What Do You Want To Be When You Grow Up?

What do you want to be when you grow up?

 

Since I was a kid, I truly had no idea what I wanted to do. That question haunted me. My answer was always an astronaut- but now I announce that as my unrealistic dream job. Today, I am a few months shy of an associate degree, two months shy from graduating pilot school, and own my own photography business for 6 years now. Those around me assume I will be moving up and flying for the airlines and take some photos now and then. After all, I am in the American Airlines Cadet Program. But I have a secret…

 

Those people are wrong.

 

I see myself flying smaller planes in beautiful places, and still doing photography full time. Tropic Ocean Airways and Haylee Peyton Photography. That is what I see my future as. This charter company flies from Florida to the Bahamas and the Caribbean. In the end, my goal is to be happy with whatever I do, and I truly don’t know if the airlines can provide that. It can provide me a good salary and stability- but that’s not what I’m going for here. I’m going for a life of joy.

Truthfully, I sometimes think I made a mistake joining flight school. I am in severe debt and scared I won’t be able to pay my dad back the money he deserves. But I push through. I keep pushing because I know in the end that it will be worth it.

 

For now, I will take every opportunity that comes my way and make the best of my situation. I have two passions that bring me immense joy, and I will stop at nothing to make my dream life a reality by pursuing both! I am only 21 years old and I can finally answer the question of what I want to be when I grow up. Someone who is happy with their career.

 

So I have a question for you now (yes, you guessed it)… what do YOU want to be when you grow up? Someone who is unhappy with their job but is stable in life? Or someone who pushed against all odds to achieve both.