Do you know any professional ballerinas? Astronauts? How about firemen? Me neither. So I’m concerned that we’re setting our children up for a rude awakening some day.
See, most kids’ books, shows, Halloween costumes, etc. depict only a handful of adult professions. And most of those are active, exciting careers. I mean, sure, some kids might grow up to be policemen or pro athletes. But probably not many.
So why don’t you see any desk jobs on Sesame Street? Last time I watched, there was a grocery store owner, a fix-it lady, and a vet. On one episode of Dora, the dad was the architect of an amusement park. Talk about a cool job!
Even on grown-up shows, there seems to be a disproportionate number of wedding planners, restaurateurs, florists, and children’s book illustrators. Where are the compliance officers? The waste management professionals? The tax attorneys?
Ask a kid what he wants to be when he grows up and you’ll probably hear astronaut, gymnast, or cowboy. Maybe an occasional truck driver or teacher. But have you ever heard a kid say they want to be the regional sales manager for a copier company? Or a soccer mom and head of the PTA?
Just as well. Let them dream. Reality will come soon enough. Like it did for me when I graduated with a degree in French and had visions of working at Club Med in Bora Bora. When that didn’t work out, I decided I’d fall back on my (limited) journalism experience and write travel articles for glossy magazines. And when THAT didn’t work out, I got a temp job answering phones.
Am I bitter that I didn’t grow up to be an international spy or an Olympic gymnast or even an anthropologist? Kind of. Would I have wanted to read about phone bank operators, tech support staff, or fact-checkers in my childhood books? Not really.
But it’s worth noting that to this day, I am fascinated by people who hold exciting non-desk jobs. Come to think of it, I actually do know a pilot, a documentary film producer, and a couple of actors. I wonder what those people wanted to be when they grew up?
READ O’ THE WEEK: So Sandra Magsamen totally stole my idea for a book. I swear I had this EXACT SAME idea rattling around in my brain when I came across her children’s book, “When I Grow Up I Want to Be Me.”
PLEA O' THE WEEK: I love all the comments and e-mails I get from those of you who regularly read and enjoy this blog. Because I'd like to share my labor of love with even MORE nice people, please nominate me for TheBump.com's Mommy Blog Awards in the Best Baby Journal Blog category! The deadline is this Fri., Oct. 9. It may require registration, but that's what Hotmail is for! There's some good karma in it for you.
10/5/09
When I Grow Up
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8 comments:
My advise to college students who want to be journalists is to get a masters degree in what you want to write about: sports medicine, agriculture, economics, politics. Too many college students don't understand what they can do with their degrees. Yes, I will say that university career services do not truly help students understand jobs but then students don't really search it out (I was a college instructor). A parent's responsibility is to talk about what degrees can do. One thing we talk about in our house are our spiritual gifts, which can be and are translated into work place gifts, too. If you understand why you do the things you do and the way you do them, understand which jobs fit those skill potentials better, then you enter college with a better grasp of your future value (and I don't mean money).
http://bluecottonmemory.wordpress.com/blue-cotton-books/books-shelf-for-moms-with-sons/
What a great prompt to energize!
I've noticed this, too, that the jobs children learn about are jobs that maybe .1% of the population actually has!
Thanks for your thoughtful reply, bluecottonmemory. That's a much better way of looking at it than simply looking for job openings in a certain field. And I like the idea of spiritual gifts.
The trouble with some of the most exciting jobs (pro athletes, for instance, or ameteur Olympian gymnasts) is that you have to start sooooo early in order for them to "take." And a child can't choose that; a parent has to.
I don't really have a problem with the glorification of firemen and policemen, etc. My son wants to grow up to be Superman, Batman, and Spiderman, depending on the day. We just laugh about it and don't try to correct him. I think kids grow out of their young dreams and into mature ones organically. Kind of like growing out of Santa Claus. :)
Great post! You gave me a much-needed laugh today...I am grateful. :)
It is so true, what you said! The other day, in the book store, I noticed a bunch of books aimed at boys about: Fire fighters, astronauts, chef. Okay, cool, at least those are 'real' jobs, you know? And the books aimed at girls? Ballerina, mermaid, and fairy. I think at least with boys they read about and learn about 'real' jobs, but with girls, it is even harder, you know? They're really living in a fantasy world! ;) And you know what? I was going to be write a post about this, too! So look for that! Now... I'm going to go nominate you! Good luck!
bluecottonmemory - that is some good advice!
Dear Mom2Miles,
Those "glam" jobs may not be all that far-fetched. All right, so my kids are grown. You can think of this as a message from the future.
It's true. My youngest daughter is a professional ballet dancer. Her older sister is an intern in the film industry in LA after serving as a Combat Camera officer in the Air Force - very scary stuff. They each became involved with their interests at an early age, except one wore tutus and the other wore BDUs.
I think we set our kids up for a rude awakening, as you say,when we encourage them to strive for whatever it is they want to do, and then forget to follow up with a mountain of support.
Plus, there are so many distractions today that without parents who are willing to run interference, kids can jump all over the map and end up nowhere.
I'm not saying they have to go on to the NFL or to join a professional ballet company, but by working toward a goal a child will learn how to strive; and that striving will help her achieve more than she ever thought possible.
Our kids don't need us to take ownership of their dreams. They need us to believe in them, and encourage,and provide excellent mentors along the way. (They also need tuition and a ride!)
If your kid knows you take her goals seriously she will raise the bar for herself. You won't have to do it for her.
There is a story about an Albuquerque boy named Trent Dimas.He and his brother were homeschooled back in the day when nobody homeschooled. Their mom had to fight to get their curriculum approved,and the family sacrificed to pay for gymnastics training.
When they trained at the gym, they asked for reproof. In other words, they wanted their instructors to tell them what they were doing wrong so they could improve.
Trent Dimas earned a gold medal in the 1992 Summer Olympics; the only Olympic gold medal won in gymnastics on foreign soil in the 20th century.
My youngest daughter, now 22, did not have a "perfect" ballet body type. And she had to work extra hard to overcome dyslexia. But today she is with a professional ballet company. She stuck with it because it was hard, she said, and because she knew it was a goal she could achieve - a goal that belonged to her alone.
Once I tried to get her to take classes as a less stressful studio where kids had more fun. It was too easy there, she said. She refused to cut corners because it wouldn't get her where she wanted to go. I didn't have to remind her that anything worth having is worth trading part of her life for.
So maybe these visitors to Sesame Street should come with a "PS" Warning:" To succeed at this career, your child must have complete Parental Support.
When our children see us - everyday parents - being their foremost advocates, encouraging them, and looking out for their best interests, they will not only see doctors and professional athletes as their heroes; they'll see us as their heroes, too.
Wow, Anonymous, what an inspiring story! Thanks for your comment.
I LOVE this suggestion: "Warning: To succeed at this career, your child must have complete Parental Support."
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