A Glorious Outpouring of Multipotentiality and the Contest Winners

Puttypeep, puttypeep, why must you make my life so hard…

I have gone through all 81 comments about a dozen times now, trying to narrow it down to two winners. The problem was that every time I read through them, I only wanted to add more names back into the running. Arg!

I did choose the two winners, and I’ll reveal them in a second. But first I want to feature a few “sound bites” from some of the other answers. I got a little teary-eyed, reading through the beautiful outpourings of multipotentiality—how much we have in common, what big, wonderful dreams we have, how we want to use our unique mishmash of talents to make the world a better place.

I couldn’t include everyone here, and honestly I left out some of the most compelling answers because they were too long to include in full. I would encourage you to read through all of the comments, but here are a few snippets that I pulled out to inspire you on this beautiful day. 🙂

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Jocelyn: “My own grandma told me once “Why can’t you just be happy at a job?” Well… I didn’t know the answer then, but I do now. I need my life to be dynamic, not static.”

Kim: “I now know, and fully believe, that I’m not some lazy, undriven, procrastinator who never finishes anything she starts (well the latter, may be true- a bit). I don’t personally know a single person who is a multipotentialite, and I’ve always felt the judgement of my friends when I try to talk about my newest interest – to the point that I just don’t bother anymore. I’m tired of that “Here she goes again” look.”

Kathie: “You know that look people give you when they ask “where are you going with this?” I’m ready to figure out how to answer with my head up high and a mischievous, confident grin: EVERYWHERE!”

Crystal: “I can’t think of a single other place that someone experimenting with Raw food, metaphysics, the Law of Attraction, software scripting, psychology, languages, drawing, the internet, bellydancing, creative writing, vegetarian weight loss, motorbikes, learning the flute, training/education, animal communication, mentoring, psychic phenomena, philosophy, fantasy fiction and quantum physics would fit in nearly so well…”

Catherine (note: you will make a great addition to the PuttyPoets group in the Tribe): My deep desire is to join your tribe,
How much this means I can’t describe,
I’m often found, head in book, researching my newest interest,
Ukulele, macarons, Herman cake and learning French my latest,
So please consider me, I have so many plans, I’d hate to have to bribe 😉

Melissa: “I’ve always thought I was just a huge flake. It took me 10 years to finish college—and I’m pretty sure I majored in EVERYTHING at one point.”

Deborah: “I want to become a member of the group again—to help me, to help others AND—perhaps most importantly—to model the Puttylike/Tribe lifestyle for my children. My kids are 24 and 19, and I want them to understand that they can make a grab for that brass ring and GET IT! I don’t want them to go through life the way I did—struggling to fit my round peg self into that corporate square hole. I want them to learn how to really LIVE and EXPERIENCE life, not just trudge through it.”

Sandra: “Let me tell you that I could be your “mamma”, since I’ve already witnessed 55 summers on this earth already, but in a certain sense, its almost as if YOU were my “mamma”; Mammas serve for soothing and encouraging their children, among other duties, of course, and that’s just what you did for me: it stunned me but also felt so good to finally know that I am not a good for nothing, erratic, fickle, non committing, inconsistent, inconstant moody human being. I’m “just” a multipotentialite! And I have every good intention to continue doing whatever I feel like doing every single day from now on!”

Emma: “Either I’m hanging out with woo-woo people who shy away from business and technology, or I’m geeking out with nerds who think spirituality is irrelevant or wimpy. I long for a place where people are genuinely interested in making connections between vastly different paradigms, precisely because that is how we find the most truth and have the most fun.”

Kevin: “These ideas overflow my brain and a lot of times I feel like a complete failure for not seeing these and a lot of others through to fruition; instead I project hop onto the next idea I’m super duper juiced about. I realize, after being here for such a short time that there’s nothing wrong with me. It’s the way I work best. It’s the way my brain works and processes the world. Integration of all the sporadicness is the only way! One niche is no longer!”

Robyn: “A month ago, I picked up a story I’d begun writing a few years back. That story had its origins over 35 years ago when I was a teenager. Well, getting back into it, the genie escaped from the bottle—I was like a woman on speed! The words flew onto the page and I have now written 80,000 words—around 260 pages of a novel—and counting. It’s been a joyful, liberating and spectacularly surprising experience. I cannot remember the last time I felt this happy. My daughter found me dancing with abandon around my bedroom yesterday, earphones plugged in. She loves the change in me.”

Liz: “I want to petition for the word ‘multipotentialite’ and it’s variations (multipotentiality, multipotential, multipod) to be included in the dictionary. Because it’s REAL.”

Jakob: “Specializing isn’t the only way.  There is nothing wrong with me!”

Mike: “Just like you, I am a unique collection of experiences, a huge glorious mess. As Whitman famously said, “I am large, I contain multitudes.””

Kate R.: “I was happiest when I was running across campus from the sociology to finance to sculpture classes.

Jennifer: “I think the biggest reason I should be a part of the Puttytribe is because I’m afraid to join.”

The winners:

Jo and Chris.

Congratulation, you two! I picked you because you demonstrated in your responses that you would make for very engaged Puttypeep.

Jo, not only did you interact with Sarah and Erin who replied to your comment, but you tried to help out another person who submitted an answer afterward. You even mentioned that if you didn’t win, you would still like to connect with other multipods, and you asked others to email you. I love the involvement. You’re already treating the comments like a discussion in the Puttytribe.

Chris, at first I thought it might not be fair to pick you since everyone else used text to communicate their answer and you used video. But then I realized that this was precisely why I had to pick you.

You did exactly what I talk about. You made yourself stand out by integrating your other skills into the mix and you got creative. By turning the camera on yourself, you also demonstrated that you will likely to be involved in huddles, which is great since I want Puttypeep in there who are going to actually use the resources. I love that you watched the clip of Dan’s turn and talked about how much it inspired you. You clearly put a lot of thought into your entry, and I think you’ll make a great Puttypeep.

Thank you to everyone who shared their story! I hope that you decide to join us tomorrow, and I can’t wait to get to know you better.

xo Emilie