How many people choose a career based on the advice and the good intentions of others? I grew up on a small ranch in Montana. My dad was a hard worker and skilled craftsman but often struggled to hold onto a job as a carpenter. The issue was never his talent. It was because he had a hard time not speaking his mind and following instructions. On the other hand, my grandfather (my mom\u2019s dad) thrived as a craftsman with far less talent. He lived by the rule, if your boss asks you to shingle the floor and carpet the ceiling you do it despite the stupidity of the request. As a result, my dad spent much of his life in tension and constantly seeking employment, whereas my grandfather lived a much more peaceful life. My grandfather was a community leader well-liked by people. My dad though highly respected for his craftsmanship was often misunderstood.<\/p>\n
I chose a career not because I liked it but because it paid well and provided for my family. The responsibly toward family out weighted the need to love me career. My dad\u2019s advice was to learn from his mistakes keep my mouth shut and follow instructions. As a result, I spent 27 years in a successful career often torn between providing for my family and pursuing my dreams. Though the job provided a great number of opportunities for my family, created an environment for learning and paid for a far portion of my education it just wasn\u2019t what I wanted. Much like the river tender in Not Doing <\/em>the desire to reinvent myself was always on my mind. After 27 years of tensions building, a thunderstorm was brewing. Something eventually needed to go to ground. The static discharge would eventually come. My children were grown, and changes were made.<\/p>\n Thunderstorms can be a grand event, as well as, beneficial. A thunderstorm transfers the overabundance of an atmospheric electrical build up back to ground through lightening. Air is an insulator allowing the positive and negative electrical charges to build up between the clouds in the atmosphere and the earth. When enough power is built up a rapid discharge of electricity is released to ground. Though lightening does discharge to the ground the bright visual portion we see is actually the return lightening stroke heading back up into the sky.[1]<\/a> There appears to be an exchange of energy bringing balance to a highly charged atmosphere. The thing about thunderstorms that never grows old is there is always a freshness in the air after the storm. A new sense of calmness can be felt. The discharged static buildup has created an atmospheric balance. Things seem cleaner, newer, different!<\/p>\n Specializing may be beneficial for some but for me it has made the reinvention of self very challenging. Specializing created in me the need to discharge static build up and go to ground. \u00a0According to Not Knowing <\/em>\u201cExperts are often too invested in what they know to question what they know, or admit that they don\u2019t know.\u201d[2]<\/a> According to D\u2019Souza and Reiner the very act of specializing and having a deep focus in a specific area may very well be the thing that limits our perspective and prohibits our ability to see beyond our narrowed view.[3]<\/a> Right now, I don\u2019t know! That\u2019s ok! The perspective from where I\u2019m standing as a generalist is broad and vast. Things smell fresh, appear new and clean. The constant memory of my grandmother\u2019s advice when I was growing up rings in my head \u201c Greg, God has a plan and we can trust Him.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/a>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 [1] https:\/\/www.nssl.noaa.gov\/education\/svrwx101\/lightning\/faq\/<\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n