đ· This unemployed nurse became an emmy-winning actress at 56.
The perks of being a 'late bloomer' and why the term can be harmful.
A late bloomer is often defined as someone who blooms or becomes successful later than usual. It might be that they donât seem to have any specific talents until âlaterâ in life, or they have no prideful achievements until they get a little older.
Late bloomers are always seen in a more of a negative light, as if theyâre not as gifted as the young âachieversâ. If you notice, the defining factors of a late bloomer are very subjective. The term itself is a social construct and therefore can be redefined.
Professional excellence or personal fulfillment?
On average, people will either define their success by professional excellence (aka career journey) or personal fulfillment. Someone who society deems as a âlate bloomerâ might not think so themselves, as they could already feel internally fulfilled with what they have.
Classicist, Edith Hall, states that acknowledging our skills, talents, and aptitudes (dynamis) and then using the resources we have to make the most of them (energeia) is the foundation of living a good life. Though it might not be easy to step out and do more personally-fulfilling work, studies have shown that it is possible for us to develop the wherewithal, nerve, and clarity of purpose to create an unconventional path to successâone that most âlate bloomersâ have taken.
To kickstart this kind of revolution in your own life, Rose and Ogas suggest creating a micromotive, or a goal tailored to an extremely specific activity that truly inspires you.
Read more about The Art of Blooming Late in the Harvard Business Review article here.
Late bloomers are, in fact, not missing out
Conventional wisdom dictates that mastery demands an early start, Hence the 10,000 hour rule popularized by Malcolm Gladwell. In the podcast âWhy Late Bloomers Winâ, athlete and New York Times best-seller author David Epstein puts that theory to test. The result: most successful people are those who developed broad interests and skills while everyone else was rushing to specialize.
The discussion touches on the benefits of inefficiency, why frequent quitters end up with the most fulfilling careers, and how the greatest masters think broadly, embrace diverse experiences, and constantly cultivate new interests.
Listen to the full podcast episode on Spotify or watch the full viewable podcast on YouTube.
Historyâs greatest late bloomers
Kathryn Joosten had a stable and lucrative career as a nurse in Chicago back in the 1960s up until the 1970s. Following her divorce, she left Chicago and decided to move in with her son in Los Angeles to pursue acting. In 1992, after many failed castings and auditions, she was finally cast by Disney which eventually led her to securing a role in the TV series âDesperate Housewivesâ, for which she won 2 Emmy Awards.
Kathryn was one of the many key figures in almost all fields of lifeâpopular media, culinary, arts, and more, who have been known to be âlate bloomersâ. In the future, there will be many more who will follow their footsteps.
Find the list of 10 of historyâs greatest late bloomers and see if youâre familiar with any of them here.
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