I is for "I'm a _______"
One of my favorite parts of Leaving Microsoft to Change the World was when the author quit his Microsoft job and needed a new answer to that cocktail-party question, "What do you do?"
If pressed, I'll introduce myself as a "freelancer." I understand from
other blogs that is not a good answer because it has the word "free" in
it and people will think you work for free (or don't work at all).
Sometimes I'm tempted to answer "beach bum," just to see what people
might say, especially since I don't live near the ocean!
I know that there are people for whom that question is no problem. For example, there's the girl I went to elementary school with who I've heard is now a brain surgeon. I imagine she never has any difficulty with this question. But for me (and I suspect, a lot of creative types) this question is a problem. I used to think it was because what I did for a living was not what I wanted to be doing.
But that doesn't seem to be it. Since 2007, I have earned all or most of my income from writing. But a few weeks ago, I ran into a former co-worker at a local museum and she introduced me as a writer to her friend. I glanced over my shoulder as she said it, trying to see who she was talking about.
I'm wondering if this is the same kind of feeling I've heard about when someone loses a lot of weight: they can't actually see the thin person in the mirror. For many years, I did writing "on the side." Now it feels odd to claim it "front and center."
Who are you? What do you say when asked this question?