Hey beautiful
In her 2006 book “Refuse to Choose” Barbara Sher offers encouragement and advice for “Scanners” – people who are committed lifelong learners, students of everything who strongly resist specialisation, remaining curious, enthusiastic generalists.
“Our society frowns on this apparent self-indulgence. If course, it’s not self-indulgence at all; it’s the way Scanners are designed, and there’s nothing they can or should do about it. A Scanner is curious because they are genetically programmed to explore everything that interests them. If you’re a Scanner, that’s your nature. Ignore it and you’ll always be fretful and dissatisfied.”
Scanners may suffer most from the internalised expectation that one day they’ll find the one thing, stop exploring and settle down. But then that idea itself feels like a suffocating nightmare.
Here’s a handful of quotes from the book reframing the Scanner experience:
“When you lose interest in something, you must always consider the possibility that you’ve gotten what you came for; you have completed your mission.”
“How would it feel to forget about finding your big passion and enjoy the delightful fact that you can learn anything you like and your life will be filled with variety and excitement?”
“And be grateful that you’re a Scanner. Not everyone can have this much fun with nothing but what’s between her ears.”
“Isolation is the dream killer. It will stop you every time.”
This amazon review resonated with me:
“I got the most value out of the words though. Words that tell you you’re okay the way you are and that there are many people like you. You’re not broken, just unconventional”
For those of us who keep following trails of curiosity way off the beaten bath, sometimes we look up and wonder where everybody else went….
Remember, you’re not alone in following your passion across a heap of interests.
“Your trail of enthusiasms is the most precise instrument you have for locating where you’d find the deepest satisfaction in your life.”
I am excited about ideas.
I adore my own – that moment of “oh, yes, that!” when a solution to a situation comes to me, usually making me giggle because in hindsight it’s obvious. Scintilla of invention. It’s literally a spark, a new neural connection.
And I also adore the ideas of other people, and feel so fortunate when I get to share a moment of discovery with them, a moment of realising there is a real, exciting way forward in what seemed like an impossible situation. The joy and connection that comes with that.
Acknowledging this lifelong love of ideas, and reflection, and holding space for ideas to emerge enables me to make some sense of the trajectory of my life.
From excelling at school academics to ten years at university (Half a Law degree, honours in astrophysics, masters in rocket science) where my education broadened to embrace social exploration at the expense of lower grades. Then on to the Patents Office in Canberra where I was literally examining inventive ideas of others. The scintilla of invention – apparently trivial once discovered, but surprisingly difficult to see from the unknowing side. Travel the world. Admin jobs and more study – Grad Dip in Library and Info Management. Then tumbling down the rabbit hole into the wonderland of motherhood and the mind bogglingly steep learning curve there. And the long journey of walking beside children as they learn and master all the astounding skills and abilities of being a growing human in the changing world.
Seeking more clarity and calm – the wellspring of brilliant ideas, even and especially in the presence of tension and pressure – ive studied and taught yoga and dance, plus dabbling in other mindful movement practices. Ephemeral nature art and photography. Finally embodiment coaching training gave me a container to pull it all together – and opened my mind to a whole other world of conscious activism and culture change. And who knows where that will lead?
As I look outward, there’s so much to learn about and enjoy in the world. It’s incredibly exciting, but it can also feel overwhelming. Where to next?
Breathe!
“Start small.
Start now.
Start everything.
And don’t bother to finish any of it.”
I learned from another teacher that
a piece of art, of creative expression (which is what you’re exploring here) is never finished, but only abandoned…
the letting-go of an idea that has become so tiring or annoying that one has lost all interest in it.
I like to think that ideas are an endlessly renewable resource. It’s ok to become bored with an idea or belief and let it go.
Move on with gratitude for what you’ve learned, remembering where you’re coming from and what you’ve moved through, curious about where you’re going to. Building a body of work (Thanks Kelly Diels for promoting that concept)
In an increasingly time compressed and limited resource world, there is always room, and in fact a crying need for fresh ideas which grow out of thoughtful interactions between people. Conversations and caring.
This is how I understand and experience Growth mindset (Carol Dweck) – the ability to choose to change your mind willingly, not making where you’ve come from wrong or bad, but simply where you were before.
Growth mindset encourages ideas which bring hope and joy and connection, growing a positive feedback loop of friendly engagement.
There’s another idea I love.
How does the Scanner concept land for you? And the idea of moving on with gratitude? And growth mindset? Seeing connections there? Feeling connections? Got corrections?
I’d love to hear your thoughts
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