Owlet vs Demogorgon or How I Learned to Love the Upside Down

[Lara]

^everything Severine said^

Why don't you start by thinking of your skills and interests and see how can they be related to a job in the real world?

Maybe while you're job hunting you can also focuse on developing a bit your creative side? I've been reading you for a while and it seems quite important in your life. It is difficult to find a job in the art world, but you can at least try some strategies. Do you have a website/blog/tumblr to show your work? What about uploading some of your work to online stores? (my brother-in-law buys small collectible figures, paints them and then sells them through facebook) Which type of artistic jobs would you like to try?

What about going freelance? It is tough, but also rewarding if you get to do what you want. My brother is a draftsman, and he spent more than 10 years working in a factory as a designer for blankets, bedclothes, courtains and "fallera" dresses mostly. He was well paid, he liked the schedule, but it was tedious and he had almost no time for what he liked: illustration, comicbooks, and so. Eventually the factory closed and he was offered a position of responsibility in another factory, doing the same work but with some personnel under his supervision. He said no, and went freelance. He doesn't do much money now, and sometimes it is hard to get projects from councils or organizations, but he works mainly on what he likes and he has managed to publish several books compiling his sunday's comic strips. Last year he won an illustration contest and he's got a bit more of work since because he is more known. And when he is short on money he puts some time aside to work on web design.

I put his example because it illustrates how many options you have, and in a world that is so connected, you can get to work on projects for people all around the world.

[Lara]

Oh, I forgot the adorable tiny animal who also thinks you're number 1!

[Owlet]

18 hours ago, Severine said:

Sorry counselling was a lukewarm experience - it doesn't sound like she was trying particularly hard, more like going through the motions. You kicked ass at the challenge though - you had a really long list of stuff and you got most of it done despite stress and upheaval. 

 

You have earned an adorable tiny animal who thinks you're #1:

Aww look at the fluffffy! Thanks  Coming from you - the queen of doing things even when under a lot of pressure and stress - that's high praise!

 

18 hours ago, Severine said:

So it's not some kind of failure if you don't know exactly what you want - it means you're open to different possibilities, and you can see potential in various different areas. That's a good thing! It gives you flexibility to try different things, and you're not putting all your eggs in one basket.

That's a really good way of looking at it. My problem right now though is I can't really think of what I want to do. Or how. I mean ideally I would go freelance/be an artist/whatever you want to call it. But I don't know if I'm capable of that/ well-suited to the lifestyle, or even how to go about doing that really. I mean I'm struggling with inconsistency of work as a contractor and presumably it'll be a lot harder as a freelancer. I always figured it was something you have to work on gradually over many years, while slowly reducing how much you work in a more traditional job. But the trouble with that is I just don't have the time or energy to work on my own stuff while I'm working a regular job. 

 

18 hours ago, Severine said:

BUT what you can have, and what I think is much more useful, is skill/competence security. You might not be able to guarantee what'll happen with your company, but if you're smart and hardworking and adaptable, you have the security of knowing that if something goes amiss at your current job, you're awesome enough to find something else that's interesting. And even if your field changes and your old type of work no longer exists, you have the security of knowing you're clever enough to retrain and become awesome at something else. 

Ha, this is actually something the counselor talked about - maybe I didn't give her enough credit. It is a good point and one worth remembering. I'm pretty employable and have had work almost constantly since I was a teenager at school. I guess it's more that I haven't found any job I really like yet and feel like I'm running out of options or time or something. Which I know is ridiculous. But I guess I see my friends getting married and having kids and buying houses and all that, which I'd like, but I can't even count on having a steady income at the moment. 

 

18 hours ago, Severine said:

Try to be excited by the idea that you have more than one option, and you're not trapped in one type of work forever. Try to see it as freedom to change your work as your interests and circumstances change, to explore different possibilities.

So great  I should write this down somewhere so I don't keep forgetting it. 

 

[Owlet]

13 hours ago, zenLara said:

^everything Severine said^

Why don't you start by thinking of your skills and interests and see how can they be related to a job in the real world?

Maybe while you're job hunting you can also focuse on developing a bit your creative side? I've been reading you for a while and it seems quite important in your life. It is difficult to find a job in the art world, but you can at least try some strategies. Do you have a website/blog/tumblr to show your work? What about uploading some of your work to online stores? (my brother-in-law buys small collectible figures, paints them and then sells them through facebook) Which type of artistic jobs would you like to try?

What about going freelance? It is tough, but also rewarding if you get to do what you want. My brother is a draftsman, and he spent more than 10 years working in a factory as a designer for blankets, bedclothes, courtains and "fallera" dresses mostly. He was well paid, he liked the schedule, but it was tedious and he had almost no time for what he liked: illustration, comicbooks, and so. Eventually the factory closed and he was offered a position of responsibility in another factory, doing the same work but with some personnel under his supervision. He said no, and went freelance. He doesn't do much money now, and sometimes it is hard to get projects from councils or organizations, but he works mainly on what he likes and he has managed to publish several books compiling his sunday's comic strips. Last year he won an illustration contest and he's got a bit more of work since because he is more known. And when he is short on money he puts some time aside to work on web design.

I put his example because it illustrates how many options you have, and in a world that is so connected, you can get to work on projects for people all around the world.

Heh yeah that's another thing the counselor suggested - listing my skills and looking at what jobs they apply to. Honestly, it feels like there aren't very many creative jobs around here, but I will still give it a go because you never know. I am definitely keen to focus on developing my own practice for a while though. I've sold jewellery in a local store with some success, and a sculpture or two. I've got some paintings I want to sell as prints so maybe I'll look into that again. It's going to take so much more even just to pay my rent, so it's kind of overwhelming. That is a super encouraging story about your brother though, thank you

 

13 hours ago, zenLara said:

Oh, I forgot the adorable tiny animal who also thinks you're number 1!

Cuuuute!

[Owlet]

I am travelling back home tomorrow to spend a few days with Mum - I booked this a while ago because I was feeling down and it has turned out to be perfect timing, phew! I know I need to be saving as much money as possible at the moment but mental health is still more important and I really need a few days break from all this. Swinging between feeling ok about this and actually looking forward to having more time to spend on myself, and feeling really overwhelmed by everything that's happened in the last few months. I'm considering making another counselling appointment but with a different person if possible - the lady yesterday was very careers-based and I think maybe I need someone to talk to about stress/anxiety/depression. Hopefully I can wrangle that without having to jump through too many hoops. 

 

In other news, I had a meeting with an insurance broker today. It was really good, he answered all my questions and more, and is going to email me some quotes tomorrow as a starting point. Not totally sure I will set anything up right now, since I don't know what I'll be up to next year, but it's reassuring to get my head around it all at least. 

 

Haven't made a new challenge yet so I'm just carrying on with this one for now. Stood for about 3 hours today, meditated, ate paleo-ish. Didn't make bedtime last night though, was already feeling upset and then the book I'm reading took a nasty turn which didn't exactly help (flatmate said it's a great book... failed to mention the graphic descriptions of science experiments on animals  ) Tomorrow will be good though - cups of tea and chats with mum and naps if I want and catching up with old friends  

[Lara]

Have a nice trip!

[Owlet]

Thanks! It is really great so far. Hung out with mum all day and talked for most of it which is unusual for me - I normally run out if things to say pretty quickly. Some serious, lots just random blabbing that felt good to do heh. Distracted me a bit, although all my worries came back te moment my head hit the pillow :/ still, feeling much more refreshed today. Also saw the most fantastic film yesterday called Rams - about sheep farmers in Iceland   I was the youngest in the cinema by 35 years and my mum was the second youngest by another 20-ish haha. 

 

Hope everyones challenges are going well, I will write a new one when I'm back and have my computer. 

[Pyralis]

Hey!

 

Just caught up a bit on what's going on in your life. I hope you find a better job and think it's a good decision to spend some time with your mum, to relax and have fun, and also: family, right?

 

I think you're doing great so far, with all those obstacles in your way. Bet you will also find a great counselor. It's a bit off-putting I think..these searches. Also want to look for a new therapist. Not very looking forward the search  Usually stuff works out in the end though, so keep the hope up.

 

But now have a good time

[Lara]

9 hours ago, Owlet said:

about sheep farmers in Iceland

I sometimes watch their news and almost always there is something about sheep. Weirdos

 

It looks like you had a nice day!

[Owlet]

2 hours ago, zenLara said:

I sometimes watch their news and almost always there is something about sheep. Weirdos

 

It looks like you had a nice day!

Haha awesome. To be fair, the same could probably be said about New Zealand. Although more often it's rugby ugh. I can't believe you're learning Icelandic, it seems impossibly hard! 

[Lara]

20 hours ago, Owlet said:

it seems impossibly hard! 

It is

[Owlet]

On 9/22/2016 at 6:23 PM, Pyralis said:

Hey!

 

Just caught up a bit on what's going on in your life. I hope you find a better job and think it's a good decision to spend some time with your mum, to relax and have fun, and also: family, right?

 

I think you're doing great so far, with all those obstacles in your way. Bet you will also find a great counselor. It's a bit off-putting I think..these searches. Also want to look for a new therapist. Not very looking forward the search  Usually stuff works out in the end though, so keep the hope up.

 

But now have a good time

Hi! Good to hear from you  Yeah it was really great spending a few days with mum. She is great, I am so lucky to have her. Did very little except eat, sleep, read and talk... it was just what I needed! I will keep thinking about the counselor thing. Right now I actually feel fine, so maybe I just needed to talk things through with people around me. Still have 2 free sessions though so I'll keep it in mind. Good luck on your search! It's a bit daunting trying to find someone that 'gets' you. Worth it though.

 

 

[Owlet]

Back from my mini holiday and feeling much better, phew! My jaw was really sore when I first got to mum's because it was a frantic dash to the airport (set my alarm for 6:45 but slept through it till 7:30 which is when I was meant to leave the house argh. Got ready as fast as possible and scooted to the airport and ran to the check in, argh. Made it, just. So tense. Bit sweaty ew haha.) But after a few hours the pain and tension went away and then didn't hurt at all while I was away  Caught up with 2 close friends and had really good, long conversations about everything going on in our lives. Then just read and had naps and had a walk around town to see what has changed since I last visited. So now I should probably wind this thread up and start a new one eh... TBC

[Owlet]

New challenge is up!

[Lara]

10 hours ago, Owlet said:

New challenge is up!

 

Are there going to be big spoilers? Because I might play it

I don't mind, I'll follow anyway

[Owlet]

8 minutes ago, zenLara said:

 

Are there going to be big spoilers? Because I might play it

I don't mind, I'll follow anyway

No spoilers! It's kind of hard to spoil anyway heh. Definitely recommend it