How To Navigate Life As A Multihyphenate

As far as I can remember, I have always struggled with a sense of infinite possibility. Growing up as a kid, I would have a new dream career each year. I had multiple hobbies and interests. I was fairly talented at all my interests as well. I distinctly remember my dream career being an architect in the 2nd grade. That soon changed into being a fashion designer. At some point, it was being an author.

My teen years were spent taking a majority of science classes in high school. But, I spent my free time on the debate team, creating art, writing stories, and attempting to run a blog. This very same one! My public speaking skills, writing, and argumentation skills were solid. Which made me consider being a lawyer. But, my academics in science were strong. It made be consider being a scientist. All while my leisurely hobbies still included the arts and writing.

In my undergraduate years, I really got into digital illustration, photography, and creative writing. All while, I was studying Neuroscience and absolutely loving it. I was working in a research lab, also tutoring in biology, still doing public speaking, and still upkeeping all my hobbies.

After graduating, I knew I had to pick something and stick to it. I chose copywriting, which is essentially writing for brands and businesses to help them hit marketing goals. I love being a copywriter and I thoroughly enjoy my work. But, I still have the desire to pursue everything else.

I soon learned that all of this comes as part of a multi-hyphenate personality. If you can relate, you’re probably a multi-hyphenate as well.

How Can One Navigate Life With Multiple Talents And Multiple Interests?

The simple answer is to give everything a try to some capacity. You will never where your path is meant to be if you do not try. Do not get paralyzed by the multiple choices in front of you.

You can always change your path at any point. View these multiple choices as an opportunity to truly discover yourself.

The key here is to try out all your interests. But try them out in a way where you are not making real commitments upfront. This will decrease the possible collateral damager of trying out many paths.

For example, if you are interested in Law and maybe want to become a lawyer. Test out law itself first! Get a job as a paralegal or a legal assistant to get your foot through the door of a law firm. This way you can see the day to day inner-working of the legal field. Is it still something you want? You’ll know. If it is not, then you have a nice job to line your resume with and you can just move on to the next option.

Do you want to be an artist? Then go out and get some art supplies and get started. Create social media account to post your creations. Try out an Etsy shop to sell your creations. A big part of being an artist is also being business savvy. Try this out for at least a few months. Do you like it? Are you witnessing any progress? If not, move on to the next option.

Give all of your interests a fair shot for a short trial period of time.

Afterwards assess the following:

- Do you feel fulfilled?

- Can you picture yourself doing this for years and years to come?

- What is your financial outlook on this path?

- Is there mobility to turn this path into other opportunities?

Another practice you can incorporate is networking. Simply network. Build connections. Ask people what they do. What they like about their careers and what they don’t. Gather as much information as you can. Networking can be tough as introvert. This is why the internet is also a great place to network and build connections.

Differentiate between what you would want as a career and what you would want as a hobby. Sometimes, monetizing a hobby can actually make us dislike that hobby and lose our passion for it. You have to determine, what type of work you are ok with doing everyday. Your career and your hobbies can be absolutely different.

Do not fall for facades. Do you actually like a certain path, or do you like the idea of that path. For example, do you actually want to become a doctor, or do you like the idea of wearing a white coat and wandering a hospital, solving high-risk cases? Detach your imagination from the actual job. Real-life jobs are often boring, tedious, and repetitive. You have to determine what repetitive and tedious tasks you can put up with on a daily basis.

Finally, keep track of your progress. As a multi-hyphenate myself, I know how difficult it can be seeing others pull ahead and conquer their singular career and one-way life. It can almost make you feel inadequate for trying a whole cocktail of careers before settling. But truly, this is our greatest strength. We have a huge diverse range of skills and experiences. You can use this to your advantage on resumes and in job interviews. Hiring mangers love well-rounded candidates, who have a lot to bring to the table. Having many skills in this economy, ensures that you can transition to another industry if times get tough. Don’t be ashamed of your superfluous nature. Embrace it.

Having many skills, many talents, and many interests, is really a superpower. It can create tough beginnings, but a diverse palette always leads to success!