Overworking and Underthinking

Over the last couple of years I have wanted to radically change some things in my life. The motivation behind that is the discovery of a strong pull to various creative activities that I have never developed. Though I am very grateful for my upbringing, I realized that my background and education did not build on my creative skills in any way. Over the recent years I have wanted to find out if I could be any good in the creative world.

I grew up in an academic environment where we were encouraged to set our sights on professional careers. I wonder what my parents, teachers and peers would have thought if I told them I wanted to be a hairdresser, fashion designer, event designer or a writer. I cannot even imagine how that conversation would have gone. They obviously did not know Andre Walker-Oprah's hairdresser who has done her hair for years and has launched his own product line. This has obviously afforded him a very comfortable living.

One of my biggest obstacles is my current career. I am not unhappy with what I do and have enjoyed learning what makes people tick and builds a successful business. I work an average of 50 hours a week on most weeks and many times longer hours during our busy seasons. Because of this busy schedule it has been difficult to find time to consider and build my creative skills and find out if I would be any good.

One of my biggest frustrations is the lack of time to plan and think. I get my best ideas when I sit for long periods of time with no interruptions and just allow myself to hear my thoughts. With my current lifestyle, I fall asleep most times I try to relax and think. Because of this, I have realized I need to make a major life change to create the time needed to grow other areas of my life. The questions I am faced with are

• How can I incorporate what I want to learn with my current skill set and make something worthwhile? 
• Can I live with the decision of completely ignoring my creative side and embracing my current path for the rest of my life? 
• What am I afraid of? 
• What do I have to lose if I make a change? 
• How can I best make this transition and merge my past with the future I want to see? 
• What is the first step? 

As immigrants we are faced with a world of new opportunities, many of which we may not have been exposed to in our countries of birth. Are you facing the same issue in your life where you are overworking and under thinking? How much could really thinking about your life change your path? What might you contribute? Lets overcome our fear and dare to discover what may be in the unknown. After all we left our friends and family and started a whole new life. 

Incidentally I work for a software company so I am surrounded by creatives. Some of the best and most gifted programmers we have are the ones who spend a lot of time thinking up solutions. You can tell by the quality of their output. It has given me a new appreciation for genius which comes from within when we are not so busy trying to find it from without.

Happy thinking weekend!!