Before I deactivated my Facebook account and decided to give social media a rest for a while, I kept seeing posts about all the things you could do during quarantine. And I was really puzzled: do these people have kids?
MultiTalented Life
I’m a MultiTalented person. And while that may sound like bragging, it’s just a word to describe someone who has multiple interests and maintains multiple projects.
I’ve always been MultiTalented. I’ve always had a zillion things on the go, from the time I was a teenager. I think that’s probably because of circumstance—as an immigrant, I had to work long hours while attending high school full time in order to help run the household.
I’m a very extroverted person, and social interactions are a must, so I still participated in extra-curriculars, too. So at 16, I was working 30+ hours a week, attending high school full time, and participating in various after school clubs on the two weekdays I had off.
While some kids would find that stressful or a drag, I thrived in that kind of fast-paced, bursting-at-the-seams schedule, for more reasons than one. And I still do.
When people look at the amount of projects I have on the go, they either think I’m crazy, or some sort of superwoman. I’m neither. I’m just someone who has multiple interests, isn’t afraid of trying new things, and loves to learn continuously: a MultiTalented person.
Until a few years ago, I didn’t know people like me had a name. I’ve never been a big fan of labels anyway, so I don’t need a name to define who I am as a person. But this is different. The names people like us have been given (or chosen) opens up opportunities instead of singling us out. Just listen to some of these names:
Scanner, meaning we love to scan things to learn as much as we can about as much as we can, multipotentialites, meaning we have the potential to become whatever we wish to become, multitalented (my personal favourite), renaissance soul…
All of these names show the world that we have huge potential if we just live life he way we know how to live it best: by experiencing many different careers, travels, and more, without choosing one path for the rest of our lives. If we choose to celebrate our multitalented nature.
In talking with one of my editors about the many different projects I take on, she suggested I might be a scanner and that I’d probably like the book “Refuse to Choose,” by Barbara Sher. I read that book, and it changed my life.
There’s a tonne of people out there who don’t want to/can’t/won’t settle for one career, one hobby, one path for the rest of their lives, and I’m one of those people.
I lived that philosophy in my writing career, where I completely ignored the advice to “niche down,” and did just fine, earning a good income working in various niches and writing in multiple formats. I even teach other writers to do the same, and don’t stick to just writing—I do editing and coaching, too.
If you’re like me, and you love to learn about many different topics, this is the section of the blog for you. Here I write about what it’s like to have various interests, offer suggestions on free courses you can take, and more.
Posts about the MultiTalented Life
Niche for Success? Nah.
Since I was 15, I’ve always had all kinds of stuff on the go—all at the same time. I worked full time hours while going to high school full time (and still managed to participate in two extra-curriculars per year, while writing poetry, too).
I worked two jobs all through my university years, had a blast swing dancing with friends every week, and still managed to graduate on the Dean’s Honours List with a dual degree. After university, I worked three jobs while continuing my swing dancing outings and still managing to hang out with my husband. Then I had kids.