Welcome to the Willing Misfit Blog!

This blog consists of a series of articles about what it is to think for yourself, and to live a life based on your own conscious choices. While some of the articles are newly generated material, others are included in the ebook 'The Willing Misfit', which is available here for free download:
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/137307

Sunday 11 March 2012

A Little About the Author

 

Hi there - I'm the 'Willing Misfit' who's behind the writings here on this blog, and in various books for which I'll be posting links below. My name's Derek Pearson, and I live in a tiny town in New Zealand (the tiny country to the east of Australia where the not-so-tiny Lord of the Rings trilogy was made).

What's my occupation? I'm never sure what to write in that space on the immigration cards we're asked to fill out when we travel internationally. I've passionately pursued a number of different careers mostly revolving around film and music, and at the moment name my principal occupation as 'BEING'. That's the most honest and accurate description, because my moment-to-moment focus is on being as present, and as honestly engaged with life and everything in it, as I can be. For a couple of years now, I've let my energies direct what I do every day. Because I do only what I want, the line between work and leisure has blurred to the point where I make no distinction.

When you make the choice to be the most authentic expression of self you can be, every moment is a creative pursuit. You give up the convenient framework provided by society, because it would have you follow a set of rules based on someone else's ideas, and suppress self-expression; without it, there are no guidelines to tell you how to behave, so your life is an improvisation.

Throwing all that business out the window can be scary. We've grown up with an assumption that we either adhere to the social framework, or we rebel. I do neither. I've found a healthy place alongside society, accepting and appreciating its (generally well-meaning) purpose, and relating happily to the people in it, without the need to be subject to its many rules.

The book 'The Willing Misfit' describes my journey from Social Misfit to Willing Misfit. I plan to expand on the writings in it; a version aimed at teenagers is in the planning stage right now, because I think the teen years are the time when serious social influence comes into play. I'd like to get in early and remind them that maybe they don't need to live a life someone else has designed for them!

Let me know what you think. The book and the blog are intended as a platform for on-going dialog. I'd love to hear your responses!

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