My ambition in life is to …

I recently opened the children’s fresh new yearbook. Hot off the presses. The were anxious to show me every last bit. So I started with the beginning. The 5th Grade class. Neither of mine are in 5th Grade yet, but I was committed to pouring over every last page of their precious book.

I saw the portraits of all of the children laid out in a perfect grid. One by one, they had answered a single question…

The question was, “My Life’s Ambition is to … ”

Open ended.

Not – “Where do you see yourself in 5 years?” Or “What Career path will you take?” Or even, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” BUT –

My ambition in life is to …

What a GREAT question!

However, I was slightly shocked with the answers.

One said, “I want to be a famous actress“. Another one said, a “pro football player”. And another, “to be a policeman”.

All admirable career choices.

But all career choices, nonetheless.

How sad is it that in today’s job market is so competitive, that in 5th grade they are having to make their life’s ambition all about a job.

Elementary school is all about testing so that they can do well in high school.

High school is all about college prep. So that they can be prepared to job hunt for no less than 3.25 years for an entry level job that will pay a fraction of what their college loans will be.

I’m not trying to be pessimistic. But this just is the current state of life that we live in right now. It’s not perfect but it IS all of our fault. Because this behavior is engrained in our children from the world we created for them.

As I poured into the yearbook I found only a small handful of optimistic children.

They said,

My ambition in life is to… “help poor men and women.”

My ambition in life is to… “do charity work.”

My ambition in life is to… “be great at everything!” <—- with an exclamation mark!

Life is way more than a career choice.

 

I never want my kids to think they have to Work to live. 
There is as much honor in serving coffee to strangers as there is in serving as a police officer. Yes, your quality of life will be different than that of a rocket scientist, but that is not my point here.

Be the kid on the beach throwing themselves in the freezing cold water having the best day of their life.  And they will have the best day of their life again tomorrow. 

Be the server with a smile on their face wishing you the best. day. ever. with absolute sincerity.

Be the wife that serves her husband, not out of obligation, but out of love, admiration and respect.

Be the guy on the subway that gets up when a women needs a seat.

Make it your life’s ambition to leave a legacy of not only contributing good, skilled work through the career of your choice, but of changing the lives of those around you through that, whatever it may be. By loving others fearlessly. Whether you are a stay at home mother, a coffee pourer, a doctor, or just a gentleman who held the door for someone that day.

Be the one who inspires those around you…. to live life as if you are running into a freezing cold ocean having the best. day. ever.

AGAIN.