The quest for knowledge (alt title: Finding the wordiest ways to sound totally bonkers)
It occurs to me that in my 32 years of being, I’ve acquired a rather eclectic and sometimes mostly-useless skill set through a number of nearly unbelievable jobs. Some of which may or may not surprise you: butcher, teddy bear maker, trapeze installer, environmental assessment consultant, sexual health adviser, blogger, porn store clerk, electronics technician, social media consultant, mascot, telemarketer, lifeguard, belly dancer, tree farmer, fire department rescue training assistant, Books To Prisoners organizer,entertainment columnist, door to door knife saleswoman, audio erotica book narrator… the list really does go on. I also speak English, French, Japanese, and some Finnish and Polish, can code quite efficiently, and I’m a walking media encyclopedia - movies, music, television, you name it. Most useless skill? I can say the alphabet backwards faster than I can say it forwards. Try me.
I really enjoy learning and trying new things. When someone questions why it is I’ve done such an odd collection of things, I always half-jokingly answer that my first instinct when faced with a decision is: What will make a better story? Sometimes I worry that my Jack-of-all-trades history makes it seem like I can’t make up my mind, but honestly, I think it just comes down to loving a good challenge. Switching gears really keeps me on my toes.
When I was attending high school, the necessity arose for me to find a part time job to help support my family. I searched the want ads in my small (small) town newspaper and discovered that there were two jobs available - one sorting mail at the post office, the other working as a butcher’s assistant at the local grocery store. And there was born my love for the unconventional paths through life. Think of the cool stories I could tell my kids; I was Bambi the Butcher - learning how to carve art out of meat. People really do appreciate a well cut steak. I loved butchering.
After a conversation about my love of learning with @Karen_C_Wilson at the Social Capital Conference this year, it occurred to me: What if my most predominant skill is learning new skills? We joked that I needed to find a way to monetize my love for knowledge and willingness to learn new things. When I think of how much money I’ve paid to learn in the past, the idea of being paid to learn seems so spam-folder far fetched, but what if I’m on to something? The idea’s been percolating in my gooey pink brain all weekend long.
Sponsored learning. Not just sponsored, paid. Take your Bambi to work day!
Now, I haven’t quite figured out how to go about this yet, but I’ve got a few ideas that need some fleshing out. I think a lot of it would involve me learning things I never thought I’d be learning; maybe some Russian literature, a little economic demography, robotics, fencing, and so on. That part honestly brings a smile to my face - how cool would it be to learn something completely outside of my current skill set? I could become a master sommelier or a bounty hunter! Okay, maybe I’m going off the deep end here, but I like to think that the possibilities are endless! Of course, the bottom line would involve logging my journey every step of the way either through text, video, or audio or more likely a combination of the three. But ‘what’s in it for me as a company/institution/trades-person?’ you might ask. Well, I don’t quite know just yet. That part’s a bit fuzzy. But I’ll figure it out!
Alright, I can almost see the confused nods and blank stares. Maybe I’ll let this rattle around in my head a bit longer. Besides, as I write it’s nearly 3:30am and blogging at this hour only ever leads to mindless rambling.
Originally published at BambiBlue. You can comment here or there.