Inside the box or outside the box?

[zoebartlett]

Which type of person are you? Are you like me, in that you don''t really like taking chances, you fear the unknown, and you love things planned out well in advance? You like control. Are you the opposite, where you live for different situations than what you''re accustomed to. Do you feel as if you can''t stay/settle in one place for too long and you don''t want to be "confined" by the box?

I love learning about why people are the way they are and why they make certain decisions. Is there a difference between you and your siblings and/or other family members?

My sister and I are like night and day. She''s a "Jack of all trades" I suppose. She works as an actor, a writer, a director, a dog trainer, a clown -- basically, as creative as they come. She makes money when she works and she has a very carefree lifestyle. She is definitely an outside the box type of person. I, on the other hand, am the complete opposite. I have a regular-not-quite-9 to 5 job (teacher), and my paychecks are automatically sent to me on a schedule. I know exactly what I''ll be doing 6 months from now, whereas my sister doesn''t know what creative opportunity will be out there for her yet.

 

[Tuckins1]

I''m one foot in and one foot out

 

[perry]

What box?

So much of the spice of life is wandering into other area regardless of which is your inate personalities and skills. I think you will find that it actually improves what you can do.

Why would you want to constrian your possibilities by constructing artificial barriers?

So, not only do I ask "What box?" I also ask... Why do you need a box at all?

Perry

 

[Kaleigh]

I would say, I like the comfort of the box, but love escapng and doing something outsde of what I would normally do. I like taking risks, not huge ones, but risks nonetheless.

 

[kcoursolle]

I''m a little like tuckins. I love trying new things, new food, travelling, making spontaneous plans for a day or weekend, moving across the country, etc. However, I like planning and organizing as well. I have a day planner I use all the time, I am smart with spending/saving money, and I like to research things and make smart purchases.

 

[Haven]

I like your questions, Perry. I dig your perspective.

However, I also like a good analogy. Analogies often help us broaden our understanding of something, or communicate an idea that is otherwise difficult to articulate.

 

[joflier]

I tend to live my life inside the box, yet my thoughts are outside the box. If that makes sense.

 

[kittybean]

I think I mostly live inside the box, but I''m currently working really hard on thinking and trying to live a little outside the box.

 

[Miranda]

Well, right now my life is very much in a box. I do enjoy stability with kids. It is very much against my nature though. I think, feel, and act WAY outside the box. I do have the freedom to explore whatever my heart desires right now. I just can''t move around or travel much.

 

[Ellen]

Great question zoe! I am like those with one foot in and one out. It just depends on what it is.

i.e. I just picked out my son''s senior pics. The one I picked for his portrait is not the typical smiling color pic like you usually see. It''s a black and white, very serious faced one, but it makes such a statement. I gasped when I saw it, because it''s just SO cool (it totally reminds me of the "With the Beatles" album cover, lol) The lady told me if I didn''t mind bucking the trend, that''s the one she''d pick too. So that was that.


I would say my decision making/problem solving are where I''m more out of the box.

 

[nytemist]

No box for me! My mom is very traditional and conservative and we don''t get along too well because of that (it''s a hair better now that I''m an adult). My dad was traditional in how he lived, but did think outside the box with certain issues. My oldest sister is a very by the book, in the box type. My middle sister was and is just plain irresponsible and I am kind of nuts, but still responsible. I''m very adventurous, hate being still, don''t like doing anything the typical way or doing what everyone else does. I come alive at night and do most of sketching and writing then. The only thing I need in life to be a constant is financial security. As long as I have some money saved, all bets are off. Self-preservation kicks in and I will make things happen for myself. If someone told me tomorrow that I was invited to work as an MT in, say, London for 6 months, I would go home, pack, call the doctor to get my lorazepam for the flight and be ready to go by Friday.

As for now, I''ve been crammed into a box. My husband expressed interest in really living and experiencing before we got married, but in the past year he''s decided that he has no interests in changing his life anytime soon. He is ''comfortable''.

 

[gwendolyn]

I think the best way to describe it is that I definitely take risks (hi, living in another country!), but do tons of research first (or at least try to) in order to make sure I'm being smart and rational about it, as opposed to flighty and irresponsible. I have felt myself grown stagnant when surrounded by everything that was familiar for too long, so I tend to seek out new life experiences so I can grow and learn more about myself. But that may also have been a stage in my life, as I am very much looking forward to settling down (who knows where) and owning a home and having a steady, comfortable life.

 

[zoebartlett]

Okay, I just went back and read what I wrote last night. I hope I didn''t paint myself to be a hermit or anything!

I''ve taken a few risks in life, and these are the biggest ones:

1. moving to another country by myself for a summer when I was in high school to stay with a family I had never met
2. quitting a job I hated and enrolling in grad school full time, leaving the security of a full time job and a regular paycheck, to change careers (this involved a move to another part of my state)

I love to travel, and if money and work schedules weren''t considerations, my husband and I would be on the go much more often. We love to experience new things and areas. We can both be homebodies but we do get out once in a while.

I KNOW my way of thinking about things at times has made me be more cautious than needed I suppose. I live my life on the straight and narrow, and it''s comforting to me because it''s what I know. I wish I was more of a risk taker. By the way, I began this thread because I am truly interested in learning about other people and why/how they make decisions they do. It''s also the beginning of my thoughts on moving to another area of the country. Another thread about that will come any day now, I''m sure.

Thank you all for posting your stories. I find them fascinating.

 

[AprilBaby]

I am definetely OUTSIDE the box.

 

[TravelingGal]

I leash myself to the box, then jump out and run around the box, and when I get tired I dive right back into the box and don''t come out for awhile.

 

[strmrdr]

I burnt the box to cook a catfish

 

[Skippy123]

Zoe you are a risk taker!

Hmm, I tend to play it safe but it really depends. Lots of times I will do lots of research and then go with what I think is best. There are other times I will dive head in first. It all depends really. I will try anything except things that require heights (so no jumping off boxes for me). hehe

 

[onvacation]

Jack-in-the-box. (Or am I a Jill-in-the-box?) I get cranky if I feel like I''ve been in the box too long. I have to pop out once in a while. Then I start yearning to get back into the box where it''s comfy.

 

[Italiahaircolor]

Well, I''d have to say I''m a mix.

For a long time inbetween leaving a salon and getting my current position, I was completely freelance---and that was really a "fly by the seat of your pants" position. I never knew if I''d be able to cover my mortgage payment, cell phone bill, or even if I''d be working that month--but when I did work, I made a lot of money...and got to meet really incredible people. The opportunities I had were outrageous! But, I lived paycheck to paycheck...because even when I hit the jackpot workwise, I still had to put a lot of money side to cover the "what if''s" in life.

Then, I got my current job. I believe this position has grounded me, but also increased my creative freedom. So I am now tettering between my set pay, stable job, and still working wild hours, traveling to fun locations, meeting and collaborating with movers and shakers in my business. I feel like at this point in my life I have the best of both worlds. Lucky me.

 

[Shoopy]

In my personal life, I like things to be planned and structured. I get very nervous when something happens outside of my plans. I completely freak out over it. Luckily, Mr. Fiery isn''t like that and he grounds me when something changes or if my plans don''t work.

At work, however, I''m very out of the box. I have to be. I do audits for a living and if I''m going to add any value to the department/process I''m auditing, I need to step away from policies/procedures/ordinary and think what''s missing, what else can be done? It''s effective at work...home, not so much LOL

 

[bee*]

I''m very much in the middle I think. I adore travelling and doing new things, meeting new people etc, but I love to come home at the end of it all and I don''t think that I''ll ever move too far from Dublin. A bit of both suits me well.