I’m sitting on the couch with my then-boyfriend on New Year’s Eve. We are with his mother a petite and loving woman who I respect and trust. Someone mentions my eighteenth birthday which is about a week away and right then, I get smacked with a realization: I have no life plan.

People considered me artistic because all creative stuff was easy for me. Classmates said my name in the same sentence with “famous artist” a lot. But no one hands you the playbook. No one had the slimmest notion of how an artist becomes famous.

That night, when the strobing Times Square ball drops, I feel rising panic during the countdown. The spectacular landing has everyone whooping, “Happy New Year!”

I explode in tears.

“What’s wrong?” his mother asks.

“I’m graduating this year and I don’t know what I’m going to do with my life!”

“Anyone who stops learning is old, whether twenty or eighty. Anyone who keeps learning stays young. The greatest thing you can do is keep your mind young.” ~Mark Twain

Today, sitting in the bright afternoon of a beautiful day, I think back to that younger me. No one ever asked me if I wanted to be an artist. It was tacked onto me early in life until it became my rote answer. What’s really funny? That wasn’t what I spent my free time doing. I spent it writing. At that time, not much about life made sense to me and I lacked a clear vision and sense of purpose. The person who led me to my true calling was not yet born and would not arrive until my late twenties. After that, it would be thirteen more years until my purpose crystallized. I would, however, continue closet writing.

Like many kids her age, my daughter became involved in cyberhoods like Facebook, Myspace and online journaling. It was all part of the new internet age and somewhat confusing. Curious, I wanted to learn more. What do people write on a web log? She helped me set one up and it sat forgotten for two years. When she found a writing group. I went once and was hooked. When I (re)discovered my true passion was writing, life started making sense.

I developed plans. (Learn how to be a great writer.) I had a goal. (Get published.) I developed articles and little stories. Who knew the computer age would make so much sense to me? But casting words into The Net through blogging, fueled the next phase.

What’s next for you?

It’s never too late to start learning. Consider your own life. What abilities do you possess? What abilities do you want to acquire? Each new skill lays the groundwork for learning another. By seeking people who could teach me what I needed to learn, it became possible to learn a lot very quickly. It might seems slow moving at first, then one day the door of an unexpected opportunity opens. Opportunities can change your whole perspective.

When I decided to relearned typing, I took a transcriptionist gig for a local author. That meant faster transitions from idea to intellectual property. (Writing books, stories, blog posts, white papers, and case studies.) All the skills I’ve learned since my daughter was a teenager (how to blog, tweet, chat, online meetings) I use in my current work life. These weren’t options when I graduated from high school. but I determined early on to keep reading and educating myself.

What if I had believed that old adage, You can’t teach an old dog new tricks? 

The key to a rich life and discovering your potential is being curious and a desire to keep learning.

What have you’ve always wanted to try? Photography? Painting? What are you curious about? Kayaking? Writing? What if you made a quick list of items. Who knows what magic awaits by just taking the first step.

Share your best idea with us in comments and we’ll cheer you on!