“Choose a job you love and you’ll never work a day in your life because that field isn’t hiring.” ~Author Unknown
Last night I realized that ALL my troubles in my work life can be traced back to one question, a string of events really, but always the same question behind them all. In fact, if I’d been able to answer this ONE question…I might have become a different person. My life might be COMPLETELY different. (Or not.)
Ready?
“What do you want to be when you grow up?”
It’s a simple question, but one I’ve yet to answer realistically.
Oh sure, I thought I might like to work in a circus. It seemed like a reasonable idea when I was six. Or, I once thought that I’d like to live on the Star Ship Enterprise…the ultimate form of RVing. You get to travel AND take your home with you, plus you’ve got a great career…as long as you’re not wearing a red shirt. Who watched too much Star Trek in their formative years? Me! Me! Me!
When I got older, I thought I might like to have a horse farm. One week of shoveling manure from horses that weren’t my own nipped that idea out of my head. It’s too much like disciplining someone else’s naughty children, only we’re talking about several thousands of pounds worth of misbehaving in extreme temperatures. Not fun!
I told my 4th-grade teacher that I thought I might like to be a waitress. She told me point blank, “Waitress is NOT a career.” Shesh! She was rather nasty about it too. I don’t think I actually wanted to be a waitress. I just liked going out to eat in restaurants. I did wait tables for one summer to pay for college. It wasn’t the worst job in the world and I never had to pack a lunch. The food was delicious!
In Jr High, I was encouraged to make a career decision, once and for all. I remember a certain teacher in particular who made it crystal clear that we did NOT want to end up like him. He couldn’t figure out what he wanted to be in life so there he was. Stuck. Teaching 6th-graders. As an impressionable 12-year-old, guess how special I felt being in his class? Hubby had the same teacher in Jr High. He remembered hearing the same speech, so I can only assume that this must have been this teacher’s yearly career day motivational speech. Hubby and I both remember similar career day speeches in high school. “You don’t want to end up like me…” Ah, memories!
I put off going to college for a year because I still couldn’t decide what I wanted to do. I went to college for dental hygiene, finished all my prerequisites, and decided I couldn’t stick my hands in other people’s mouths for a living. The money looked good, but my heart wasn’t in it.
That’s how I ended up working in retail and moved rather quickly into retail management. I needed money while I figured out what I wanted to be when I grew up. Twenty+ years of retail management and here I am today. Same question. No answers!
Do I want to be a writer when I grow up? Well…I do write, but to take it to the next level, to call it a career…that’s a lot of pressure. That’s a lot of words. A lot of uncertainty. A lot of taking my life into a new direction and hoping I don’t fall. There’s no net to catch me if I do.
JULI HOFFMAN 
And for me it was, “do I really want to grow up?” Figured out I didn’t want to do that which took the pressure off of having to decide what I wanted to be 😉
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I LIKE that!!!!!
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It’s worked amazingly well all these years ;-).
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Well, this is definitely a good start. You caught my attention and kept it. I think it sounds promising. Don’t grow up, make your hobby (dare I say, LOVE) of writing and make it yours.
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It’s the paying the bills part that’s troubling. 😉 I could do some lovely writing from inside the cardboard box I might be living in. LOL
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Isn’t that how Harry Potter was written? 😆
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I believe she was practically living in a hollowed out tree trunk like a Keebler Elf…and STILL receiving rejections and and STILL kept writing. Got to appreciate that kind of stubbornness! One of my FB buddies pointed out that David Bowie wrote his last album on his death bed. Umm…Wow! Time for me to put on my big girl pants!!! 😉
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Make the best of what you’ve got and give em hell!
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I think it’s an urban legend of sorts to meet someone that knew what they wanted to be when they grew up, became that person and then lived a life of contentment. Kind of like being happily married to your high school sweetheart. Who does that any more? I’m not knocking it by any means! I just think it’s rare to find people who’s lives fit that story line. All I know is that I am professionally imperfect and as soon as I embrace that imperfection… well, I don’t know but I probably should embrace it at some point, right? xo Whitney
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An urban legend? Love it! xo
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Juli, you already ARE a writer. I would buy what you write. Really.
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THANK YOU!!!!!!!!
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I think it’s a good question. Especially as we keep asking it. For those who follow one thing and that thing satisfies, that’s great. The rest of us have to explore. Thank you!
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🙂 You’re welcome!
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Juli, Believe in yourself and it will work out. We all know life is a series of changes and thank the lord for that. Because wouldn’t it be boring if we popped out of the box knowing what we wanted and spent the rest of our lives doing that? Doing lots of different things gives you more material for writing.
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Awww…Thank you!
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You are welcome. I hope you will post at the Salon tomorrow.
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I’d like that! You have a great group of followers. 🙂
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I still don’t know what I want to be :p I don;t think there’s anything wrong with trying lots of stuff – think of all the experiences you’ve had already and will have!
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I’ve worn a LOT of hats over the years! LOL
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