When I Grow Up...

Image by kim_salyer via Flickr"What do you want to be when you grow up?" When was the last time you heard, or answered that question? Today, let's re-ask it from a couple of different perspectives.

• What was the answer when you were young? My first memory of what I wanted to be was a coroner, a la Qunicy M.E., my favorite show when I was pre-adolescent. I wanted the life this man had in the theme song for the show. Brains, the ability to help solve mysteries, excitement, a sailboat, and beautiful girls! Maybe for you the answer is Ballerina, Superhero, Astronaut, Teacher, but what was your answer at age 9 or 10?
  
• Did you grow up and become this dream? For me, quite simply, no. Too much school, too much dedication, too much dsitraction, too much blah... blah... blah... Maybe you have better luck at answering this question than I did.
• As an adult, what were the real attributes about that 'dream job" that speak to you now? For me and my long dead coroner dream, those attributes would include: solving mysteries, doing research, helping people get closure, using my brains more than my back, making my own schedule (at least Quicy seemed to), having a job that others think is odd and being surrounded by beautiful women.
• How many of those attributes are found in your current career choice? It took me 20 years to get to a place where I can say most of them! I have been in sales, management, security, entertainment, and hospitality and all of them left me a little south of joyous. I am finally doing work I love, solving and dealing with mysteries (personal and universal), helping people on thier journeys, thinking more than lifting, coming as close to a free schedule as possible, and believe it or not, I am at a point where i can declare the "surrounded by beautiful women" thing not only immature and shallow, but truly second place to marrying one.
• What is the answer today? What do you want to be when you grow up? If you have not had the chance to live out that childhood dream, how many of those attributes that were important to you then could you go on to fill now? How many are you doing? Are you finding Joy? Is it possible that the career dream you had when you were young knew something about the Spirit that is within you?
  

Perhaps the state of the economy is giving you and your career a chance to reassess the relationship you have with each other. Are you giving equally to the relationship, or is work sucking the soul out of you?

May the work you do fill you and enrich your soul so that it is an extension of who you are.

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