I totally agree… there are heaps of processes that I enjoy far more than the actual end-result.
Crochet is my example.
I’m quite happy to continue crocheting something pretty (it has to be pretty—I don’t enjoy crocheting abominations) for a long time and never “owning a crocheted thing” at the end.
Before I hit upon the solution, I spent a long time starting projects—some of which I finished, but lots I didn’t… because I didn’t care about finishing—just about doing.
Of course, couple this with an aversion to destroying something I’ve already made (which might have solved the problem by turning it into a sisyphean task).
and I got a lot of “why don’t you ever finish anything?” from my mother.
The question usually comes as “why don’t you ever finish anything, don’t you want the [crocheted thing] you set out to create?”—and the honest answer is “no”.… but if you say that—they ask “well why did you start making it in the first place?”
Most people don’t seem to understand enjoying the process—at least not on a gut level…
I actually solved this particular dilemma by giving away my crocheted things to my grandma—who likes owning crocheted doilies et al. Works for embroidery projects too.
Unfortunately, I still tend to get lack of understanding from other people:
“but why don’t you ever make something for yourself?”
I find it very hard to explain to goal-oriented people why I don’t like crochet… I like crocheting.
I would definitely consider myself to be more process-oriented than goal-oriented. I like doing stuff… I like crocheting, not the goal of having crocheted something in particular. Especially, I like learning—not the feat of “having learned something”.
So for me—it’s very difficult to go to those “attain your goals” seminars etc—because I don’t have set goals. I can’t point at something and say I want to have achieved precisely that thing, because for me, the thing itself doesn’t matter.
It can be frustrating, because I certainly do want to improve over time. I crochet better and more complicated things, I study more challenging topics that build on past learning that I enjoyed. but I can’t necessarily quantify that I want to “learn X”.
Because there is no X… or at least no specific X.
and then people tell me I’m drifting and that I’ll “never accomplish anything”… but accomplishing specific things for me isn’t the point. I enjoy the act, not necessarily the achievement.
Of course, over time, I do accomplish things—because if you continue to, say, crochet over a long period of time, eventually you will have piled up a very large back catalogue of doilies… and the same goes for learning of whatever other process you enjoy. Which I can then, of course, show to my mother…
who then invariably says “but why don’t you finish the ones that are still in your cupboard?”
I totally agree… there are heaps of processes that I enjoy far more than the actual end-result.
Crochet is my example.
I’m quite happy to continue crocheting something pretty (it has to be pretty—I don’t enjoy crocheting abominations) for a long time and never “owning a crocheted thing” at the end.
Before I hit upon the solution, I spent a long time starting projects—some of which I finished, but lots I didn’t… because I didn’t care about finishing—just about doing. Of course, couple this with an aversion to destroying something I’ve already made (which might have solved the problem by turning it into a sisyphean task). and I got a lot of “why don’t you ever finish anything?” from my mother.
The question usually comes as “why don’t you ever finish anything, don’t you want the [crocheted thing] you set out to create?”—and the honest answer is “no”.… but if you say that—they ask “well why did you start making it in the first place?”
Most people don’t seem to understand enjoying the process—at least not on a gut level…
I actually solved this particular dilemma by giving away my crocheted things to my grandma—who likes owning crocheted doilies et al. Works for embroidery projects too.
Unfortunately, I still tend to get lack of understanding from other people: “but why don’t you ever make something for yourself?” I find it very hard to explain to goal-oriented people why I don’t like crochet… I like crocheting.
I would definitely consider myself to be more process-oriented than goal-oriented. I like doing stuff… I like crocheting, not the goal of having crocheted something in particular. Especially, I like learning—not the feat of “having learned something”.
So for me—it’s very difficult to go to those “attain your goals” seminars etc—because I don’t have set goals. I can’t point at something and say I want to have achieved precisely that thing, because for me, the thing itself doesn’t matter.
It can be frustrating, because I certainly do want to improve over time. I crochet better and more complicated things, I study more challenging topics that build on past learning that I enjoyed. but I can’t necessarily quantify that I want to “learn X”.
Because there is no X… or at least no specific X.
and then people tell me I’m drifting and that I’ll “never accomplish anything”… but accomplishing specific things for me isn’t the point. I enjoy the act, not necessarily the achievement.
Of course, over time, I do accomplish things—because if you continue to, say, crochet over a long period of time, eventually you will have piled up a very large back catalogue of doilies… and the same goes for learning of whatever other process you enjoy. Which I can then, of course, show to my mother…
who then invariably says “but why don’t you finish the ones that are still in your cupboard?”
sigh