all over the map? Am I doomed to mediocrity because I'm avoiding honing in on my One Big Thing?
Does it count if I concoct an Overarching Theme to tie all this stuff together? Am I using Too Many Capitals to make a point?
For example, here's what I'm doing (or planning to do):
- A healing touch retreat for couples, co-taught with a massage therapist. (Fair enough, and actually relevant.)
- Infant massage class (Again, makes perfect sense..)
- Basic whole foods cooking class (Yeah, I can see that..)
- Teaching an almost year-long herb class to young homeschoolers (Really?)
- Launching a coaching practice to help holistic healers get a viable web presence (Um, wait a minute...)
- Reviving my old handmade greeting card business using designs inspired by Japanese motifs (Okay, now you're just being silly..)
So, will I have time to get Really Good at shiatsu? Or better yet, will I have time to do any of this stuff, in addition to single-handedly running a household containing four homeschooled boys between the ages of 9 and 20, while cooking, cleaning, laundry, driving, and unplugging toilets... and, oh yeah, writing about it all?
Are you done laughing yet?
Yeah, me neither...
(But, hey, if you're interested in any of this stuff, feel free to contact me... ;)
Reader Comments (10)
This might make you nervous but reading this just made me really excited. I'm so excited for you and all the things you're doing sound fabulous. Then again, I do have ADD, I don't like only doing one thing and I'm pulling together a few things that I'm hoping I can do to make a living because having a real job for so long nearly killed me. (And when I scrape a few more dollars together, I just might need your services to help me pull my web presence together!) I'm just so terribly excited about all this that I don't know what to do with myself now! Except laugh with you!
Ah, Jessica... this actually comes as very reassuring to me, particularly as I knew you of all people would understand, and I kinda look to you as a mentor in navigating this path.
So, yay! And, *laughing together*..!
Thank you being excited. I'm actually excited too, and look forward to getting out of the bed in the morning to do all this stuff!
xo, g
Go Girl!
I completely agree with you about Shiatsu, theres just sooooo much to learn. Its wonderful stuff!
Its great to hear you're not restricting yourself and what you can do, dust off those skills and make the most of the opportunities presented.
Look forward to hearing about your successes!
I'm laughing with you, too. And attempting to do something similar. (It's the economy, stupids?) I call it "cobbling together." And before you say 'no' to Vuitton - watch this ad:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bcMD44ThOsg&feature=channel
xo
Yay to the Renaissance Woman!! While I like to think I'm OK with my random skill set, I know that sometimes it can be a red flag and this causes me a bit o' angst, but I comfort myself in remembering it is (thankfully) not brain surgery I'm offering, and I do know more about the therapies I practice than my clients.
AND can I be first in line for that ebook! Go girrrllll!! And a blog tweek consultation thingymabob!
PS I went thru a purple puddles stage too a few years back with that home organizing website, but had to stop the emails telling me to put on my shoes....I found them too depressing somehow...
Tracy: Thank you!! And so, far, in my not-even-first-week of the 'coaching' thingy, I have three people, and several more interested...
Susan: I knew you'd understand... and so what was up with that video...? LOL (obviously, i removed the spam...)
Paige: Hey, I hope I didn't offend you.. I think I feel a little inadequate sometimes (and therefore defensive) when I meet people who do all kinds of stuff, and I get asked, "so, you *just* do shiatsu?" (I think I feel a blog post coming on...!) And, hey, you can't be first in line for my blog tweak thingymabob, but you can about fifth.. :) (I'll email ya!!)
PS: "Purple puddles".. hahaha. Yeah, I just got back on that list, but I still will not wear shoes.. not in the summer anyway... dammit. :)
Wow, a lot of transition! Do you have someone who gives YOU shiatsu? You have helped me so much from so far away, I'm sure you will find your (renaissance) path. I feel like you, except that I am still married, and my kids are in public school. Okay, so nothing like you but I totally appreciate your choices and find every post of yours inspiring, thoughtful, and - honest. You are brave, that's for sure! And that is what you need to get you through it all.
Wow, Linda... thank you for that! And I'm so glad that whatever I've said has been a help to you.
I do have someone who gives me shiatsu, but I haven't been to her in three years. I even worked on her recently, in the spirit of bartering, and haven't taken her up on my session yet. What's wrong with me? I don't know... LOL...
Thanks for that reminder...! (I have been getting other bodywork though...for the record)
i love this.. i love being someone who does it all.. and is scatterbrained.. :)
i once had a mentor / boss who said this to me
"denise your 70% in all these areas typically outweighs others 100% in one"
hee hee.. i think you'll rock the diversity
and i also happen to believe that everything we do to stretch ourselves
feeds all of our interests in new and unique ways
and offers new lenses to see our old practices through
ROCK ON CHICA
Awesome, Denise.. and thank you so much for your encouragement... both here and yesterday! It was so great to meet you...
Check her out, people.. she has a fabulous 'view' on life!!!