What to choose; Love for vs just good at

[m1469]

If you truly had to choose (or felt you had to choose) between spending your time and life or a large chunk thereof, doing something that you were fairly good at and enjoy doing to a degree, recognized for and had a sort of promise of fame for

VS

Something that you deeply love but there is little recognition for, could make a living at, but there was no promise of fame for

what would you actually choose?  Really!  In your heart of hearts, what would it be?

I actually REALLY could use people's thoughts on this subject, if you would...

Thanks,

m1469

[Tash]

easy peasy the second thing. personally i don't really care about fame, and if i was going to be famous i'd want it to be for something that i was really good at and loved the most.

[super_ardua]

The first one.

I can't say why, or put it into words but,  it feels more like the right thing.

[bernhard]

I think that the problem with your question is that you can only control the first part of it: You can choose to do something you are fairly good at, or you can choose something you love (assuming they are mutually exclusive – which is by no means a necessary assumption).

However you will have no control or even knowledge about fame or lack of. And I am taking fame here in its most broad definition: a significant contribution to any field.

Take Van Gogh. As he died, if he had any concerns towards fame (as a contribution to painting in particular and civilization and culture in general), he probably died feeling he was an utter failure – and so did most of his contemporaries. Did he love painting? I don’t know if “love” is the word here. He certainly could not leave it alone. He had a compulsion to paint. He never sold a single painting, and lived and died a poor man, mostly supported by his brother who never lost an opportunity to point out what a parasite he was. He had no idea, and could have no idea, that a couple of months ago one of his paintings would become the most expensive painting ever sold.

Take J. S. Bach. As he died, the style so dear to him was dying too. No one was that interested in his music. Even during his lifetime only a few musicians really appreciated what he was up to. Yet he couldn’t leave it alone. Most of his keyboard work was done for his own pleasure – something quite unheard of in his time – musicians them composed by request. NO one requested him to do the WTC. He did out of his onw interest. At the time of his death, did Bach had any inkling of what the future would hold in store for him? I doubt very much. He pursued his art without much – if any – thought for fame or posterity.

These two examples (almost every musician or artist of stature can be named here as further examples), should suffice.

Your question cannot be posed because there is no way to know. The choice is not between doing something you do well and can become famous through it, or doing something you love and dying in obscurity.

The choice is simply between doing something you love and doing something you don’t love. (Assuming of course that you have such a choice. Many times one has to do something one hates – paying taxes comes to mind)

All the rest is simply self-justification for timidity.

Best wishes,
Bernhard.

[donjuan]

I happen to love money, so I will follow it whereever I can find it.  Do a well paying job for lots of money, so you will have time for indulgences (playing piano, fancy dinners, etc.)
donjuan

[m1469]

You're absolutely right Bernhard!  Thanks  .  

I suppose it comes down to timidity then (what a killer  !).  I suppose questions such as that are really only excuses, and procrastinations... bummer (kind of)  

m1469

[klavierkonzerte]

i'm sort of in this situation right now.

i love the violin to death just holding it is a joy to me, and i'm good at it,but in three years i only played the concertos of riding, mendelssohn Eminor ,bruch Gminor, mozart3rd and bach double and it was very hard to complete them.

i started piano three years after the violin and  found it  VERY VERY EASY. i'm in my seventh or 8th month of playind the piano now and here's my repertoir

fur elise   beethoven
anitras dace grieg
valse i think op69 no2  chopin
russian folk pieces.  my teacher doesn't know who wrote it and doesn't have the score.
then i jumped to beethoven's appassionata(i only completed the first page, my teacher said we'll work on it later)
then another jump to chopin's impromptu in C# minor
(i just completed the first section, on todays lesson i'm starting the slow section)
and i starteg grieg concerto on my last lesson.

but i don't enjoy the piano as much as i enjoy the violin AT ALL and i don't find the repertoir as intresting as the violin repertoir.

but i choase the piano because i'm good at it.
i only play the violin for like 10 minuts a month now.


and 2 years ago i choase the collge of adminstrative science over the high institue of music because a future as an accountant can easly get me a grand piano or a fine old italian violin or even travel to study music but a future as a piano or violin teacher probaby wouldn't get me all of these things.
so i did it for music not for money.

[bernhard]

The problem with money is that it always costs far more than it is worth.

Right now, for instance, I have enough money to last me for the rest of my life (as long as I don't spend any... )

[Tash]

see if i chose the second option then i'd probably get bored out of my mind. like yeah sure i like whatever it is i'm doing, but chances are i'll probably not do it as well as i could have anyway cos i'll be too busy thinking or doing the thing i love the most. i do that all the time with my school/uni subjects- i'm fine at most subjects and could probably do well with them in the future, but i don't care about them enough to focus on them cos i'm too busy obsessing over the things i love. like choosing accountancy over music is just beyond me cos i personally think accountancy is the most boring thing in the world, no offence if you like it.so maybe it'll get you the money to buy a good piano and violin. but you're gonna watse half your life doing something that isn't based on what you truly love. or maybe you do i don't know.
agh i don't know what i'm talking about i think i'll just shutup now

[Clare]

Well, I definitely did both 1 and 2.

I did architecture at university and I was a natural at it. I've always been extremely good at visual art. I got my degree with honours. Now I'm an architect working in a firm, and I earn just enough money to get by since I'm only working part-time.

But this year, I started doing my music degree, something I had always wished for since I was 7. I love it so much more deeply than I ever did architecture. I love practicing 4 hours a day and listening to everybody else play in class and it's just the best thing ever. However, I know in my heart that I'll never get the good marks, even though I work hard at it. And I'll probably not make very much money from it either.
But I don't care. I'm just going to do my music degree as a pleasurable thing, and savour every moment of it. I still can't believe I'm actually here doing it.

I think it's important to do what you're good at AND what you love, if they are two different things (because of course sometimes it is the one and the same thing).

[Shagdac]

Very interesting question! Strange, but years ago I would have gone with the first scenerio...playing it safe, and doing something that was more or less a "sure bet".
However in later years, it became apparent (for myself as well as others I've spoken with) that it becomes far more important that one spend their life doing what they truly have a passion for, rather than what the feel they ought to do ought of obligation for money, family, career, etc.

My son (a freshman in college), is one of the youngest students in his classes. He's constantly telling me about the "old folks" that are back in school finally pursuing their dreams.

Too bad money has to be such an important consideration don't you think? Other than the need to be able to finacially support oneself, for me now, I think it far more important to do what one truly loves. It also depends on what one considers success....money or happiness. I don't necessarily think one goes with the other!

S

[m1469]

m1469's secret place

[donjuan]

I just would like to say 'THANK YOU VERY MUCH!'  Because of your help I was able to make what I feel was a very important decision.

I have to say it was especially helpful to read this...


(I finally figured out how to quote)

Thanks very much!

m1469

so... what are you going to do?

[m1469]

I will do that which I cannot leave alone.  That which is truest to myself which may include more than one activity, but for the most honest reasons (my motives for activity should be included in, and are so, the things that I cannot leave alone and forget about).

In plain English, basically option #2 (although I do not always "love" it).

Again, Thanks  

m1469