Does a career have to span a lifetime? I don't think so. Years ago, people chose a career path and stuck to it through their entire adult life. Not so today. The choices today are many and varied and, if you're lucky (and work your ____ off), you can enjoy the rewards offered by a number of different careers.
Today I am a children's author, however the path I took to this destination was a very crooked one. I began my adult life as an elementary teacher. For many people, this is a lifetime career, and I truly admire those who are dedicated to shaping young lives. However, after a few years I had another calling - horses. We moved to a farm and I became a horse trainer/riding instructor/show rider. This was backbreaking work (literally), but living on a farm taught our kids so many valuable lessons about life. To shorten a very long story, after my third back surgery the time had arrived to hang up the stirrups. So, what to do next? Write cookbooks, of course! I loved to cook, and healthful cooking was one of my passions. I ended up writing some of the industry's first lowfat cookbooks. This was great for 10 years or so. I traveled the country teaching cooking classes and lecturing anyone who would listen about the benefits of healthy eating. However, I really do love antiques and when I found that I was accumulating more than our house could hold, we faced a decision. Do we start hanging pictures and "stuff" on the outside of hour house or do we start selling some of our treasures? If you sell some, there is room to buy more. You guessed it. I became an antique dealer. But that was not the end of my careers. My life (and maturity level) were evolving along the way. I had "accumulated" ten grandchildren and soon found that my career was about to go full circle. My love for children's literature came rushing back, my love for children blossomed, and here I am today - a real live children's author. I think this may be my last career, and I feel that it is definitely the best so far, however I have learned to never say "never".
The point in all of this is, to me, loud and clear - Follow your dreams! Get excited about trying something new. Be brave. Go for it!
4 comments:
my first career was as a low-level functionary in the corporate world. my current career, synagogue librarian, will hopefully be with me for a long time. making the decision to change was the best thing i've ever done!
My first career was as a teacher of deaf children. Next, after having two children in two years, I went back to work to be a part time bank teller. As my second child began nursery school, so did I - as a pre-school teacher. I also was a camp counselor in the summers. From that I jumped to a public relations director of a State provided phone system for the deaf. Now, I am the telecommunications director for the MD dept of Juvenile Services.
I have still not found my final career. I think it will be something inspirational, like a motivational speaker or a "coach" for new mommies coming home for the first time with their babies. I continue to grow in my own interests and hope I land somewhere I can utilize all the skills and talents I have.
I have been a preschool teacher, I worked at McDonalds, Kentucky Fried Chicken, I managed a Gold by the inch kiosk (making jewelry), I was a Key Cutter, I was a bus person at Tin Pan Alley, I was a caregiver, I was a waitress (a very bad one-there was an incident with a tay of ice cream sundaes and a clogger group-bad). I was a phone solicitor, I managed a clothing store, I worked in a plastic factory sorting plastic lids-hated that one!
Gosh I know there were others, but who can remember them all. I am pretty sure that I will continue to be a publisher until I can do nothing else. It's my passion.
http://karensyed.blogspot.com
When I thought I wanted to be an artist, I worked as an artist's assistant at an ad agency. Then I got a Christmas job taking pix of kids with Santa. I've also worked in an optometrist's office, typed copy for a newspaper, was a waitress MULTIPLE times, and was computer operator at a corn company (yes, on a farm). I spent 26 years as a software engineer for an aerospace company, but while I was writing code for them, I was also a flying angel, dancer, and choreographer for the Crystal Cathedral's Glory of Christmas and Glory of Easter productions, and I danced in an American dance group called Swing Shift.
Now I'm a writer, give horseback riding lessons, and try to be a good wife and mom.
Who said you have to die to experience reincarnation?
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