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“What do you do?”
It’s a loaded question. When we meet somebody new, we’ve got just one or two sentences to answer this question. We want to answer in a way which does justice to our years of hard work and ambition, but also doesn’t sound big headed.
Answering the question of ‘what we do’ for a living is challenging enough for someone with one straight-forward career path. But for those of us who change careers or who do multiple things at once, there is no short answer that feels quite right.
In being asked what we do, we are pretty much being quizzed on who we are. We know that a judgement will be formed based on how we answer — that first impression that we want to get right.
I’ve always been a bit of a magpie when it comes to jobs, and I’m the same with hobbies too. I’m drawn to something shiny and new, and I love variety. Having just embarked on my third career at the age of forty, I’ve been reflecting on how changing again feels for me.
In truth, I always want to be adding to my collection, making my list of accomplishments longer. Part of me feels this gives me more kudos, more to be proud of, and perhaps more facets to who I am. From this angle, being a magpie…
