Week 5: Describe who you want to be when you “grow up”

“What do you want to be when you grow up?” As a kid and as an adult, I’ve struggled to respond to this. It feels limiting. It feels like a set up. However, I like this slight variation to this question posed here…"Who do you want to be?”

I think it’s safe to assume that many of us think our labels (daughter, friend, employee, etc.) define us. Though they provide insight into our lives and there’s certainly no shame in being proud of your various roles, I like to think that we’re more than these quick definitions.  

To frame this a little, think about branding. “Who I am” offers a promise that I hope to fulfill, invokes my personal values, and offers my unique identity and voice. “What I am” is just one of those identifiers. “Who” looks at the full package, and “What” is one of the parameters. 

I had not given much thought to “who” I want to be when I “grow up” in years. Asking myself, “Who am I now?” first would help set the stage. In this very moment, I’m feeling more ambitious and bold than I’ve ever felt in my life. I’m also going through a mild deconstruction of my faith in hopes of finding a community of believers who put Jesus first, power last and nationalism no where on the chart. Finally, as I’ve mentioned many times here, I’m also in the process of rediscovering my voice.  

Turning my focus toward the future, I hope my ambitions and boldness reduce to a nice, comfortable simmer. I’d like to see my faith fully reconstructed. I also hope to never experience another five-ish years of writer’s block again. Who would that make me? Confident, spirited, and creative. And I really like that sound of that.

Addendum:

One week after writing about bad advice, a new piece unhelpful advice came my way. I won’t go into details because I’m still processing. But I now have something to say to my future, past, and present self, whoever I am; whoever I become—do not let someone steal your joy, especially if they are stealing it because your joy offers no benefit for them. Who do I want to be? A friend, a supporter…someone who chooses empathy first and my words second.