Many of us have grand ideas of what we want to be “when we grow up”.  I am still figuring mine out. When I was young my mom wanted me to be a doctor. So, I wanted to be a doctor.  I also had a vision of being a clergyman.  Obviously, neither of these goals worked out for me.  The closet I got to those careers was to gain admission into podiatry school in San Francisco.  But the Vietnam war got in the way.  I joined the Peace Corps and was assigned to teach biology and physics at Palau High School.   That was it for me! I love teaching, counseling and almost every job I have had in the education field for the past forty-seven years.

 

Was I a failure because I couldn’t pass organic chemistry in college?  Did I allow myself to lose focus on a career in the ministry after seeing that a youth pastor I looked up to had “feet of clay” and therefore failed as well?  Maybe so for both cases.  But I did remain true to my core values.  I can see aspects of both my career choices in my work.

 

The point of all this is that we need to realize that numerous career possibilities exist within a chosen field.  Many people want to become doctors but only a few the money, grades, intelligence and work ethic to succeed. Not to mention stomach for all the gore. Within the medical field are literally hundreds of related vocations.  Any of these would provide a satisfying livelihood if your ego could take the disappointment of having the letters M.D. missing from the end of your name

 

With this in mind let’s consider some of the options for a person who wants to be a superstar in one of the following fields.

 

In the lines below each lofty goal write a realistic fallback plan in case you are not one of the 46 people than becomes POTUS (President of the United States)

 

Note: This exercise is in no way meant to discourage you from trying out for American Idol or getting yourself in the best physical condition you can. Go ahead and audition for that play or spot on the orchestra.  Work your butt off to get an A+ in organic chemistry!  Just have faith that if you don’t have luck with a particular goal, you can still have a great life in the field you love with a white-hot passion.  GO FOR IT!