I love technology, video games, and social media.
I love animation, anime, the kinetic visual creativity that it allows us.
I learn a lot from my obsessions. I learn of new technologies as I follow gaming news – even if they don't relate to my job. I learn about the complexities of international businesses as I follow anime news. I learn what actors are doing in what games and what anime, I see trends and future possibilities.
You, the pro-fan, the pro-geek, the hopeful working otaku, ought to be incredibly, insanely proud of that fact that your obsessions are teaching you so much.
You are learning. With every obsessive scan of an RSS feed to check about game releases you find out just what is happening in the industry. Every AMV you make teaches you about your video editing tools. Every bit of obscure sports history provides a window on history itself through the lens of your chosen sport. Every time you obsess over a movie in the making you learn how they are made.
You, the progeek, are remarkably informed because you are so into your hobbies, you crave and seek information. You retain and reinforce this information. Your years of dedicated fanboying or fangirling have left you with incredible knowledge about things.
You can learn and have learned. You can retain and recall information – and have done it before.
All you have to do is apply it.
So be proud. You probably understand much more of the world than many without your obsessive, loving interests. You just have a more colorful way of gaining that information.
– Steven Savage