How To Open Doors For Your Future Self
Why you should never stop nurturing the things you love.
In my first year at university, I chose to stop attending lectures.
Not because I was particularly rebellious. But because I genuinely didn’t find them useful.
That’s no shade on my lecturers (who were largely pretty decent), and neither is that a call to arms for anyone else to do the same.
The problem was… at university, I discovered what I actually enjoyed.
And deciding to devote my time to that has created every opportunity I've had as a writer since.
In my first term, I attended a ‘writers meeting’ held by the comedy society.
It was a small, uninspiring room, populated by around six people.
We introduced ourselves and spent an hour discussing our favourite comedians.
We were asked to return the following week with a comedy sketch that the group could read out.
One guy offered me half a Mars Bar.
It had been pleasant enough, but I hadn’t anticipated that my decision to enter that room would literally alter the trajectory of everything that came after.
To cut a long story short:
I started writing sketches every week.
I got cast in some shows.
I auditioned for the sketch troupe which went up to the Edinburgh Fringe (a dream I’d had for years) and got in.
I ended up in charge of the society in my third year.
I went up to Edinburgh twice more.
And, most importantly, the guy who gave me the Mars Bar in that first ever meeting became my comedy partner.
We’ve now performed in gigs around the country, taken our own show up to the Fringe, and this week hit 10,000 followers on our TikTok, with a recent video crossing 1,000,000 views.
I can’t actually remember if I accepted the Mars Bar.
These experiences were the outcome of my choice to prioritise writing comedy for those three years. After all, I’d found what properly fulfilled me, so why wouldn’t I?
But it also brought a second benefit.
Without realising it, I had spent years cultivating a weekly writing habit. Getting and giving feedback. Developing my style as a writer. Collaborating with others to put shows together. Negotiating the organisational mindf*** that is planning a trip to the Edinburgh Fringe.
These experiences were what I leaned into to get a job as a writer with Ali Abdaal. I had never worked as a writer anywhere else. I’d certainly never worked for a YouTuber before.
But these experiences got me a foot in the door.
Since then, I’ve gone freelance and now work with a variety of creators in this incredibly exciting industry.
And it all goes back to that choice:
Have a fulfilling three years doing what I loved + get a good degree.
OR:
Exhaust myself and neglect what I loved + get a slightly good-er degree.
My takeaway from all this is that, once you find something you love, never stop nurturing it.
That’s not to say you should pursue it at the expense of all else (e.g. I was still pretty confident I would get a 2:1), but you should certainly never let it go to waste.
Of course, I didn’t know the doors it would open for me, but the fact that I found it fulfilling was reason enough to give it a shot.
So this week I’d like to know, what’s that thing in your life? Which doors have been unexpectedly opened for you as a result of nurturing one of your passions?
Hit reply and let me know!
Aptly enough, I write this en route to the Edinburgh Festival. It’s the first time I’ve been back since 2019. And the first time since 2016 I’ve been there without a show.
This year, I’m going simply to enjoy a long weekend watching comedy with my friends :)
George