I Peaked
Washed up?
I have been rebooting my career. I have been taking stock of what I have accomplished, and what I am worth. I have been trying to find the fire that has driven me for so many years. The truth is, no one can recreate the past. Here is what I have discovered.
My early days in tattooing were very exciting. Almost all of it gave me rush. I felt like I was discovering something new everyday and I loved figuring out how to apply it to my career. I also loved the attention of being a tattooist. The first 20 years of my career felt special, and they made me feel special.
I have been stuck for the last 3 years trying to understand why I don’t feel special anymore. I assumed it was because I aged out of the tattoo culture. I was no longer in the inner circle. I was never tattoo famous but I enjoyed a lot of time with my friends that ran that course. “Who am I now?” I wondered.
After quite some time of thinking and talking to people in other professions, it has finally been made very aware to me that I am on the other side of the peak of my career. What does this mean to me? First, I thought it was a bad thing. I needed to sit on the sidelines and watch younger artist explore the new culture of tattooing. I was too old to be of use to anyone. I was ready to retire at 55 and live in the country.
Pivot
Now I have a new outlook. I read a book called “Strength to Strength” by Brooks. This book wrote down exactly what I was feeling. I knew I had to change my ways only I didn’t know what that meant for me. Do I quit tattooing? No.
So, what was this miracle revelation in the book? It told me I was ready to jump the curve. I was on the downside of one stage in my career. If I rode that down to the bottom, I would spend the rest of my life mourning the success of my past.
The good news? I could jump to the next stage of my career and turn my learned experiences into a new strength, my crystalized intelligence. Crystalized intelligence is reflected in a person’s general knowledge, vocabulary, and reasoning based on acquired information. By using my 27 years of experience I can pivot my career in to a rewarding journey based on mentorship and synthesizing all the available information to younger practitioners. Basically, I am going to build a new business helping others.
I once again feel the fire that drives my career.
