Why Having 2 Wildly Divergent Careers Makes Me More Fulfilled

Most people know me as a luxury business expert with an MBA and Interior Design & Arts degree. They know I help companies elevate their brand value and make their businesses more profitable by revealing proven sales strategies employed by top luxury brands. 

For over ten years, I have invited my clients to join me at events, tradeshows and cocktails parties. In recent years, many of them have attended the courses I instruct on establishing their design firm as a luxury brand and my workshops about digital branding. It is a pleasure continuing to entertain the relationships I have built over the years with professionals in the design community, and help them make their business more profitable with structured plans.

But besides my long career in this industry, I have a wildly divergent vocation that goes back to a childhood passion: roller skating and roller dancing. 

I joined a figure skating academy when I was eight years old, and for many years, I practiced the discipline of figure skating on wheels. In Europe, roller figure skating is popular, but I later found out that this is not the case in the US. 

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Showcase your talents 

What strikes me the most is how my passion for roller skating organically become my second career. After spending long hours in the office or coming back home from traveling across North America visiting clients, I would wear my quads and go to a nearby park in my neighborhood in New York. I zoned out and skated while listening to my favorite music. 

I was the only roller skater at the park before the pandemic and before the resurgence of roller disco in 2020. People saw me having so much fun and approached me. They wanted to dance on skates like me. They asked me to teach them to balance on wheels, roll bounce and some roller dance moves. 

Word of mouth did the rest, and teaching roller skating is now my other career. I found out from my clients I have a natural talent for coaching beginners’ essential skills and helping them overcome the fear of falling.

My edge over self-taught skaters is the knowledge of technique, the mechanic of movement and the ability to give streamlined instructions. And every time someone learns how to skate, the joy in the eyes brings me back to my childhood. 

Related: 5 Things I Wish I Knew When I Was Starting My Career

Vibrate at a higher frequency

People are naturally multi-dimensional with many interests, skills and passions. These different dimensions channeled in diverse career paths can help us grow and develop. And, if we share our talents with others, we vibrate at a higher frequency. 

The benefits of working in different industries are many, from gaining inspiration for creative ideas and developing a competitive edge to opening new possibilities and expanding your network. Diversifying your skillset and having multiple streams of income is also a plus. Just remember, we live in an age where skills become obsolete within one year and a half. 

Many people say the pandemic was the opportunity to prioritize investing in ourselves. The reality is that it’s always the perfect time to invest in ourselves — the lockdowns just forced it. But, we don’t need a pandemic for honing our skills and passions.

Related: The 9-Step Quick Guide to Rehabbing Your Career