Oh, Bother
It kills me that people don’t use their natural gifts and talents.
People change. They fall in and out of love with passions, hobbies, and careers. Bodies and responsibilities also change with time.
Our time here on earth is over so quick. Maybe I’m a bit hedonistic, but I truly believe our time here should be spend doing that which we enjoy and are naturally adept to.
Work Gets in the Way
My little sister Danielle was in a desperate post-grad job hunt and was simultaneously trying to get out of the house. She’s probably one of the most gifted, creative writers on the planet. I’m sure of that. She writes novels.. FOR FUN?! Her job hunt took so much away from her time to create. She ended up taking a job at a doggy day care in the meantime. She loves dogs, but the amount of time she spent there took away from her creative passions. When she had on off day, she’d just be drastically searching for work.
Burnout is also a killer. Sometimes Danielle would take low paying freelance writing jobs. This is great because she’s building a good body of work, but by the end of the day, she’d have nothing left for her own creative work that she does for the hell of it.
It’s kind of a bummer, but there are times when the sacrifice has to be made. The sacrifice aka work, could be necessary as we build skills towards a new profession or interest. In some cases, the sacrifice enables you to pursue other interests and hobbies.
The Ex-Athlete
I have the perspective of an ex-athlete. I devoted so much time to my craft (baseball), and now this craft does not have too much use in my life. Which is fine, but there’s a reason I put so much time into it. I love(d) it. The passion for the game never disappears, it’s just that responsibilities change. The college athlete bubble is a beautiful bubble and can be painful when it pops.
An athlete gets done with their sport and they have to figure out a new way to make themselves useful. A significant amount of time and energy is needed to figure out how to make yourself valuable to the world, especially if you are leaving the sport completely. I tend to see a lot of people who get rushed into picking careers or are spending their time acquiring skills they don’t even like or care about. The skills matter because they may bring a return, but I think it’s more important in the long run to pick that which actually peak your curiosity.
It’s a slippery slope when you let the natural gifts and talents go dormant. If they’re sleeping for too long, rust builds. The surfer who hasn’t surfed in a while will have to undergo a steep re learning process to get in shape. The golf swing comes and goes QUICK. I don’t know what it’s like to be a musician, but I’m sure it takes a while to get back in the rhythm. I’ve seen this frustration lead to an absolute abandonment of the interest, and that is what bothers me most.
Pursuing Mastery
I think we have an intrinsic need to be pursuing mastery towards something that matters to us. This could be a video game or in your rec. league kickball.
I like to think of what I’d be doing if I had an unlimited budget. It might be unrealistic, but what are some natural curiosities that would arise if you had the amount of money to give you unlimited time to do you? Examine your motives. Do YOU want to do this, or is it being somewhat forced upon you.I’m sure the time wouldn’t be spent drinking or watching tv if you had that budget.
There’s a very fine line between wasting time on something/pursuing mastery. Video games and Netflix are a great way to unwind. One can become a professional video game player and someone can even create a fan website that drives traffic to pay the bills. One can also use video games or Netflix in a completely unhealthy, zone out manner to dull the pain of the sacrifice you are making in order to get that free time.
I kind of go back and forth about hobbies. There are so many things out there to do, and now that I’m so old it’s not like I’m going to be the best ever at something new that I pick up. But hobbies are what make you interesting, and I don’t think it’s worth it to compare yourself to the big leaguers as long you enjoy what you’re doing.
Thoughts to Free the Time
Say “no”. You can do that. You might open up some time to find new things that matter more to you. You are in control of your life and you have the power to make your own decisions. Remember how short and valuable your time is here.
If you’re in a rebuild/retooling process, take a close look at how you are spending your off time. I’ve noticed that the people that complain the most about how they are “losing it” are the ones that drown their free time in unhealthy ways. This is no way to achieve the mastery that you crave.
Stay at play.
Namaste,
Paul
