Is it my imagination or is this common social question getting harder and harder to answer? We all know this to be part of a polite exchange and that the attention span for the response is maybe 3-4 seconds. Expected replies include ‘œI’m a teacher’, ‘œI’m a student’, ‘œI’m a doctor’ or ‘œI’m a happy homemaker’. Because what the questioner really is asking is ‘œwhat do you do for a living so that I can place you in a category I understand’. What is not expected (or likely welcome) is the complicated and far more accurate response that details the many different ways I see fit to spend my time, whether or not they are income generating.

Why thank you for asking’¦I am a blogger, chief cook and bottle washer, micro-entrepreneur, family portfolio manager, radio show host, financial coach, exercise and nutrition enthusiast, wife, kitty playmate and caretaker and a darn loyal friend.

A quick online search tells me I’m not the only one challenged by this question. DJ Nelson, a Washington DC Telecommuting Examiner, says in a recent post:

It’s hard for people to understand that everyone doesn’t define themselves by a job. There’s much more to me than how I earn a living. I look forward to the day when I can meet someone new and have a conversation that doesn’t revolve around work; but until then, I’ll just settle for responding with my own creative answers.

She also shares some amusing conversations on the topic in her post. For some clever responses to the question, WhyWork.org offers a few reader contributions:

What you should really be asking is Who I Am. Not what I do.

Me? I’m a hunter/gatherer!

And

1) Breathe.
2) Eat well and get plenty of exercise. Just what the doctor ordered.
3) Watch the sunset and listen to the sounds of the birds and the children as they play.
4) Try to stay healthy, act with honesty, honor the earth and life thereon,
and be as helpful as possible.
5) I live to give and give to live. Ancient Indian secret.

Since I find it difficult to value any one of my roles over the others (except perhaps ‘œwife’’¦hi honey) and I would actually like to be a cooperative social animal, my new working definition is Quality Life Engineer. Aren’t we all really?

I’d love to hear your strategies for responding to this question.

Photo credit: stock.xchng.