Who are slash careerists and what is their strength

Miscellaneous / by admin / April 06, 2023

It is not necessary to find a "life's work" and get a "normal job".

If you frequently switch from one hobby to another, study tirelessly, and sometimes consider leaving your stable job for a creative field, then you may be a career slash. We tell who it is and what good is in such “inconstancy”.

Who are slash careerists

In his book One Person/Multiple Jobs Marzi Albocher used the term career slash. According to her definition, these are people who receive several streams of income, combining various professions.

Initially, this concept was associated exclusively with creative pursuits. However, later it was adopted by people of other professions. For example, slash-careerists can be called a lawyer-blogger, a florist-poet, or a photographer-educator.

The difference between approaches to building a career. Illustration from the book by Emily Vapnik “Multipotentials. A guide for those who have already grown up, but have not decided what they want to become "

Instead of going to the same job from 9:00 to 17:00 for the rest of their lives, free-spirited "slashers" take on several projects from different fields at the same time. This approach to building a professional life is especially popular among

instagram viewer

millennials - people born between 1981 and 1996.

Why people become slash careerists

During the Renaissance, people with various talents were called polymaths. Among them stood out in particular Leonardo da Vinci. As an engineer, writer, artist and musician, he created many unique inventions.

It was easier to become a "universal person" at that time: the fortune that the da Vinci family possessed, made it possible to continuously learn, and society believed that a talented person was talented in everything.

And although now the educational system is significantly different from what it was then, and narrow specialists are held in high esteem in the labor market, polymaths have not disappeared anywhere.

For example, according to research 2020, about half of Chinese aged 18-35 have worked at more than one company at least once. And 45% of Americans born in the 1980s and 1990s, in addition to the main There is extra employment.

The fact is that many do not like the traditional linear approach in career building. Moreover, he scares them.

Emily Wapnick

Author of the book “Multipotentials. A guide for those who have already grown up, but have not decided what they want to become.

We can translate the question "What do you want to be when you grow up?" as follows: "In this life you are allowed only one identity, so which one do you choose?" What's scary? Putting the question in this way, it is not surprising that it causes nervous tremors.

Slashers do not want their whole life to be connected with only one area. There are many hobbies in the world that reveal their personality from different angles. Each of them gives them a new ground for self-realization.

For example, in his speech At TED Talks, writer Nigel Marsh says that harmonizing work-life balance requires more than just increasing or decreasing time spent on work.

In order for a person to feel satisfied in the intellectual, emotional and spiritual spheres, you need to learn how to "mix" in your daily schedule classes, which bring different emotions and cover different needs, give the brain a “switch”.

Anton Shaporenko

Creative director and professional swimmer.

When I was 20, I told myself that I wanted to be a creative director. The dream came true. However, at some point I realized that I no longer feel what I used to — when you throw a bait and challenge yourself. That's when swimming came to the rescue.

In addition, do not forget about situations when a person becomes a "slasher" unconsciously: for example, when he is not satisfied with the earnings that he receives at one job, and he has to look for additional employment.

What problems do slash careerists face?

Pop culture is saturated with stories about writerswho finished their first book at the age of 13, or about veterinarians who knew from childhood that they would help animals. The linear path of building a career - from beginner to pro in their field - is romanticized and presented as the only road to success.

Emily Wapnik notes that children are taught from a very early age that by the end of school they must decide future profession and not rush between specialties. If this does not work out, they are most often called windy, they say that they have problems with concentration, and indeed: is it possible to be a pro in one thing if you have dozens of interests?

All this hits self-esteem - "I'm 30, but I can't decide on a profession" - and does not allow a person to fully open up. As a result, modern polymaths procrastinate, afraid of making the wrong decision and making a mistake.

Employers are also most often guided by stereotypes about “slashers”: they may doubt the motivation of an applicant who already has several jobs.

However, even if a slasher manages to get a part-time job at a company, he is unlikely to have the same package of social benefits as an eight-hour full-time employee. He may be left without health insurance, vacation and incentive bonuses.

In addition, despite the seeming freedom, "slashers" also have to deal with processing, especially if the time management skill is not well developed.

What is the strength of slash careerists

The potential downsides of a slash career aren't for everyone, and more and more people have been pursuing their careers in various fields lately. This is great, because the world needs not only narrow specialists, but also talented generalists.

Emma Gannon

Author of The Multi-Hyphen Method.

These are people who can switch between projects, acquire new skills at the last minute, constantly try something. Those who have different skills and are able to adapt to changing circumstances have an advantage in our highly competitive world.

In her book, Emily Wapnick also highlights several superpowers of multi-potential people who choose slash careers.

1. Great at synthesizing ideas

"Slashers" is great at combining several concepts and creating something new at their intersection. For example, two friends, Michelle Incharrano and Katie Maslow, combined their interests in botany and art, and through this was born shop florist Twig Terrariums, specializing in living sculptures.

They create terrariums in which mosses, succulents and flowers side by side with tiny, hand-painted figurines.

The synthesis of ideas can lead to a bright original result. In this sense, the slash careerist position is great for performing creative tasks - such people can look at a problem from different points of view and use knowledge and skills from different areas.

2. Learn fast

Multipotential people quickly learn skills and grasp knowledge on the fly thanks to their intellectual curiosity.

Emily Wapnick

With each new area that we master, our confidence in our ability to absorb and understand new things grows stronger. This confidence, in turn, speeds up learning, making us more likely to be willing to take creative risks.

In addition, career slashers have the enviable advantage of transferring skills from one discipline to another. For example, abstract thinking, formed thanks to a geometry course, will help a novice artist. And the years of study in acting school will play into the hands of managers who have to constantly present themselves and their company.

3. Easier to adapt to change

An unstable fast-growing economy, sometimes destructive for narrow specialists, is not so terrible for slashers. Due to their adaptability, they can quickly switch from one field of activity to another.

For example, if the demand for the services of a landscape designer falls, a person begins to develop intensively in programming - his other hobby. With multiple sources of income, career slashers don't have to put all their eggs in one basket.

4. Possess interdisciplinary conceptual thinking

People who have tried themselves in different fields understand better how individual ideas relate to the world. Wide horizon allows them to notice systemic problems that elude the eyes of specialists dealing with a narrow topic.

In addition, it is often easier for slash careerists to predict what certain decisions will lead to. This is a valuable quality not only for him, but for everyone around him.

5. Can act as good "translators" between specialists

Multipotentials with their natural curiosity can be excellent listeners, and their multifaceted experience allows them to understand and unite completely different people. Because of this skill, career slashers often lead multidisciplinary teams.

Julia Junghans

Theatrical Technical Director.

My many interests and diverse backgrounds help me start a healthy dialogue between two parties who find it difficult to understand each other due to their different backgrounds. For example, designers and technicians use very different language when talking about staging a theatrical work. I have been on both sides of these "barricades" and worked outside the theater industry, so I'm a good "translator".

All these qualities, of course, give multipotentials many opportunities for career and personal growth. Slashers are given the opportunity to be their own bosses and arrange their lives in accordance with the various interests that attract them at the moment.

Therefore, it may not be so scary if you have already grown up, but "have not decided what you want to become."