A scribe. I write about what I see around me.
A jester. I dress up and try to humor the king and queen and subjects in their kingdom
A financier. I invest in companies and intrepid projects.
A philanthropist. I give most of my time to causes that don’t have financial return.
A philosopher. I have many philosophies and would really like to discuss them.
An explorer. I am always ready for an adventure to a new part of the world.
Those sum me up pretty good but I could do more.
I keep thinking about the question, “what do you do?”, which is commonly asked when meeting someone new. Most answers will be very one dimensional to quickly try to help the asker make an assumption, usually about how you support yourself in capitalism.
I practice responding differently to the question almost every time I am asked. It depends on what story I want to tell or what discussion I want to prompt or who is the person asking.
Who are you? Give me at least 3 descriptors. None of them should be what you do to make money.
Happy Friday and weekend
SP
As I young child I was influenced heavily by Les Miserables, after reading and watching the Musical in San Francisco. I would play the CD of the original cast many times as a 12 year old. The dialogue Jean Valjean has in his head about who he is was very impactful on how I would end up processing problems in my own mind.
I, too, am a tester of responses to the question of what I do. It's an interesting exercise. I often ask, as you have here, "Who are you?" instead of asking others what they do. That, too, is an interesting exercise.
Here are the first three responses that came to mind as to who I am:
1. A facilitator. I enjoy helping others dig deep and discover the answers to their questions that are already inside them.
2. A volunteer. Using everything I have gained to help meaningful causes progress is fulfilling to me.
3. A husband, father, and friend. This one probably should have come first. However, I stayed true to the order in which my responses came to mind. My relationships with others are paramount to me.
A lifelong learner. I explore the world with childlike wonder.
A bibliophile. I love books—buying, reading, sharing, and reflecting on them.
An immigrant. I moved to the US with the goal of personal growth and to develop a diverse, cosmopolitan outlook.
An over-thinker. It took me 30 minutes of editing to write this comment.