Nothing is Wasted
I am on the front edge of what is probably my fourth career.
And I'm not counting food service or retail from 35 years ago or my recently ended flirtation with coffee.
In my thirties, the thought of doing anything other than what I was doing was incomprehensible. I was on a clear career trajectory and pretty good at what I did (I pastored a church, for those interested in that particualr detail). A move to Central Asia made me a beginner again.
But growth in central Asia led to new opportunities, new skills, a new language with new communication styles, and new ways to shape body, mind, and spirit.
That was the better part of my 40s. Repatriating while staring down the nose of the dreaded half-century mark was one of the most daunting things I've ever done.
I tried my hand at major fund-raising, along wiht a couple of unsuccessful side-hustles before landing where I am right now.
And as I reflect on this, I now know a hard-cold fact about career-change.
Nothing is wasted.
Every skill, every lesson, every relationship (good, bad, rocky, and indifferent) play into current circumstances. We are the culmination of every experience we've had the privilege to walk through, from those that brough ecstatic joy to those resulting in overwhelming sorrow.
Nothing is wasted.
Starting over is never really starting over. Especially the older you get.
You bring every last bit of it with you.
You can try to toss it aside. You can try to forget.
But you and I are dragging every experience we've ever had into the next thing, whatever that may be.
