Is 'specialist' or 'multi-passionate' the right path for you?

Have you always felt like you should find ‘your thing’?

When I was an art student in London I used to work at one of the big London galleries on the special exhibitions ticket desk for their ‘blockbuster’ shows. It was a great job as a student – well paid, flexible and I got to spend my breaks wandering the gallery or sitting in Trafalgar Square in the company of pigeons who tried to eat my sandwiches.

Most of the time I was there the exhibitions featured ‘great masters’ of painting…who I wasn’t really that interested in to be honest. But what was interesting was how visitors would talk to me about these artists. Phrases like ‘Total dedication’, ‘born to be a painter’ and ‘a natural master of their craft’ came up a lot.

Which might help to explain why as a young art student on a multidisciplinary conceptual art course I still had a lingering sense that I was searching for my ‘thing’. The Thing that I was born to do, that I would devote myself to totally until I became a master of my craft. I didn’t necessarily think it was going to be one art form, but I thought perhaps there was a theme, or topic, or way of thinking that I would discover and everything would suddenly be…easy.

I imagined it would be similar to how people who like running describe the moment when they get into flow and feel they could run forever. I mean...that’s not something I have personally experienced as I’m more of a ‘dry-heave in the bushes’ kind of runner, but that idea of finding something you theoretically could do forever, never get bored and gather recognition and acclaim just for being the master you were always destined to be?

That sounds pretty sweeeeeet.

But alas it never worked for me, and it doesn’t work for a lot of my clients either.

For some of us it is the right path (although perhaps never quite as easy and flowing as we might imagine). I know creatives who are deeply, passionately in love with one art form or concept and just cannot get enough of exploring all the nuances and potential of their specialist area as a 'master of their art' (although that term is well overdue a gender neutral makeover!). I’m sure they have other things going on in their life too of course – I don’t think being tunnel-vision obsessed with one thing is healthy for any of us. But speaking to them you get the sense they have found the path they want to run on for some time.

However, not all of us are meant to be specialists... and sometimes this hurts.

A painful scenario I’ve experienced is finding something new, feeling like it’s The Thing, spending lots of money on materials, telling everyone I know how wonderful it is…and then getting bored. Or falling in love with something else far too quickly and feeling ashamed of the fact that - for all my conviction that I had finally found my specialism – it turned out for me that path was more of a 100 meter sprint then a life-long marathon.

Now I know what you are probably thinking…‘oh, that’s shiny object syndrome’. And perhaps it is. For a long time I self-diagnosed myself as having it. But here are three thoughts I have about shiny object syndrome:

1. It’s not a real syndrome – it’s a pop-culture term used to describe the distraction of the new and it’s applied to career coaching, creativity, consumerism and more.

2. While it can be a useful lens to consider why we are so easily losing interest or being tempted in by the next exciting thing, as a term it can stop us from asking deeper questions and being curious about what our real motivations are.

3. It’s inherently weighted towards the negative – most things that end with the word ‘syndrome’ are. What if it’s not a ‘syndrome’? What if life is just too short to stick with something that bores you? What if you are a creative magpie, a collector of materials and methods who is building a complex nest of curiosities and wonders?

Because if that’s the case you might want to experiment with a different term – one based in the strengths of your personality rather than one loaded with shame to diagnose a weakness or flaw within you.

And there are a few fun ones to choose from: Multi-passionate. Multipotentialite. Scanner. Renaissance soul. Polymath. Interdisciplinary. Cephalopod Creativity...

Ok, ok I made that last one up but I think it might catch on! 🐙🦑😂

Is this the right thing for everyone? No.

Does it come with it’s own set of challenges? Yes.

Can we think up new or imaginative solutions to those challenges? Of course!

Even if you find it's not the right path for you it’s a conversation well worth having. Because I can tell you from personal experience that a multi-passionate creative soul trapped in a specialism is like a bird in a cage.

What if the answer isn’t to learn to love the cage, but to set yourself free so you can find the right creative path for you?

And how do you work out what’s right for you? I believe a good starting point is to have access to information and ideas so you can experiment and explore what feels good and works for you.

Some amazing books to get you started on understanding how you could thrive as a multi-passionate person include:

‘How To Be Everything’ by Emilie Wapnick

‘Refuse To Choose’ by Barbara Sher

‘I Could Do Anything if I Only Knew What It Was’ by Barbara Sher

‘The Renaissance Soul: Life Design for People with Too Many Passions to Pick Just One’ by Margaret Lobenstine

Or you might enjoy the post I wrote about my own journey on this path in ‘Embracing my identity as a multi-passionate creative: What’s my ‘thing’? I’m lacemaking with ideas and materials.’

Oh and I've just realised you might be wondering why this is relevant to sensitive creatives.

Well firstly because sensitive people tend to need meaning in their lives, so trapping ourselves in something we don’t enjoy can be very painful. Secondly we might have many things that we care deeply about or find ourselves interesting in all sorts of topics because that’s how our wonderful sensitive nervous system is wired. Perhaps we might be more likely to be misdirected by cultural messages or advice because of our sensitive nature. And lastly because being very sensitive and having multiple passions are both traits I have experienced, many of my clients have experienced, and I know some of you have said is a topic you’d love to open up more.

I would like to open it up more too! Which is why over the next few posts I’ll be exploring multi-passionate creativity, and how it relates to sensitive people.

I hope you’ll join me for my next upcoming post on the topic: What is multi-passionate creativity?

Sending you kind wishes and creative magic as you explore what’s true to you!

Eleanor 🌠

Was this post useful to you? If so please help me to offer these resources to the sensitive creatives who need them! It's easy, just share it with someone you know who might appreciate it. You can send them this email as a blogpost with the link www.eleanorchaney.com/on-creativity/is-specialist-or-multi-passionate-the-right-path-for-you