You: The Professional Geek!
Last week I mentioned I branded myself “Geek 2.0,” the professional geek. I’m the geek on the job, the obvious geek, the geek who uses his interests in his career.
It may sound strange to consider yourself a “Professional Geek,” because we don’t often associate what makes us nerds, geeks, otaku, and so forth with our jobs. Even when we do, we can be a bit uncomfortable with it, with expressing ourselves in that way. Even in the age where nerds are, well, running everything, we’re a bit uncomfortable of seeing our jobs as expressions of a vein of pure unadulterated nerdy.
There’s still some negative connotations with the way we identify, and we’re afraid to drag that into the job. There’s a wall between job and “nerd/geek/etc.” that we’re not used to scaling.
I’d like to cautiously, suggest we blow up that wall between geek and job.. Yes, I’m suggesting that you, as a professional, emphasize and identify with your geekiness/nerdiness/fanboy or fangirlism. I’m suggesting being loud, proud, and putting up wall scrolls when appropriate.
Why?
What makes us the people we are (a bunch of nerds) is often what makes us totally awesome on the job. You, I’m betting, are a hell of a better person and better what what you do – or will do – because of your love of technology, or obsession on a subject, or skills you developed in some fannish activity. You may not even be doing anything related to your hobbies and passions, but your focus or intellect or skills are probably firmly rooted in the soil of utter nerdy.
Yes, in short, I’ saying what makes us better professionals is totally or in part what makes us such complete geeks.
That, by the way, is awesome.
I cant count the amount of artists I’ve met who are great because of their fanwork (sometimes exclusively because of their fanwork). This work fired off their passions and interests and made them what they are today. So much greatness you see artistically grew from pure fanism.
Writers? Fiction or nonfiction, there’s often obvious geekines – and if it’s not obvious, it’s right below the surface. You don’t play with words unless you’re passionate about them.
Almost anyone I’ve ever met in the world of IT is a geek of some kind. For some of them it’s almost something that’s almost casual; “Oh, yeah, I should go read ‘A Game of Thrones'”. These are people of incandescent nerdosity, burning brightly as they light the way for us with amazing technology, games, and more.
Science? Hey, enough said. Pure geek.
This is just for people applying their obsessions directly. So many people grow personally due to their fandoms, geekiness, and more. Cosplayers learn patience from their craft, pen-and-paper RPGs teach math (“Champions” led to me expanding my in-head mathematics skills in college), and more. Our passions, our nerdiness, makes us better people – and thus better careerists.
So, yes, be proud of your geekiness on the job, because chances are what makes you a nerd makes you a hell of a better employee, contractor, consultant, or what have you.
In fact, being proud of it will make you better in your career and on the job because you’ll be more honest about the inspiration and roots of who you are. It’ll mean you share the source of our ability and knowledge. It’ll mean you spend less time not being you.
Because who you are is pretty cool.
Go on. That desk of yours needs a few more action figures.
