what did you want to be when you grew up?

While many people have jobs they love, very few of us grew up wanting to be Web Designers, Actuaries, or Customer Service Professionals. Tell us, what did you want to be when you grew up?

a)Astronaut or Jet Pilot
b)Doctor or Nurse
c)Teacher
d)Firefighter or Police Officer
e)A Star!
f)Everything - I changed my mind weekly!

When I was a kid, what I wanted to be "when I grew up" changed all the time. It really depended on who or what I was exposed to at the time. Occupational choices changed weekly. A persistent theme was science and exotic settings.

In high school when people started asking me "What do you want to do with your life", I would start getting flippant and say, "I want to be a PIRATE" (hoping they'd take the hint that I didn't know or care what my future career path was). I really always wanted the chance to explore more and to try different things-not get pigeonholed into doing something respectable.

For a while I wanted to apply my cultural knowledge, love of research and language skills by going into foreign service, diplomacy, or work for an NGO. In the process of pursuing that, however, I discovered that I really like teaching, and that I prefer being around kids over being around adults.

So when I grow up (still working on that mindset), I want to be an ESL teacher. I've spent the past couple of years working towards that and have never been happier. I can't think of anything I'd rather get paid to do with my time, and will admit that I love being able to do something socially meaningful with my various skills. One thing that I think is important is doing the kind of work that makes a difference in the world, and teaching is where it's at.