At the age of 16, my parents sent me to a career counselor. I had been good at some school subjects, great at others, but passionate about few. At an age where little of my life had been lived and I was uncertain about what my future held, consulting a counselor was a critical point in the journey I am now well into.
I am 28 years old. It has been 10 years since I stepped out of school dresses and jumped into independent youth where I found Pearl Jam, design, friends, comedy, cats, Pretoria and my husband. It’s an outrageous combination. A combination that makes me an individual. A combination that prevents me from ever being satisfied with the standard journey that any job could offer me.
I have always been creative. While most children had toys, I escaped into a dream world of pictures, animations, drawing and making. Creating has always given me happiness. In creating, I attempt to spread joy and delight. Whether it is in comedy, writing or design, creativity is innate to my being.
After taking the advice of the counselor and studying architecture, I interned for 2 years in architectural practices. At the age of 25, I graduated with a master’s degree in interior architecture. I loved studying. My intellect was continuously challenged and I found extreme satisfaction in research and design. With a hungry mind and excitement for a career in design, I went on the job search.
Two months later, I started working at a top retail design company. A month after that, I performed my first stand-up comedy set.
Since then, life had been full. I juggled a 2 and half hour a day commute, full design career and part time comedy gigs for 2 solid years with the support of my amazing husband. I did well. I got promoted in my design career and I was a runner up on a televised comedy competition, pushing me from an open spot to a support comedian. I had everything. I felt happy but there was always something in the back of my mind telling me this isn’t it. Then I read this:
There is no passion to be found playing small in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living. – Nelson Mandela
The father of the nation spoke directly to me. If I was honest with myself, I was not doing what I had set out to do 10 years ago, embarking on a journey of truth to my own creative ability. Although I was happy at my job, it wasn’t everything I wanted and definitely not everything I could offer. No other job would give me that 100%.
I realised I was capable of more. It was time for a change. I needed independence and the opportunity to prove to myself that I could build something I would be proud of. I am a free-thinker, not a piece of a puzzle to somebody else’s dream. It is the reason I became a designer and the reason I decided to leave a full time job to start my own design business.
It has been many months of free thought. There have been ups and no real downs to living my own vision. I started a blog, winkingplum.com, I taught myself new creative skills, I’ve built a client base and I reached new milestones in my comedy career. Doors have opened that I didn’t know existed.
Whenever I feel myself slipping into a comfort zone, I stop and I ask myself: What am I doing and then ask, what could I be doing? I need to be bold, be brave and live my own legacy. I won’t settle, I will live a life that is the one that I am capable of living. I owe it to myself. I owe it to the world.
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