Following your dreams responsibly: Author Edition

Following your dreams responsibly: Author Edition

We live in an interesting world, where young professionals are torn between a world of playing it safe and climbing the corporate ladder; vs following their dreams and taking a risk. Whether it’s starting a band or pursuing a career as an actor, we live in a society that encourages such pursuits, and we’re able to pursue and sometimes even achieve our dreams like never before. In true YoungMoneyFinance fashion, I like to encourage a lifestyle or pursuing and following your dreams, but doing so in a responsible manner. We all hear stories of actors quitting their jobs to move to Hollywood, aspiring musicians putting it all on the line in Nashville, or even hopeful authors deciding to pursue writing full time. With the abundance of easy money (i.e. credit cards) and a thinking that financial goals can be started later, often people will throw caution to the wind and bet it all on following their dreams. While this works for a select few, most of us aren’t going to be discovered singing in a local coffee shop or won’t write the next Amazon best seller. Instead of risking it all, I’d like to propose another alternative method: following your dreams responsibly.

This is actually the second article I’ve written in this series; for the first article, check out the “starting a band” story. As a follow up, Mike continues playing music with his band and is still responsibly pursuing his dream!

Today I’d like to introduce another friend who is following his dream responsibly, Nicholas Cappas. Nicholas’s dream is to be an author, and to write full time. What’s cool about his story is it actually started a while back, and it’s been a long and interesting journey. Like most journeys, “and so the plans of mice and men”, this one was full of interesting detours that came along the way.

Nicholas’s educational background really got him thinking about becoming a writer; he received master’s degrees in both literature and a seminary degree. Always acutely aware of his creative gifts (writing), he decided to pursue a higher calling of a mix between full time ministry work and writing. His education journey took him to some cool places like Texas, North Carolina and even England, where he studied in the tradition of some of the great English writers. Armed with dual masters’ degrees, Nicholas set out with his dream of using his creative gifts.IMG_0855

Calling

Throughout my interview with Nicholas, he spoke a lot about his calling in this world. For him, that’s a Godly calling, but it became clear to me that the same holds true for our readers regardless of your personal faith. Nicholas firmly believes that we all have been blessed with gifts in this life, and that living life to the fullest will involve using those gifts. He cited a number of figures, including David Rawles and his career solutions ministry, that helped him think through his calling. What was fascinating to me while learning more about Nick was how patient he’s been throughout this process. It took him years (yes, years) after college to figure out how he felt called and inspired to use his gifts, and how it ultimately led him to decide to pursue a career in writing. It was really inspiring and encouraging for me (and hopefully to you) to see someone who has thought long and hard about what their true gifts and passions are. As evidenced by the ‘YOLO’ slogan, our generation is one that is aware of our own frailty and that thinks introspectively about how we want to spend our one life.

Hobby before career

Nicholas relayed to me that it was 5 years ago that he decided to be a full-time writer. Wow, let that sink in. Having just published his first book (Heaven Breaks In), think about how it was 5 years ago that this dream was first conceived. Five long years of dreaming of this day, and diligently working towards it. He mentioned that it was 4.5 years ago that he started writing his book. So 6 months after deciding that he wanted to be a writer, he started writing a book that has taken longer than an undergraduate degree to write. In an instantaneous world where we all want what we want right now, Nicholas was able to persevere, stay patient and write his book while not going broke or into debt!

One of the key themes of pursuing your dreams responsibly is to pursue your dreams while supporting yourself financially. I don’t condone going into debt and fully encourage you to treat your dream as a hobby until it financially makes sense to turn into a career. Being trained in both business (undergrad) and with graduate degrees in literature, Nick found a natural place for him in the world of advertising and marketing, specifically in writing. He’s worked with some of the big name advertising firms (you’d be impressed as I was if I told you their names), and then moved more into the contract and then freelance worlds. He’s worked on some big name clients (hotels and a branch of the military) and was able to earn a decent living while doing so. Having known friends that didn’t follow their dreams “responsibly” (i.e. quit their jobs and go into debt while writing a book), it was cool for me to hear that Nicholas actually felt better prepared to become a writer from his commercial work in advertising. Real world experiences really helped. And Nicholas was essentially getting paid to write for a living, and his advertising gigs allowed him to continually refine his craft.

Labor of Love

Of course, being a full-time commercial writer wasn’t Nicholas’s lifelong dream, and it was a means to an end for him. For 4.5 long years, he diligently would come home and write, slowly but diligently pursuing his craft. It certainly wasn’t easy, and it wasn’t always fun. In a world where we try to keep up with the Jones (whether on Facebook and/or in real life), it was tough to not 100% be dedicated to climbing the corporate ladder. Throughout this process, Nicholas knew his end goal. It wasn’t to be promoted or earn more money, it was to become a writer. Nicholas swallowed his pride and stayed focused. 4.5 years! (Can’t get over that). The old adage that “fruit takes a season” comes to mind when I think about him. Pursuing a hobby that you hope will one day become a career takes work, and it takes sacrifice. You’ll probably be saying “no” a whole lot more; whether to dinner, weekend trips or spontaneous weeknight outings. It’s truly a labor of love.

Realizing your success

After 4.5 long years of working part-time on Heaven Breaks In, the book was finally done, and had been done in the right way. Nicholas continued working in advertising throughout this time to provide him with an income. It was at this time he was able to stop working at his day job and pursue being an author full time. He’d saved up a nest egg that allowed him to sustain himself in the early stages. What’s also cool though is that throughout his years of experience in advertising and marketing, he’s been able to build up a brand for himself; people know the good work he’s able to produce. He still does some small, side freelance work to help provide income during his job transition (full time author). Nicholas worked long and hard on this book but now has achieved his goal of becoming a full time author. He now spends his days promoting his book (made easier with his background in marketing and advertising) and writing his next book – a sequel to the first.

General Advice

My conversation with Nicholas was so incredible and inspiring. It was so encouraging meeting someone who has realized their calling in life, has worked to hone their skills in their craft and someone who has achieved success in their field. Nicholas had a lot of good advice, most of which has hopefully been evident in this article. Definitely spend introspective time thinking about your skills and gifts and how you can use them. Allow yourself to dream but also work on a plan that’ll realistically help you achieve your goals. Seek out counsel both from wise elders, but also from your peers. Stay focused on achieving your goal, and don’t be brought down or distracted by others. It’s true that we only are given one life to live, so make it count (just do so in a responsible way!).

Finally, I’d be remiss if I didn’t tell you more about Nicholas Cappas’s book in case you’re interested. The book is called Heaven Breaks In and is a sort of modern tale version of the Screwtape Letters. Here’s a link to his site, and I’m including a link to where you can buy his book on Amazon!

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