On Being a Scanner

I've always called myself a Browser, with a capital B. I'm never more happy than when perusing, picking through, and considering. That applies to everything from picking green beans to choosing a book at the public library, and I'm always looking for that next new thing to learn. Consciously or not, I can't help it; I'm always watching for something delicious.

When I've found that Next Great Thing, I jump in, taking all I can find (grab it while it's ripe!), staying up until the wee hours researching, studying, then planning and designing. I am completely focused on that subject for a few days, a week, a month or so. Then, when I've had enough, I move on. I'll come back later when I get a craving to revisit that particular topic.

My friends and family shake their heads and laugh, they can tell when I'm on another tangent, usually because I'm babbling excitedly about how fascinating it is. And really, there is no end to all of the glorious things left to be studied.

The downside to all of this fun is that I lose track of TIME, that annoying thing that everyone else seems to use to measure their lives. There's just not enough of it, is there? Certainly not enough to keep up with the dishes and laundry! The competing guilt and my lack of organization keep me frazzled, and it seems I never finish any of my great ideas or projects.

Turns out I'm not the only one who lives this way. A few months ago, I picked up a book by Barbara Sher, Refuse to Choose: Use All of Your Interests, Passions, and Hobbies to Create the Life and Career of Your Dreams, and I'm not exaggerating when I say that reading it has changed my life.

According to her, I'm a "Scanner" (my type is the Sybil Scanner, to be exact, and I've never been so relieved to sound like I have multiple personalities)!

If you've ever felt frustrated or inadequate because you never seem to stick to anything, you leave unfinished projects for something new, or you just can't seem to choose or commit to a career because you might be missing out on something else, you might very well be a Scanner, yourself.

Here's the part where Barbara Sher changed my life - being a Scanner isn't a bad thing!

What? You're kidding. You can't seriously mean that the stress of dealing with piles of books and craft clutter and laundry is a good thing. Inability to make a decision or be satisfied - those are character flaws, right?

Well, I was looking at it wrong. Those things are often the result of me trying to force myself to do things the "right" way, rather than allowing what feels natural to me. I'm wired differently than someone who is able to choose a project, move through it at a regular pace toward a set goal, and finish neatly. But my way of doing things is just as valid, and in my case, sometimes better!

Sher's book explains the perfectionism and guilt, and even our own mistaken assumptions about what we should be doing. But then she moves on to give pure inspiration to discouraged Scanners like me, with organizational tools that fit the way I think, and methods for developing the life I want to live. She even describes fulfilling careers for Scanners.

I've gone on long enough, but I'll just mention one of the tools in Refuse to Choose that I have found most helpful - after sketching out some ideas in my Scanner Daybook and making The Big List (okay, so I mentioned two more!), I condensed my interests into about 30 categories (like gardening, writing, homesteading, crafts, business ideas, etc.) that each cover more specific topics, and then I started making a 3-ring binder for each of those categories! I already had one for Homemaking, and had various notebooks floating around for my gardening and writing projects. But everything was scattered, just like my thoughts. Now I have a shelf started, just for my binders. When I come back to an interest, I know where to find it, and I can add notes, research, ideas, photographs of finished projects, anything I want to include. As Sher points out, over the years I will be creating my own books, and I will also have something to show for all of the time and work I put into things. Sounds so simple, but it was a light bulb for me, and has helped me organize my mind, and actually control my tangents a bit better - I have somewhere to jot down an idea, without going overboard when I don't have time.

Now I'm thinking about blogging in a similar way, maybe having a few blogs, each covering certain subjects. It might keep me from tangling up so many things in one post, anyway!

We'll see if I can pull off the balancing act of not spending more time writing than doing!