There's a common belief that people get more predictable as they get older. Maybe that's true.
There's something called the Wilson effect. It means that the influence of genetics on intelligence grows stronger with age. Differences in intelligence stemming from genetics widen as we get older, compared to childhood. One proposed reason is individual preference. People with a genetic basis linked to high intelligence tend to prefer activities that raise intelligence. We generally like what we're good at. When this preference works as positive feedback, it pushes us, with age, toward becoming more intelligent than others.
But does this apply only to intelligence? I think it applies across many domains. The body, for instance, works the same way. As people age, those born with good bodies tend to exercise more and end up with even better physical ability. Conversely, people with weak bodies avoid exercise, and their physical capacity declines further with age.
Either way, we live much of our lives according to what we were born with, according to our genes. And yet, at some point along the way, we hit a wall. That's the moment we need another version of ourselves.
Trying What You Find Off-Putting
If you live according to what you were born with, your strengths keep getting stronger and your weaknesses keep getting weaker. If you feel stuck in this current, you need to try the things you find off-putting. You have to step off the path you were given.
For example, if you're someone who has only ever sat at a desk, try taking up exercise. Just dropping by the gym now and then isn't enough. From now on you have to change your identity, as if you were an athlete. Only then can you actually change.
If you're stuck at some point in life, it's better to break away at least once.
Is Breaking Away Really the Right Move?
I know the maxim to double down on your strengths is widespread. Breaking away might be the wrong choice. You could end up as someone who's neither one thing nor the other. But if you're stuck at some point in life, you need to break away. Dying in a situation that's neither here nor there is the same as dying as a person who's neither here nor there.
"Play to your strengths" may be a useful maxim from an employee's point of view. Companies hire people for one thing they do well, then place them like components that do only that one thing.
But if you're trying to go independent, it's better to aim at being a well-rounded person — mind, character, and body, as in a whole-person education. Becoming someone who can do a bit of everything makes it easier to break through the point where you're stuck.