Tom Hanna's Lifestream

The Renaissance Soul: Life Design for People with Too Many Passions to Pick Just One by Margaret Lobenstine is aimed at people who might be described as multiply interested, the cliched «jack of all trades and master of none.» She calls them «Renaissance Souls» (the modern, PC version of «Renaissance Man».) She answers questions starting with «Am I a Renaissance Soul?», «What do I say when people ask what I do?» and «How do I make a living without a 'career'?» She provides examples from the lives of Renaissance Souls from Leonardo da Vinci to Benjamin Franklin.
Her chapters on earning an income are good. She emphasizes ideas to get a job that earns an income but also contributes to other interests, when getting the perfect job just isn't possible. The book is really good and well worth the read for anyone who feels too confined in the idea of following one career for 30-40 years and then retiring to play golf. It was good enough that it contributed to the name for my website network (along with several other occurrences of the Renaissance theme). There are two downsides to her book, shared with many in the emerging «life design» genre. First, a lot of space is devoted just to convincing the reader that it's ok to be a Renaissance Soul. For some, that may be great. For me, I saw the title, intuitively understood what it meant and that it applied to me. I was already familiar with the life stories of Leonardo, Ben Franklin and Oprah Winfrey. I didn't need to be convinced, I needed a plan. The pages devoted to convincing were, for me, mostly filler. Second, it works from an assumption that the reader is either a well paid professional or a single person with no debts for many of its suggestions. For those with obligations and without substantial savings, all her suggestions may be doable, but they'll require the kind of sacrifice from the Renaissance Family that the family may not want to make. For an attorney to move into a job outside the legal field is relatively easy. For a Renaissance Soul with a family, debts and an interest in law to go the other way - especially for what is likely to be a relatively short legal career that never leads to the perks and income partnership, etc. - is not so simple. The book still has plenty to recommend it for the Average Renaissance Joe, but it's more tailored to Renaissance Joseph, Esquire. For the reader of average means, additional resources may be more necessary, but the book is still a great starting point. Plus, if you do need some convincing that it's OK to try new things, switch jobs and make a career out of following all your dreams instead of just one, this book should do the trick. a Margaret Lobenstine: The Renaissance Soul: Life Design for People with Too Many Passions to Pick Just One