Recently, I posted a guest blog pondering the question asked to almost every young child.  “What do you want to be when you grow up?”  The answer is potentially what sets us on a path we feel we are forced to travel as adults.  Today, CCG reader ChaChanna Simpson, a life coach, speaker, and author, is going to share her thoughts on this question.  ChaChanna writes a great blog called Your Stellar Star about how women can create stellar lives with confidence, motivation, and focus.

When you’re 10, you have no clue what you want to be when you grow up. You call out anything, doctor, lawyer, superhero, Barney’s best friend. Then as you get older, you start to really think about the different careers out there and try to narrow down your options to one.

Some of you succeeded in finding that one skill or talent you love and were meant to do. Hooray! For others, you just can’t decide. You entered college focused in one direction and then all of a sudden you also have an interest in another career.

But darn it, you can’t change your career, can you?

You’ve told everyone who would listen that you were going to pursue this one career. It’s all you’ve talked about for years. What do you do now?

Or, maybe you’ve graduated already and have been in your profession for a number of years and decided you’d like to learn about something else.  My advice to you is go for it! Don’t accept this idea that you can’t change your profession or move on to learn and explore others once you’ve invested money and time in one already.

Age Ain’t Nothing But a Number

Recently, a friend said to me she wanted to go back to get her doctorate but she wasn’t sure she would do it because it takes eight years, and when she was done she’d be forty. I asked her how old would she be in eight years if she didn’t go for her doctorate?

My point to her and you is you’re going to be older anyway. So, don’t you dare use your age as an excuse to not change your career.

Break the Rules

There just seems to be some unwritten rule that once you choose a profession or path when you are younger you have to stick with when you “grow up.” Well, if that’s the rule then I suggest you never grow up. Ever.

We only have one life, one time on this planet. So, live it up! Why are you restricting yourself? Don’t get me wrong, I am not suggesting you never finish what you started but let’s say you went to school to be an accountant. You come out and start doing your accounting thing and then decide you also would like to be a lawyer. Or you’re a writer who loves working out and exercising and you’re thinking about learning to be a personal trainer too? Hey, why the heck not? Go for it! You can change your career direction at any point in your life!

Are you stuck in a rut?  What’s holding you back??