When I Grew Up I Wanted To Be…..
Posted on: September 22, 2011
- In: Careers | Development | Learning
- 9 Comments
When I was 2 I wanted to be called Gillian….Gillian, Gillian, girl in a million…!
When I was 10 I wanted to be a pop star. And yes, I do cringe writing that 
When I was in my early teens I wanted to be a primary school teacher, a nurse and a social worker. Careers advice at school pointed me towards being a translator or interpreter, although I was never convinced
When I was in my late teens I had no idea what I wanted to be. I chose University subjects that I thought sounded interesting…and studied German and Theology
When I was 21 I had a very ambitious and career-minded boyfriend who helped me realise that I wanted to be in HR and I started my job hunt in earnest
When I was 23 and in my first HR role I wanted to be like my HR Director boss and was determined to make the most of every opportunity I was given
When I was 24 I fell in love and wanted to be married
When I was in my mid-twenties I wanted to be the best HR person in my organisation, take on projects, manage people, be recognised, get promoted, work as hard as I could and learn everything about every aspect of HR
When I was in my late twenties I wanted to be a Mum and sincerely believed I would give up work to bring up my baby twin daughters. Fast-forward a year and I wanted to be a working Mum for at least one day a week to keep my options open and my brain stimulated
When I was in my early thirties I wanted to be back in a senior HR role that challenged me and enabled me to deliver value to the organisation and fulfill my ambition. The senior role emerged, but before I was fully able to balance my work and home life in the way that I needed to…and before too long I had to take a sideways/backwards move to avoid complete disaster on work and home fronts
When I was 34 I wanted to be back in a senior HR role again…and this time my children were older, I was wiser and I have been able to achieve the balance that eluded me previously
Now that I am 35, what do I want to be? I want to be there for my husband and for my children as they grow, to be the best I can be at work and at home and to continue learning and stretching myself, personally and professionally. And on a good day, when everything goes as it should, I am fortunate enough to be able to say….I want to be exactly where I am now. That’s the luckiest thing of all.
What did you want to be when you grew up? I’d love to know
9 Responses to "When I Grew Up I Wanted To Be….."
2 | Katie D (@HRHopeful)
September 22, 2011 at 8:39 pm
I love this post, it shows that dreams can change but they are still hopes and dreams.
In the spirit of sharing, when I was younger I wanted to be a weather girl, a West End dancer and a hand model (I even made a portfolio of photos!)
I now want to be a good wife, and the best HR professional I can be. I know that in a few years time it will have changed again. And I cant wait till the day I have children and can encourage their dreams 
Amazing week of blogs Alison
September 22, 2011 at 9:17 pm
I wanted to be an interior designer – and if you saw my house it’s probably a good idea that didn’t happen!
As for now I really don’t know – concentrating on being as good a mum as I can be and contemplating my future. Like you any future role will have to give me a challenge and enable me to be there for my family.
Thank you for this week’s post – very enjoyable
September 22, 2011 at 9:30 pm
What? So you didn’t grow up wanting to work in HR? Thanks for writing the post, Alison. Very interesting to see how you got to where you are now. I wanted to be a lawyer and teacher, was a DJ and wanted to do more, a curator of photography exhibitions . . . now I’ve got a better feel for what I’m good at, I think, so am trying to focus on that
September 22, 2011 at 10:16 pm
What a fab series of blogs.
For this one I must share my eldest sons ambitions to be a rockstar archaeologist. How cool and uninhibited is that!
My own aspirations were a bit more traditional – an RAF pilot. Pursued it but got distracted by life!
6 | Natalia Thomson (@N_Thomson)
September 23, 2011 at 9:16 am
What a wonderful blog Alison! Similarly to yourself, my dreams changed regularly as I was growing up. I remember when I was 7 I wanted to be a doctor/dentist as I didn’t see the point of having to visit seperate people…
Since my A-levels i’ve not been sure of what I wanted to do, and at one point even went for interviews to join the intelligence corps of the army! That dream quickly changed when I found out about the physical tests.
Right now? I still wonder what i’m going to be when I grow up – I can’t imagine working for someone else for the rest of my life as neither of my parents did. But for the moment i’m happy to earn a steady wage and prepare for motherhood!
September 23, 2011 at 12:06 pm
lovely post Ali – thanks for sharing. I wanted to be anurse but then I realised I’d have to look at blood!
September 23, 2011 at 6:34 pm
What brilliant comments – thank you! Really appreciate how you have engaged with the topic and shared your own stories.
I wonder whether any of us truly feels “grown-up” yet?!
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September 22, 2011 at 8:34 pm
Better then mine and you had more of an idea
Im going to paintent The format 
Love it