By Shun McGhee, Guest Contributor
Walking through the mall as a wide-eyed 25-year-old I approached a book store. As I was just about to pass the store one of the books caught my attention. The title was “How I Retired at 26! A Step-by-Step Guide to Accessing Your Freedom and Wealth at Any Age” by Asha Tyson. Desperate to change my financial predicament and rapidly approaching age 26, I was drawn to the book. I picked up the paperback with some skepticism. I thought, “This could be another pyramid scheme.” I decided to skim the book a little just to see what it was about. In the pages I read while at the bookstore, the author assured readers she was not promoting a get rich quick scheme of any kind. This made me a little more comfortable and I decided to buy it.
This non-fiction account of the author’s life revolved around a central theme; most people are working backwards. She explains her theory by saying people go to college (or some kind of training institution) to obtain a job which they are really not passionate about. They work at that job for 20 to 30 years and retire, only to return to college (or some other institution) to pursue their passion. I examined that philosophy and emerged asking why do many people put jobs they may or may not even like at the forefront of their lives and pursue their passions on a part-time basis? To me the answer is simple: It is survival.
The physiological portion of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs lists breathing, food, water, sex, sleep, homeostasis, and excretion as essential to human survival. I have heard it said to survive every human needs a reasonable portion of food, water, shelter, and clothing. Depending upon where you live more of some of those elements may be required than others. Surviving by my definition encompasses doing what is necessary to maintain or secure those basic necessities mentioned above. There are a myriad of ways to survive. For the contestants on the reality television show “Survivor” it can mean hunting for prey in the wilderness, or fishing, or foraging for vegetation. For most of us, however, surviving means getting a job that will help secure the most elementary provisions. Most of us survive without ever truly living.
While living encompasses surviving I have come to understand the two as referring to two different ideas. The concept of survival finds its roots in having your needs met, but living on the other hand caters to your desires or passion. I will not attempt to list examples of living because what I may consider living can greatly differ from someone else. The message I really want to convey is in “living” one abandons the “keeping your head above water, making a way when you can” mentality in exchange for personal fulfillment. It is also intertwined with the way Tyson defines retirement.
To her, retirement is not the idea most of us have of no longer going to “work” and collecting a social security check, rather it is the idea of making-working at your passion–your job. This is what the students returning to college were trying to do in “How I Retired at 26!” They returned to the classroom after 20 or 30 years of surviving to try their hand at living.
I applaud people that go after their dreams. As an adult solely responsible for supplying all of my own basic needs I realize surviving can take precedence over living at any moment. Still, I do not believe waiting decades to chase your dreams is always the most appropriate decision. My charge to the readers of this blog is to find creative ways to weave portions of your passion into your profession.
Incorporating your passion into your profession may not be as daunting as it appears. For instance, if your passion is baking, but your profession is customer service, take every afforded opportunity to bring some of the food you make at home into work for your colleagues to taste. Departmental potlucks should serve as a stage to showcase your talent. If your profession is teaching, but your passion is fashion, style or design the best work appropriate outfits possible so that you are always rehearsing your gift. After all, it is by exercising our passion that we strengthen our self-worth.
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