RE: Why You Don’t Need a Life Calling to be Successful (Or: The Frustrations of a Multipotentialite)
Any employer who asks such a dumb question as to why you chose to study Sumerian isn't worth working for. My sister read Persian (PhD). Not that she has a job (anymore - quit kowtowing to the Uni.). At least she did study and did get (multiple) degrees. It's all about the perseverence, people. Above all, the guts to do what you love to do! (Doesn't go for her, but she's autistic.) Can't they see it ain't what you do, but the way that you do it? Then again, with standards so random (at various universities/colleges) the idea of a degree has lost its significance, I can appreciate that. (Three cheers for those with decent trades!)
I never got round to Egyptology, discouraged by my father's frown. Stranded on Art History, skipped onto Law, finished up in Linguistics: no degree to show for any of this half-hearted leaping around. Talk about wasted multipotentiality. It sucks and takes up too much bookshelf space. Having said that, my sister first did Geology, then Forestry, French, Arabic and History and hasn't got more than ten books to show for it. So that's just me snowed under by my useless multipotentiality again.
I secretly think it's not your broad interests and diverse (therefor frequently supposed superficial) talents that put employers off but your extreme capability. Who wants to employ somebody they can't boss around?
None of that multipotentiality sounds wasted to me! Leaping around is the best use of a multipotentialite's natural versatility (in my humble opinion). Sounds like it runs in the family for you.
If it's extreme capability that turns them off, then it must be pretty far down in their subconscious. I understand in a way; I've had to review candidates for jobs and I admit that the whole process is rather exhausting, having to size someone up based on their (career) life as summarized by a single page of bullet points. It's easy to get lazy and find the person who seems like they can already do the job rather than scrutinize those bullet points to try to extract their capabilities and potentials. The problem is that they get so embedded in that thought process that they forget that they're taking shortcuts.
Uggh I hate that. It's just about what we as humans are "supposed" to do. I've been self employed for 18 years because of it.