“When I grow up, I want to be a librarian.”
I said that for years — partly as a joke, partly because books were the only thing I’d ever actually finished. But what I didn’t realize back then was that librarians don’t just love books. They thrive on curiosity, connection, and exploration. And maybe that’s why I ended up here — because secretly, I’ve been a Scanner all along.
If you’ve never heard that term before, let me explain.
The Stories They Told Me (And I Believed)
For most of my life, I was told I “never finished anything.”
My family would roll their eyes when I excitedly started a new project or hobby.
My husband would get frustrated — often about the cost of supplies for things he thought I’d never complete.
And slowly, I started believing those stories.
That maybe I was flaky.
That maybe I didn’t have what it takes to “stick it out.”
That maybe I’d never amount to anything if I couldn’t just pick one thing and do it forever.
It’s exhausting living in someone else’s story about you.
The Truth I Didn’t Know
It wasn’t until I stumbled across Barbara Sher’s book, Refuse to Choose!, that I discovered the truth:
I’m not broken.
I’m not flaky.
I’m a Scanner.
Barbara Sher describes Scanners as people who are curious, multi-passionate, and wired to explore. We don’t want to master just one thing — we want to master everything.
And for the first time, I felt like my brain made sense.
Jack of All Trades? Maybe. But…
People say “Jack of all trades, master of none” like it’s an insult. But did you know that the full phrase is actually:
“Jack of all trades, master of none, but oftentimes better than master of one.”
That hits differently, doesn’t it?
I do want to master things. Just… not one thing. I want to master all the things. And maybe that means I’ll need to figure out how to become immortal — but in the meantime, I’m learning how to embrace my multi-passionate brain instead of fighting it.
Finding a Home in Librarianship
When I finally started studying to become a librarian, I realized something surprising: librarians are basically Scanners in disguise.
We connect dots across disciplines.
We learn just enough about everything to help others go deeper.
We gather knowledge, organize it, and make it accessible.
It turns out my “dream job” wasn’t random at all — it was the perfect fit for someone like me.
Rewriting the Narrative
For years, I told myself the story other people wrote for me: that I was inconsistent, unserious, destined to fail.
But here’s what I know now: I am consistent — at being curious. I am serious — about learning everything I can.
And I am far from destined to fail.
If you’ve been told you’re scattered, flaky, or “too much,” maybe you’re not broken either. Maybe you’re just a Scanner.
And maybe, just maybe, it’s time to stop apologizing for wanting to live more than one life.
So here’s my challenge for you:
What’s the story you’ve been told about who you are?
And what happens if you decide to rewrite it?
Because me? I don’t just want to master one thing. I want to master everything. And maybe, just maybe, that’s my superpower.
If this resonates with you, you might also like my previous post about challenging the false stories we inherit about ourselves. Together, they’re two sides of the same journey: recognizing the story you’ve been handed… and rewriting it for yourself.
Ash & Ember Rising 