Adults always ask kids “What do you want to be when you grow up?” as if they would already know and as if there is only one thing you can be. As adults we know it’s a ridiculous question, in its own way, and perhaps find satisfaction to having an innocent child answer “firefighter” or “teacher” or “super hero.”

Maybe we should also be asking “Who do you want to be when you grow up?” It’s equally as vast and difficult a question to answer when you’re 5, 15 or even 25 years old. Finding out who we want to be, what kind of person we want to be, is linked to what we want to be as well. Through life we’re always evolving, so it’s unrealistic for us to believe that the answer to either of those questions shouldn’t shift with time.

What I’ve learned, that I didn’t understand when I was younger, is that we don’t have to choose just one career or profession. The (hopefully) long life we live, affords us the ability to try out a few. The issue is that as we get older, it becomes more difficult to make those changes. Starting your own business and/or shifting careers implies a pay cut and possibly an output of cash when we already have more responsibilities that make that move a higher risk and burden. There are mortgages or children or college loans or spouses. There’s much more reason to hesitate before taking a leap.

For someone like me that overanalyzes and over thinks everything, it makes it that much harder. I have become an expert at talking myself out of something before I even begin. I’m very convincing to myself.

There have been few times in my life where I haven’t over thought and have gone with my gut (most notably my academic choices), and I haven’t regretted them for a second. They’ve been some of the best decisions of my life, but that still doesn’t push me to do it more often.

Part of what I have been doing over the last couple of years has been to keep pushing myself out of my comfort zone. It’s baby steps and sometimes a few steps back, but I have been taking the steps. What I have allowed myself to do is to get closer to the core of who I want to be. And I am happy with who that person is.

Really taking the time to try and listen to myself on my next career move (if it ends up being a move) is the next one. I hope I come out of it with a decision or closer to what I want to be. And then I can be happy with the who and the what. There’s still so much more growing up to do.