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Hacking language learning with my dishwashing job
When life circumstances push you in the right direction
6 months ago, I was the lead designer for a high-end home remodeler. Then I was let go in the middle of a high interest rate economy. Strangely, I didn’t feel a drop in my self-worth like I did all the other times I was unemployed. It’s far too easy to attach your identity to your career when you live in a hierarchal society. People see themselves as doctors, lawyers, architects, and accountants, not realizing how valuable their authentic self is underneath their career track.
Luckily when I was a digital nomad, I dialed into my authentic self embarking on a lifelong journey to learn the Finnish language. The Finnish language always uplifted me during hard times. Anytime a client meeting didn’t go well or a possible job fell through, all I had to do was put on a Finnish podcast for 15 minutes, and I would be back to my optimistic self. We all have obsessions like these, yet our rational selves tell us they don’t relate to our career track, so we actively suppress them. At age 32, I experienced enough career setbacks to know I had to go all in on Finnish or live a compromised life.
Enter my dishwashing job. At first I did it out of pure necessity. The worst thing you can do is do nothing, because if I got a job offer…
