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Freelancer Course: Who Are You?


Question 1 of 6 for the first assignment
What do you want to do? Not your job, but your work, now, tomorrow and in the future?
The first question of the first assignment and I'm already stuck. And this is why I need to be forced to do this introspection. I have not been able to put what I want to do in terms of an actual service but here is what I know I want to do regardless of what role I'm in.

  • Be curious. Be given the freedom to try new things. I was thinking today about all the tools I've been able to try in my current role (perhaps a later post). Encouragement of this desire to learn, either passively or actively, is a requirement for me.
  • Share information. I think better when I have people to bounce ideas off of. Whether that's a responsive PLN or just a mentor relationship with a boss or co-worker, I want to be able to share what I know and what I learn, so I can better apply it.
  • Ask questions. Not so much in an investigative journalist kind of way. More in a "what do you think?" kind of way.  I tend of form opinions slowly, and I find listening to others and asking them for explanations often help me clarify my own thoughts. Questions help me see other perspectives, which is crucial when you are trying to teach someone a new tool or concept.
  • Help people. Cliche, right? I want to know that I've made someone's life easier, made them excited about something they dreaded or just helped them understand something a little differently. I think that's been the biggest difference in my professional satisfaction since moving from marketing to training: I get to work directly with the people who use our products. I can put actual faces and questions to services and products.
What I still struggle with is how these qualities manifest. Do I want to write, which was my first love (even before Steve Perry from Journey). Do I want to present, a skill that is becoming more and more exciting for me. Is it about creating? Connecting? 

More than likely, yes.
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