Hedgehogs and foxes
This is the studio of my girlfriend's mother. It's a space in Knowlton, Quebec shared by 4-5 artists. I think most of them are retired from intense careers and they now enjoy pursuing different kinds of arts such as painting and sculpture. It's a beautiful space and a wonderful intiative.
14 Likes, 2 Comments - Francois Royer Mireault (@frankmireault) on Instagram: "Belle maman @doperron / Artist in residence 👩🎨 #knowlton"
Yesterday during dinner we discussed the importance of cultivating various interests growing up. We talked about how the next generation will probably have even more diverse careers that my generation and the generation before me. One thing that people ask me a lot these days is: so do you want to work in marketing, make music for a living, be an entrepreneur, run a restaurant, etc.? Well, my answer is all of the above. Why wouldn't I?
I've always like to combine many expertizes and make creative use of them. I don't believe in focus when it comes to living your life. It's just a bit harder to make it financially viable, butt it's not impossible. It's like having 3-4 friends instead of one, you have to plan better to see them all. But parties and discussions are richer and more interesting.
There are hedgehogs and foxes. I'm a fox. A lot of kids I meet who grow up with the Internet are foxes too.
“A fox knows many things, but a hedgehog one important thing.”
School and corporate environments are not modeled this way. You have to narrow down your options, year after year, until you become a specialized resource. I understand the necessity of mastering a specific field. But I don't think it should be done at the expense of having broad interests. And I think the biggest innovation technology could bring is break down these barriers and allow more kids to be able to live diverse lives. I truly hope it does.
Because I'm not waiting until I'm 60 to finally allow myself to write a book, sing a song or launch a business. I want to do it, and I want this to influence the rest of my work, for a long period of time. If you have time to go through Netflix series, you have time to do your retirement project now.
And this is my interpretation of the concept of compounded interests. The earlier you start saving time for the things that move your soul, the longer your work will benefit from them.