Sorry I've been MIA for a bit. Things have been tough, I picked up a side job and have also been producing a game with some friends. I've been thinking of topics to write about and this one popped up. I wanna get it down on paper (metaphorically speaking) before I forget. I wrote a post about a year ago on finding your element because I suddenly realized I needed to change around the course of my career. Worked out well. But there was another portion of that whole experience that I never really mentioned or even understood until recently.
There is a deep, burning desire in all of us that renders us to crave more and more experience of something in particular. This desire came to me at a really ironic time in my life. The situation was so raw that there is no way I could have interpreted it any other way. After realizing my calling was in Los Angeles to be a part of the animation industry, I stopped by my college town of Chico on the way down from Seattle. Granted, I didn't intend to stay there for 9 months, but I'm extremely glad I did. I stayed with some friends of mine who had an extra bedroom, bless them for being so kind. I had very little money, 2 suitcases, and my computer. I remember sitting on this wonky chair, with a lopsided desk, and at night shivering to keep the blankets warm when I would wake up to frosty windows. I was surviving off of freelance projects, as well as working as a receptionist for a local private practice - all very little money and not enough to cover much of my student loan debt. This doesn't sound like an awesome time I would like to remember, but it is.
Because of one project.
I brought back to life with some friends of mine a short animation about a normal day cooking in the kitchen... but from the food's perspective. A short horror film, if you will. This project kept me going and gave me something to work for. I was learning, I was excelling, I was enjoying every moment of it. I keep thinking back to this image of me sitting on that wonky chair at the lopsided desk and checking my emails for that project and I get a warm feeling inside. A longing to go back to that moment. A longing to be cold and on the floor just to wake up ready to see the scene the animator sent back to me. A longing to be hungry and tired from work just to go home to Skype with the producer. A longing to see the fantastic storyboards for the first time after learning my bills won't be covered again this month.
That's when you know.
I encourage all of you to remember every corner of your childhoods, past lives, hobbies, inspirations, life-changing decision moments, and ask yourself... "WHY? Why do I want to go back to this? What is it inside of me that draws me to this?" This may be easy for some and difficult for others. If you find it difficult, I will recommend this again... Read "The Element" by Sir Ken Robinson. I promise you, you'll get it after you finish the last page.
For those of you who already know what your passion is or why these moments were so precious, now ask yourself this one last set of questions... "HOW can I get that back? How can I make my current situation emulate that same feeling? How can I be smart about my learning, spending, and resources that will get me there faster?"
It's quite simple, really. Follow your heart. It sounds cheesy, but actually doing it makes everyone else seem cheesy for living the boring lives you know- and they know- they have settled for.
"There is no passion to be found playing small - in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living." - Nelson Mandela
