If I had known it was an option, I would have asked for my crayon back years ago.

Review of Ignoring Everybody by Hugh Macleod.

Ok, it's about your life's work.  It was a two-hour read on my audible app at regular speed and that much faster at 2x like I like.  And here are my takeaways from this fine story of a copywriter who wants to draw cartoons on the side.

The first is that my life's work is not rocket science.  The work you do comes in two types money and sex. Money work pays the bills. Sex work is what you do for yourself or to feed your passions. There is work we do to pay the rent.  It may be what you love to do, but it may be better if it is not. Something like one doesn't put all her eggs in one basket.  If your work is the love of your life and you lose your job, what a bummer.  While if your sex work is a side gig or hobby separate from your money job, well, you still have one or the other should one of them go away.  

This struck home for me.  My health changed, everything went away work and passions.  I had to wiggle around in the dirt to come up with a reason to go on.  That is to come up with something new to call me and get paid for as a bonus.  In one chapter, Hugh mentions that little kids get crayons up to a certain point in school, and then it all changes to books and tests.  It's a hard change.  I had a similar hard change and decided I wanted to ask for my crayons back.  I wish I had known to ask for them back years ago.

Show your work hard and raw he calls it the "toned up version."  Don't try and edit your work to please your clients.  Show it with all your passion, and later the client will tell you if you need to tone it down.  He is speaking in writing copy, but I can see how this applies in the general context of life.  I always find people who present themselves the same way no matter who they are addressing as honest and authentic.

Lastly, he shares an insight he received from Tim Burton and his wife.  That your life's passions never go away.  The urge to act will always be with you, so get used to it. I got the same advice about my sense of vocation or calling.  I thought I had lost it and needed to find it, or I would no longer be myself. But, my elderly friend said, don't worry. If your passion is confirmed, it will see you.  So don't wait around for the feeling to come back.  Get on with the next thing. Now I have a fancy set of color pens and a pack of phat crayons.