Convention

When I was younger than you are now, I decided I was going to be a Professional Rodeo Cowboy.  It is funny now to remember the look my parents had.  I remember my mom writing something on the calendar that day and I don't think she wrote "best day ever" on the calendar.

This was before there was a Facebook, Skype, or Reddit.  Hell, this was before email.  In the absence of any real social media you could ride off into the sunset.  Conversely you could ride into a new town and reinvent yourself.  There are a couple of reasons that this worked so well back in the day.  No one was really aware of how much and how often you actually fell on your face. 

We were born in a time where the goal out of high school was stability.  A good job, a nice car, and the ability to get some of the nicer things.  You felt like people were PROUD of you when you had that good job, apartment, and car. When you decided to depart from that you had to have a sincere belief in yourself.  Because if you step out of what you think is conventional, you are going to be the target of some tongue wagging and finger pointing.  People who followed convention, also want you to follow convention.  


When I left to be a Professional Rodeo Cowboy it was something I was proud of and believed in.  And while it sounds glamorous in print and paper, it was about working a lot of day jobs to make entry fee's. A lot of traveling to paths of the beaten trail and living (this is a huge understatement) modestly.  While I was doing this a lot of my peers were getting jobs and earning a decent living.  And while my parents firmly believed what I did was akin to running away to join the circus, it was an amazing experience and journey that I would not have traded for the world.

I did not make my living as a Professional Rodeo Cowboy.  I did learn more than my peers who opted for the more conventional definition of success.  I learned how to believe in and trust myself and that has served me really well all these years.  If given the choice of having money or a great passion, I would always pick the passion.  Even at the tender age of 52, I am really happy to know that I do not ever have to wonder if I could have made it as a Professional Rodeo Cowboy.  The pursuit of a passion is never going to be a losing proposition.  Because you find out one of the most essential things you can do in life is to be proud of yourself first before worrying if people are proud of you.

So if you start to worrying about where you are in the pecking order of your peers...don't.  Always have the stones to look your peers in the eye and tell them exactly what you are doing.  Especially if it is not the conventional path.  You owe that to them and mostly to yourself.

Give them all hell
Love Dad