Fourth place is first place (yes it is)

My whole life I've wrestled with being torn between multiple interests. When I was a kid and adults would ask what I wanted to be when I grew up, like most, I would give several answers:

"I want to be a fireman, or policeman, or astronaut," most kids would say. Except, unlike other kids, I wouldn't say "or."

"I want to be a fireman and a policeman and an astronaut." Adults would chuckle a good laugh and pat me condescendingly. The message was clear: you can only pick one, kid. But my inner compass wouldn't sit still.

For a long time I shrugged it off as childishness that would go away as I matured. I knew just enough as a kid to know I didn't know enough. Then I found myself in my thirties -- mostly matured, a family of my own, and still the inner compass would doggedly race from one end of the horizon to the other.

Perhaps I just haven't found my home yet. That would be conventional wisdom: I just hadn't found that one special thing I'm meant to become an expert in, a life-long devotee to, or a proverbial Ace.

This season has opened doors to reexamine life, and we've been digging deep, unearthing whole cities in our souls that had been buried in the hustle of life. In that space I've found myself thinking lately,

What if it's possible for a human being to yearn for -- and excel at -- multiple careers over one lifetime? Was that just the musings of unchecked ambition? Perhaps. Was this the fancy of a lost soul looking for home? Possible, but not probable.

I felt I was on to something, some hidden treasure deep inside this archaeological dig of the soul. Then it struck me: there almost isn't a game in the world where I would trade four Jacks for one Ace. My whole life I'd been directly and indirectly instructed to trade in a hand full of Jacks in hopes of drawing one elusive Ace. And it just never made sense to me. Being called a "Jack of all trades" is a huge compliment!

Decades ago, mainstream financial investment thinking (and really the only commonly available option) was to put all your investments into one company. This was a mark of loyalty, honor, trust. Those who invested in lots of things were shifty and untrustworthy.

Fast forward to today and the investing world is just the opposite: you'd be a fool to invest all-in with one company! Especially since there are so many avenues for diversification and so much emphasis in the industry on it.

Just like you shouldn't trust a financial advisor who tells you to put all your eggs in one basket, don't trust career advice that tells you the same thing.

Until recently, mainstream career planning (and really the only option) was to be all-in with one company for your entire career. It was the path to expertise, stability, and promotion. Yet the world is an ever-changing place; what was conventional thinking yesteryear is passe this year. More importantly, what was vitally important before could now be a virtual death-wish.

We were once told, "Lean into your strengths; avoid your weaknesses." But we were really only given one (or maybe two) strengths which counselors, bosses, and influencers would make any effort to cultivate. The truth is, we each have more than one or two strengths! Chances are, there is anywhere from six to twelve things you LOVE to do and are reasonably good at (as an amateur). Get to know yourself -- name all your strengths and invest in all of them as time and energy allows. Don't settle. (and you may surprise yourself when you invest in your weaknesses - they may not be all that weak!)

In a world of fluctuating governments, global pressures, and climate adjustments, there is no telling who or what will be around in 30 years. Pitching all-in with one company for an entire career is improbable, and perhaps impossible. The best investment in my career is diversification: holding posts in multiple fields and multiple industries as readily as possible. This is tantamount to insurance against an unstable future: learning how to jump from one float of ice to another helps the tepid adventurer survive the stormy seas. In a world of toppling icebergs, institutions, and Aces, it is the Jack who thrives.

More than my own future, it is a pattern that will be entirely expected of my children's future. We all want to give our kids a good future and we all invest our finances to do that. The greatest money-making investment I can make on behalf of my kids is this: cultivating their raw talent through life experiences to become useful trades. That is an investment which will never run dry.

As we get to know our kids, we shy away from superlatives. It's not that our son is the "outgoing one" or our daughter is the "kind one." That is too one-dimensional. Our son as an example: as influencers in his life, we would limit his capacity if we only highlight one or two of his strengths. So we are beginning to name LOTS of strengths: tenderness, rambunctiousness, intelligence, brute strength, balance, zest for life... the list goes on and on! When we open up our view of his capacities to include all of these wide ranging strengths, we give him more and more opportunities to develop each raw talent into a useful trade.

He's one step closer to being a fourth-place winner -- a Jack of all trades.