A florist’s past
Recently, during a flower hobby workshop, our chats centered on work - career choice, work-life balance, and burnouts. I shared some cases I’ve seen during my employee years while everyone actively chipped in with their own thoughts and learnings. And it’s during this conversation that I’ve witnessed an interesting intersection that lies between my previous life as a corporate marketer and the current one as a florist.
It reminded me how our demanding life creates a deep need for a calming and meditative activity like flower arranging or other many great hobbies. I, for one, was hunting hobby after hobby to find one that gave me the right antidote to my stressed-out brain. And now, the people who come to join my workshops are exactly like me in those days.
Just to give you a short summary of my previous life, I’ve been in advertising since finishing univerisity, having worked in Seoul, Hong Kong and Singapore until my early 40’s. I was then hired by Philips and came to the Netherlands in 2013 and worked as a marketing director there until 2021. I had my share of workaholic lifestyle and all the side effects that come with it. So I can relate fully.
Until now, I was hesitant to tell my flower audience that I had a very corporate life in the past and at the same time, I was shy to tell my Linkedin audience that I am a professional florist and an entrepreneur these days. I was afraid that revealing the other identity might make my service and expertise less desireable to the current client / audience. But now, I know better. It is this rich experience that allows me to have deep empathy as well as unique ideas in everything that I do.
Many people, including myself, found it quite unexpected that I pivoted from advertising to floristry as these two industries seemed to have no connection at all. But the more I dug into my new-found profession and passion, I started to see a link. My current theory is that I’ve wanted to be an artist and a creative since young but never actually committed myself to it, perhaps due to my lack of self-confidence. Yet, I have always surrounded myself with people who have artistic souls, skillful hands and visionary eyes. I loved being around and working with creative people. This is why I enjoyed working in advertising. And this is why my transition to floristry felt so organic and natural.
As social beings, we humans find ourselves having to fit into different social and functional molds. Some molds are easier than others but it always requires effort and causes stress to shapeshift ourselves. This is why we need to find creative outlets to let our individuality protrude out from those molds and return to our true form every now and then. Because deep down, we are who we are no matter how long we fold ourselves into that tight box.
Great career is the foundation of a secure life but work stress and burnouts are a part of that life. We have to find the mental and physical resilience to ride the career waves and preserve our well-being. The time you spend on your hobby, that practice of a focused and expressive effort of your choice, will help bring you back to your original core and let you be the person you are most comfortable being even for a few hours.
Make room for these true-to-self moments. And starting that journey with a few stems of flowers is always a good idea.