A recent post on Zen Habits got me to thinking about my career path. For the last ten years I have alternated between graphic design and technical writing, both for full-time employers and as a freelancer. Some of the work has been satisfying and some has just been work, which I’m sure is how life is for most people.
That said, I find myself at a point in my life where I want to enjoy my time more fully, including the time I spend at work. When I was laid off a couple of years ago and decided to freelance full time, my goal was to do client work for most of a typical work week and to balance it with charitable work. I would still like to do that. So that is one goal.
The Zen Habits post asks a very good question: what work would I do if money was not a factor? What work am I naturally good at? I love to write and to draw and to design things. I like working with my hands. I like mentoring, and people tell me I would make a good teacher, but I don’t know if that is exactly true in the public school system sense.
I was thinking this afternoon about the assignments that I have enjoyed the most over the years, and they have almost always involved creating something that explains or clarifies a concept for an audience. It could be the user interface design of a website, a technical illustration for trainees, or a list of directions.
The Zen Habits post also talks about doing one thing and doing it well. Given the facts above, it seems to me that my distinctive feature as a worker- the thing I am good at and enjoy doing whether I am paid or not – is making things simple for others. Anyone who knows me knows how I am always complaining about bloated feature lists in popular applications. I enjoy writing scripts to automate repetitive tasks, even if I am not the one doing the task. I often wish that computer operating systems were as simple to use as the dial on an old television. I am a Buddhist and believe in meditating in order to keep perspective and a clear mind. Much of my spare time over the years has been spent cartooning or writing plays, both being arts that enable us to distill complex stories to direct and unaffected forms.
So that’s me; the simplifier. The question is, how to make a living at it? I’ll keep you posted.
