The Art of Complacency

Complacency is an art form, and one that many of us have PhDs in. Every day in the business world, I am bedazzled by the number of people who have taken their dreams, patted them into a nice compact lump, and stuffed them away where they will no longer see the light of day. So many of us start out childhood with a dream of being an astronaut, or a paleontologist. Yet somehow, so many of us end up sitting behind a desk in a standard gray cubicle doing paperwork. When I mentioned to a few co-workers that I am applying for archaeological field school for next summer, the resounding response was one of "I wish I could do that too". My response was, "Well, why don't you?"

Take a moment to jot down those childhood dreams and what you would like to do more than anything. I'm not speaking of your bucket list, but those hidden passions that have died out over the years because they aren't seen as lucrative or safe if you want to raise a family. Yet there are shades of gray that allow everyone to enjoy their passions. Take archaeology for example. You don't have to be an archaeologist as a full time profession, but nothing is stopping you from signing up for a volunteer dig as a type of alternate summer vacation.

There are choices, but first you must start at the beginning and identify those passions. And the first question you should ask yourself is, "If you could do anything in the world, what would you do?"