Get out of the box

I have been telling a friend of mine to start blogging. He used to write very well in school and then he used to send these mails that were really well written and entertaining to read. He recently got around to starting a blog but has not been regularly updating it. I distinctly remember a few others from my high school who used to write well and none of these people blog.

This is the era of Web 2.0 - of people-generated content. There are loads of people who blog and some of them have even successfully taken blogging up as a viable career option. I feel that whoever believes that he/she is good at writing or could become good at writing should try a hand at writing blogs. Other than writing - another soft skill people could try out is photography. There is not too much of investment to be made and there is not too much of effort involved nor would it require too much of changes to existing schedules.

The point I am making is not about blogging or photography - it is about peoples' innate capabilities and talents. People study very hard (those who do) and once that is done they try hard to get a job. After that it is all about marrying, having kids and then settling down. Life is not just about getting a job, marrying, having kids, falling into a routine and settling down (as in particulate suspensions settling down). It could be a lot more. It could be those fanciful ideas you expressed when your english teacher asked you about your career aspirations when you were in kindergarten. It could be your dreams of doing something which the orthodox systems prevented you from doing - like going on a world tour, volunteering for charity for a couple of years, trying out a wild business idea and what not. It could be about following your passion. Identifying things you would like to do and then doing it.

You could possibly excel and enjoy using any of those skills that you possess and that does not directly play any role in your job. It is probably just a matter of trying out those skills and building them up (and even giving it a try as a true career option if you are confident enough). However our system and our society wants all of you to take safe bets and choose career options that will enable you to have a regular job with regular assured income. I am not saying that people should wildly follow their fancies. They should not douse the flames within them - that is all. Make safe choices, get good jobs - but always keep your options open.

The ultimate challenge is to turn back and walk against the crowd instead of following it. It is a great feeling. Believe me. Those of you who are bold enough should try it out before it is too late in your lives. Even if you don't succeed you would at least be able to say with satisfaction that you tried. Those who succeeded in doing that were the people who took the world to where it is now. If people had just followed routines we would still be digging grubs and roots with our hands. Be forewarned - not everybody is going to succeed - and that could include me too.