Day 1: A New Direction

30 Day Challenge: Day 1

In lieu of making a decision, I often ask others for advice. I do this in restaurants, with travel plans, at the movie theater. A positive result of this habit is I experience things I would not on my own. Take the Burren in Ireland as an example. My travel partner suggested it. Even today, the pictures make me think, "Cracked rock, how boring." Surprisingly, I loved it. It is a surreal landscape and created strange feelings in a good way. I experienced this place because I said yes to my travel partner's suggestion despite my own feelings.

However, asking for advice is not always a good thing. For the past years since college ended, I have been struggling with a decision. More precisely, I have been struggling with a lack of decision. Each new year, I make a resolution that I will work on building my career: I will create goals, make plans, FIGURE OUT THE REST OF MY LIFE. I never did. I work in billing (as I put it, not real accounting) and the most I did was completing an accounting certificate last year. I thought about continuing coursework towards a CPA but decided to take a break. It was a wonderful year in which I developed my social skills, made new friends, and learned more about who I was. This year, I decided I should go back to school because I feel lazy outside of it. Also, I do love learning. I thought about diving back into accounting courses but decided on a graphic design course instead.

So in the past few months, I've been talking with people about which direction to go: accounting or design. Some advised me to stick in accounting and work towards a CPA so I would get paid more doing what I currently do. One person counseled me, "I have a friend who does design. She is talented, went to all the art schools, and has all the skills. She sells bras for a living. I was in your place 15 years ago. MBA, CPA, and I wanted to go build houses instead. Someone else gave me the advice I am giving you: go do what you want outside of work. But stick with accounting. You will always get a job as an accountant." This spoke to the practical side of me. I like a 9-5, a 401k, vacation time, job security, etc. And what chance do I have of being successful in design when I have no art education or technical skills? I do not want to sell bras.

Other people said they could imagine me being a designer. I always loved to doodle, making posters for events, and creating cute signs for dinner parties. One reason I've been thinking about getting a CPA is because I already spent 6 years in the field without a plan. May as well get a CPA along the way. However, someone else gave me a different perspective: "Yes, you spent 6 years here. But you have another 20 years ahead. Go be a designer."

Then I went to a design conference this week and I heard these two talks: Maria Popova, "The Science of Productivity and the Art of Presence" and Lisa Congdon, "Embrace the Abyss & Other Lessons". They made me say,"Forget my fears. I'm going to try to be a graphic designer." I am keeping my job but I am going to focus my outside hours on design now. No more mental energy spent debating what classes to take, no more beating myself up for not being practical, no more seeking advice for what I really want to do.

The first part of this journey will be attempting a 30-day challenge. Yes, I really took Lisa's advice to heart. The general plan is to paint a poster about something that inspires me. I like making posters and it's an easy task. The timing of this idea is a challenge as I'm going out of the country May 1-15. I do not use the internet on vacation. So I plan to sketch/doodle on the road and then post them on my return.

I don't have the technical skills. I have no art school education. I don't know how to use the software. But I keep telling myself: it's like running. You start small. You start kinda crappy. But you keep doing it until it becomes a habit. Then you refine. You improve. Skills don't develop overnight. (I know my design class is already changing me because this font is kinda driving me crazy now. I thought it was so cute when I initially picked it. Now, I find the way it has no baseline to be irritating. It jumps up and down. I will change it in the future.)

Simple 30-day challenge rules:
1. Create something every day. Anything. Even a doodle on toilet paper counts.
2. Take a picture of it.
3. Write a blog post explaining its meaning. (Keep it short, because I need more sleep.)
4. Post it within the 30 days, April 14-May 14.

"Ask for advice. Follow what resonants." (Yes, spelling error. Because I was paranoid and spell-checked. I was right without it.)

I still believe in asking for advice. What is important is not what people tell you but how you feel about what you are told. If a part of you is reluctant to follow the advice, then examine why you feel that emotion. Is it untrue to who you are or are you afraid to be what is possible?

Advice which is good for you will not always appear to be good advice. In my head, my decision to choose design is like saying, "I choose to pick the unstable, uncertain, possible path to complete failure and abject poverty rather than a steady, stable, certain middle-class future with early retirement." However, the talks from strangers felt more right to me than all the practical advice I received from people who have known me for years. Design will make me happier than what I've been doing for the past 6 years. I know it will stress me out as I have stressed every week over the assignments but it will also make me happy. And if it does not work out, it will be okay. At least, I will have tried and have the stories to tell.

What are you like as a decision-maker? Is your decision-making process the same in all situations?