What was your dream future/job as a kid?

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Never had one. I'm 35 and still don't know what I want to be when I grow up.

I didn't really know what I wanted to be, but in hindsight it's mostly because I didn't really know any options. In a small town in the 90s it was finish school, then go work in a shop (girls) or a factory (boys). That was the assumption and basically the whole career "advice" setup at my school.

So it kinda makes sense that nobody there seemed to have any ambitions.

Thankfully, I eventually found out that you're allowed to work with computers. Maybe someone would've mentioned that to me earlier if I'd been male but again, 90s. I taught myself web development, made a living off that for a while, eventually had enough and pivoted into being a small-time craft YouTuber!

I wanted to be a lawyer to fight for the oppressed

I’ve never once known what I wanted to do. It’s working out. But I did sell my soul to Uncle Sam for a while.

pilot

Im afraid of heights

I wanted to be an astrophysicist, then I realize that I suck at theoretical maths, so I became an engineer and worked on rocket engines manufacturing, but I realize that working on aerospace projects is way too much paperwork.

Now I'm working with a small windows and doors manufacturing company to modernize their processes and I love it!

Kid me had two things I wanted to be. Homeless and a soldier. I really liked war and I liked the idea of wandering around the city and being able to build a little hut wherever I wanted.

When I was a little kid people would ask me what I wanted to be when I grew up, I simply answered "Happy".

As I got older I learned what I enjoyed doing and I had some ideas.

First I wanted to be teacher, then I wanted to be an engineer, then I wanted to be a teacher again, then I became homeless so I had only the dream of getting enough of a job to get a roof over my head.

Then life got harder once I left highschool and basically all the support I was getting went away. I was homeless and I had a job that I was dumping all of my money into going to school to try and make it work. I really wanted to be a teacher.

Then some stuff happened causing life to get even harder and I dropped out. What little support I had went away.

I still had dreams of being a teacher as soon as I could get my life together.

Then my life fell apart further.

And further.

Eventually I got my life together enough to try again. But then life got hard again and I had to make a call. Risk homelessness again or drop out again.

I drive a forklift now... I have for nearly a decade and I'll probably drive it for a long long time more.

Sometimes I think about becoming a teacher, but finances being what they are nowadays I could never afford the schooling and rent. And with what teacher's salaries are if I took loans I'd never be able to pay them back.

As a kid around age 5-6, I wanted to be a garbage truck driver. I knew that jobs paid the bills, and garbage truck drivers only had to work one day a week!

If only.

I'm happily stuck with my job in special education now. I didn't know squat about myself when I was 5 :)

Don't worry bout it bud. Some ppl know what they wanna do and some ppl gotta find it. You'll find it eventually.

Librarian. Author. Then game programmer.

Now I'm a senior fullstack software developer. And it is honestly fun to chase bugs, no matter if they're my bugs or someone elses. Also I didn't need any university education for this. Went IT trade school, learned programming myself, got job as 1st line phone support, then was promoted to developer when I found and fixed bugs before it reached the devs.

Still would have loved to go the librarian path too. Maybe in the next life.

I wanted to be an Imagineer and then at 50 years old, I fell into it after decades of being an IT Management Consultant.

You can change careers in your 40s/50s if you want.

It's likely easier to get into the field you want once you're established, have resources and work experience even if it's not relevant.

So don't freak out haha

But personally when I was 11 we got a PC. My parents put it in my room. Which tbh irritated me at the time.

But I got super into it and started looking around the program files folder and at all the weird files in there.

I decided my dream was to make an application that needed those weird files. Which I did about a year later haha

But I fell in love with programming. I chose all my secondary school and college classes so I could get into university for it.

I actually did Games Technology but realised I didn't enjoy that as much as general programming.

So I was lucky that i had the computer in my room and found something I was good at when I was young. And even luckier that it pays well.

Your future isn't generally decided by a couple big decisions but 100s of small ones.

If you're worried just start trying different things and you'll likely find something you enjoy and/or have a talent for.

Fighter jet pilot, but without the bombing or fighting or anything.

Business man wheeling and dealing in a suit … seemed like fun.

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I wanted to be an astronaut. Then I watched the Challenger blow up while at school. That was the end of that dream.

In high school I wanted to be an architect. Graduated and went on to struggling for years working in retail til I finally had enough and went to college. Found out quickly that there was zero demand in my area for that and pivoted to being a mechanical engineer. I now have 13 years of doing that and am glad I went that option as I can go anywhere in the world with this skill set.

I liked toys as a kid so I wanted to be a toy maker. I really didn't know what my options were tbh.

anything related to dinosaurs or Egypt

Wanted to be an inventor since I can remember, kinda like George Gearloose.

Managed to set fire to my dad's Lego train by bypassing the controller and sticking the rails directly into the wall socket at age 4. Told ya fuckers that the cable for the radio matched the cable for the rails! But would you listen? Oooh no, you wouldn't. Had to wait all the loooong time for mom to go to the toilet to try out my idea. And yes, I did cry a lot afterwards.

Currently I'm an engineer on master level working with startups, but haven't gotten around to get a doctors/PHD yet, if I ever choose to attempt one.

Now, my sister was different, didn't have any real idea what she wanted to do, probably something with art? So back when I just started learning about C I made a simple project with her, where I did the programming, and she decided on the user interface and did some simple copy pasting. Contrary to me, she very much likes making and solving patterns, such as sodoku, and since has become a frontend engineer, combining work with people, arts and design, and programming.

What I'm trying to say is, that you might find your interests reflected in unlikely places. It can be hard to find them, but keep looking until you find something that catches your fancy. And don't expect this choice to always be sunny and fun. Even those who have their work laid out for them at birth struggle and question themselves every now and again. :)

Archaeologist. Or more accurately, paleontologist, but I was a little idiot like most children. Also like many children, I fucking loved dinosaurs.

Kid me wanted to be: an astronaut, a park ranger, a dinosaur and a detective. Though not all at the same time :)
Teenage me stopped caring and would just wish for the bullying to stop.
In the end I kind of rolled into a CS study and now here I am :) Life is more than just your job though, find fulfillment wherever you can.

I wanted to go into space - which is a bit hard, as Australia doesn't have a space program.

My second choice was to be a pilot. Aside from the fact that I don't have 20/20 vision (laser correction wasn't a thing in the 80's), I discovered from doing gliding for a bit that I preferred looking out at the world to actually doing the flying.

So I ended up being a computer nerd. Something that is far more socially acceptable today than it was 40 years ago.

I wanted to live in a van down by the river.

I wanted to work in tv, I even got as far as picking film as an optional module at school. Got pretty good at writing and editing (directing and cinematography, not so much). But my grades in the sciences were higher and my parents pushed me towards doing STEM at university.

Now I have a job and all the learning is behind me I'm having another crack at it again in my spare time. As hobbies go it's a lot of fun

I wanted to be a reporter when I grew up. Beyond that I wasn't picky. I have vague memories of my Kindergarten teacher asking everyone to draw what they wanted to be when they grew up and almost falling out of her seat when I drew the Fox News studio in full detail because it just came to my little mind.

Ever since I started talking, I wanted to be a heart surgeon. I read tons of books and watched hours of youtube videos about heart surgery, some of which were so graphic, that they made my mother pass out.

Later I got interested in networking, Linux, and systems programming, and this is my current job. The tons of graphic videos with blood, etc. increased my tolerance to nasty injuries pretty drastically. I was a bystander to a few very serious car crashes and I had no problem helping the survivors with incredibly awful injuries until the paramedics came, so I guess at least something positive came from it.

A cashier because people throw money at me all day. Also a scientist because science is cool. Now I spent 5+ years studying my favourite sciences only to realise the job I've been studying for is a cashier... Yeah I should probably go for a PhD

When I was in school I remember one day we had a lesson about jobs, we each had a worksheet with some jobs listed and we had to pick out one we liked. There was one option that stood out to me right away, I can't remember the exact title they had but it was the one computer-related job on the sheet. I distinctly remember the teacher telling me that job wouldn't be needed in the future. Why even have it as an option if it's the one "wrong" choice?

Anyway, I'm in software now. I'm incredibly lucky that I've always known what I wanted and managed to build a well-paid career in a field I like. Very few people get to say that.

A plow truck driver

I was actually just thinking about this few days ago. I remember someone in a podcast talking about how to find what you're truly passionate about, and they recommended going back all the way into your childhood, and think about what kind of stuff you enjoyed then. Well I already have a pickup truck, so maybe I should just put a plow on it.

Oh the usual, singer, actress, youtuber. I wanted to be a marine biologist when I was younger, but I live in a landlocked state so that would be kind of hard. I currently work as a nurse aide while i do college to become an RN

I wanted to be an architect but ended up as a software engineer. I fell in love with programming in high school and the rest is history. It worked out pretty well for me.

Honestly didn’t know much about what I wanted to do. When I was really young I wanted to be a cop. Thank GOD I didn’t follow that. I grew up doing theater and thought I wanted to be an actor and tried hard but realized I hated auditioning and isn’t want a life of that.

But I’ve always been interested in tech and tinkering and found a job doing technical theater installing sound and light systems, running tech for musicals and such and it’s my favorite thing in the world.

Follow your passions. Whatever things you find fun and exciting I’m sure there’s a career out there for you. Try and put yourself out there and try anything that sounds remotely interesting and you’ll find what you’re looking for.

I wanted to work at CERN in high school, alcohol from 18-24 ruined whatever slim chance I had of accomplising that, and now I do manual labor for billionaires

Garbage truck driver because those things always looked dope

Chef or Pilot! At one point a Vicar which is hilarious to me now.

Got "stuck with" being a psychotherapist, which turns out I absolutely love and can't imagine doing anything else with my life now.

I always wanted to be a train engineer, but being colorblind makes that impossible

I had a friend in college who studied archeology. A few years after graduation, I was shopping at Best Buy and he was working there... he said archeology was nothing like what he thought it would be lol.

Wanted to be an architect, up until I was about 11 or 12. Then I wanted to be a Graphic Designer, which I now am!

I never had an easy time imagining a future for myself and I never had realistic goals. When I was a kid I wanted to be a Ghostbuster, then a power ranger. Then I think I disassociated for a long time, briefly got the idea to be a programmer in college, but that didn't work out since I was no good at it. Then I randomly had the idea to study genetics, which also didn't work out. I changed majors eight times in college.

Won't say what I do now so I don't get doxxed, but it's not exciting and it's a dead end job. I still don't know what I want, but maybe that's a good thing. I make music though so that's kind of neat.

I wanted to be an astronaut, a common dream for a kid. Later I wanted to be a biologist. Of course as you can see, I'm definitely not an astronaut nor a biologist lmao

i wanted to be a girl. now i am one.

follow your dreams, kids!

I always knew I'd be a programmer, I was fascinated with programming on the vic 20 and c 64 . I am a gamer, but I knew at a young age I didn't want to get into that industry, I just wanted to play games.. didn't want to know how the sausage was made.

Astronaut. Space was my first love. At least up until about first/second grade (age 6-7).

Eventually, I became more interested in computers. My dad is a programmer in an IT capacity and he used to bring home parts from mainframes or servers. I was fascinated with these components. He would also write little QBasic programs for me that did cool graphical stuff, like colored bubbles floating on screen or colored "laser lines." He'd bring me to his office to see the "computer room," which was just like an entire floor of mainframes and servers and tape machines. I was amazed and thought I wanted to be programmer like him.

Around my preteen/teen yrs, I taught myself HTML/CSS and started making my own websites. By high school, I was taking programming classes.

I went to college for CS, but I also got a job as a part time website manager and email designer. Though I also became that guy who knew how to fix my coworkers issues with their computers. For various reasons, I never finished my CS degree, instead just opting for a 2yr degree.

Today, I'm solidly in the IT realm. Mainly in end user support, but I also do some more sysadmin-y stuff with the network and servers and even procurement. Still do some light web and email stuff, but it's usually more on the technical side these days. Been just over 18yrs since I first got the parttime gig. I'm now on my second stint with this group and I'm the IT Manager. In a department of one!

I wanted to be a botanist/biologist, now as an adult, I work in a STEM field lol.

Tie between judge or crossing guard. Turns out I just love a good Halloween costume. I’ve worked in higher ed my entire career.

A news anchor

Game designer.

I’m a Director of Game Design now.

The prompt for this post is missing a fundamental bit of context for each response:

1. What class were you born in to?
2. How active was your parent(s) involvement in your college/career prep/pursuit?
3. Did you struggle to pay for education and have to work through school or did you get to focus solely on learning and social networking?