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What did you want to be when you grew up?

Hey Sellers of all ages!

 

Let's break it down old school this week.

 

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What did you want to be when you grew up?

 

Did you achieve that?
Did you always imagine running your own business?
Did you think you'd be doing this business?


For me, I never really had anything concrete in mind growing up. I remember in 5th grade we were asked to put something down to be published in our Elementary School Yearbook, and mine was tech related. So definitely not the ice cream store I ran for 18 years, but working at Square is definitely pretty close!

 

Looking forward to hearing from all of you!

️ Aylon Pesso, he/him
Small Business Evangelist, Square

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I grew up wanting to serve pretty much my whole childhood. My dad was in the Army during Vietnam and my grandfather during WW2. One of my favorite movies was GI Jane... Demi Moore is such a badass in that movie. After seeing that movie my goal in life was to become a Navy Seal. That dream was dashed when my dad told me I couldn't because I was a girl. Instead I ended up in the Coast Guard... a far cry from a Navy Seal but still serving my country! I was so excited to see last year that a female completed Navy Special Warfare Training... and while she isn't quite a SEAL... yet... It is amazing to see strong women breaking down barriers!

Abby
Owner, Abigail's Gift Boutique and Abigail's Boutique St. Louis, MO
https://www.facebook.com/abigailsgiftboutique
https://www.instagram.com/abigails_stl/
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Great 👍

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I decided in an early age that I wanted to play football for Penn State. Once I drew up a little and realize that my father was a diehard Ohio State fan I had to get that dream up! Lol! Then I wanted to be a doctor because my aunt was a nurse and my uncle was a nurse in the army. Then I change my mind again and decided I wanted to be a mechanic. I have been doing that for about 20 years now. I love what I do I love the industry. I love getting my hands dirty and absolutely love the satisfaction of knowing that I was able to be back on the road that wasn’t able to be driven. There is really a sense of accomplishment there.

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I wanted to be an actor. I still perform as often as I can get away. I do film and theatre. It helps with our marketing that I am comfortable in front of the camera. I certainly had no desire to make and sell soap but here I am. 11 years in so far.

Samantha Story-Camp
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Super Seller

I wanted to be a makeup artist.  I worked at that for a bit and absolutely hated it!  Lol.  I think I hated every job I ever had before I started my studio. 

Doran

Esthetician
Haute Beauty Guide
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I wanted to be a child psychologist with my own practice so I guess you can say I always wanted to be my own boss.  

Jacqueline
Owner of Jackie's Uniquely U Boutique
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I started taking piano lessons when I was 8 years old, and am classically trained.  When it came time to decide where my life was going, for a lot of reasons I decided not to pursue the world of a professional classical musician. The politics of it, mostly, was just not something I wanted to endure.  I became a computer geek, then morphed into a chef.  Ice Cream Shop owner wasn’t even a glimmer of a thought!  Still, it was a great place to end up!

Chip

If my answer resolves your issue, please take a minute to mark it as Best Answer. That helps people who find this thread in the future.

Piper’s Ice Cream Bar, Covington KY USA
Website
Facebook

“Take what you like, take what works, leave the rest!”
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I wanted to become a lawyer. My life partner decided to buy a kettle corn business after he realized how well my parents did at the business they owned. Kettle corn has since become my life and I gave up my dream of becoming a lawyer because of many reasons including the fact that I couldn't see myself working for somebody else that may or may not be as honest as me. I love what I do now though! I make enough money to pay the bills and still get to choose when and where I work. 

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In the Computer/IT industry.  Now I make wine.

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@vinesandrushes ,

 

Seems to be a recurring theme... degree in computer science, 30 years in IT, I now have a winery/distillery..

Several of the other winery owners in our area - also ex IT!

Perhaps we are driven to drink by our careers 😉

Bruce Wilson
Owner | Vigneron | Distiller
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I got sick of the break/fix of IT for others but still love the tech.  I get to work with plenty of IT projects in-house and develop custom stuff to use in-house.  All those end users have driven us to drink.

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If I ever get to Australia, I'll stop in for a visit!

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All I ever wanted to be was teacher!!! I started playing school when I was 2 years old and I remember that my Mom got me a beautiful blackboard for me to use in our basement and that is all I wanted to do. Great memories!! Great question thank you for asking.

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I wanted to be an NBA player. LOVED basketball. Shocker, never made it. lol

Luke Nieuwland
Owner/Operator
https://www.whiskyrun.com/
Co-Founder
https://birrdi.com/
Co-Founder
https://www.lakeeffect.ca/
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As a little little kid I wanted to be Indiana Jones - then an attorney - but as it turns out I went back to dirt by way of metal and I have been working in clay since I was 23. I did know that I wanted to answer only to myself 🙂

Deanna [they/them]

MudFire CEO | Square enthusiast

Visit me at MudFire online
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Pretty sure I wanted to be a computer programmer or a zookeeper 🐯. Not a lot of career prospects for a zookeeper so I ended up a full time geek...

 

Bruce Wilson
Owner | Vigneron | Distiller
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Rock Star

No, but my dog thinks I'm awesome.

No, I never did imagine running my own business, bur desperate times.....

And no I really never thought I'd be in retail. I rather enjoy it though. 

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As a kid I went from wanting to be a hairdresser in Florida (I lived in Wisconsin...anywhere warm was very appealing!), to a veterinarian, to a nurse. Now I own a cafe. Running my own business was not something I ever thought I would do, but I remember seeing You've Got Mail when it first came out and desperately wanting to be Kathleen Kelly and run a local community bookstore. So maybe that planted the seed? 🤔😂 I also just visited my parents back in WI and found an old "menu" my sister and I had created for playing restaurant when we were kids. So, maybe that dream was in there somewhere! Either way, I'm so happy to be where I am, and am pretty astounded at the road that brought me here.

 

So fun to read everyone's replies!

Michelle Savage
Co-Founder & President
Savage Goods | @savagegoods | savagegoods.com
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Love it! I always wanted to be a nurse, then did not enjoy it once I actually became one. So now here I am, starting up a coffee bean roasting business with friends.

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A fast jet pilot, but alas my legs were too short and my body too long to fit in the cockpit, so I put my PhD in Chemistry to good use and became a chocolatier (sorry Dad for college expense!)

Coco Chemistry Ltd
Artisan Chocolatier
www.cocochemistry.co.uk
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