When I was 5 years old my mom always told me happiness was the key to life. When I went to school, they asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up. I wrote down 'happy.' They told me I didn't understand the assignment and I told them they didn't understand life.

But seriously I wanted to be an astronaut, overlooking this post I guess I just ended up being lame :P

I love reading all your post!!!!

and quite a number of you guys wanted to become a Vet...

I wanted to be a Vet too, because of love of animals... But I didnt... I end up working with animals at Singapore Zoo and Singapore Night Safari for 3 years+... ^^....

I grew up in a communist country...we were not allowed to dream...

. . . . being liked . . . . and a helicopter pilot.

Well, other than being an adult, I also decided at age 10 to be an engineer, even choosing my school!

40+ years on, I got my degree from that school, and till now have avoided management of any real sort.

And, I can comfortably support a family on my salary alone.

Tom

Today, I would love to be a traffic cop - Getting all those permanent-left drivers and right-wing overtakers. Blue light to be put dynamically on the rooftop and get em. Back then, had no idea what to do. So I just studied some crap. Today I do something totally different.

God I would be such a hot cop today, Dodge Charger 70s, Flare Jeans Stone Wash, Pilot cabin crew glasses...

Was I the only child who never thought about what I would be as an adult?
I don't think it crossed my mind that one day I would be all grown up and would have to earn a living, until I was about seventeen and had to choose my future career. I must have been enjoying my childhood too much.

I wanted to be a wildlife film-maker.

Archaeologist was an option too!

me... and I remember it well... I just wanted to be happy.

Well, I do remember one time when I was REALLY little (maybe 4 or 5), we were getting gas for the family car and the gas station attendant pulled out a massive wad of cash. That day, I wanted to be a gas station attendant.

Me too! I wanted to be a child forever. I cried like a baby when I had to make choices about my education's orientation at 15 y. o. I ended up picking the subject I preferred in school, and at university we had a career course where they made us research possible jobs, earnings, career progression etc. so I tweaked my orientation just a little bit to ensure better job opportunities.

I did think about being a "charcutière" (selling frankfurters and other sandwich-meats, but not as "bloody" as a butcher, as in no carcasses!) because that was my mother's childhood dream and I liked "fleischwurtz" from Alsace. And I also thought being a florist would be nice, but I think that was another of her ideas. Ah and when I failed a year in uni, she suggested I reorient myself to something more hands on: being a perfume-maker! I refused stubbornly and stuck to my original choice which is my profession today.

I wanted to be a wood craftsman (woman in my case). Actually I still think it's an appealing way of living. I had always like learning how machines and tools work and see raw material turn into shapes in my own hands. But after college I never even touched any tools any more----because I am "supposed" to be a lady. Not sure how much that helped in shaping me in to a lady, but now I make a living out of looking at numbers all day and making stories out of them.

I always thought to sign up for a class to learn a craft. If not for making a living, then as a hobby, as something I can grow old with and retire in. This thought never became reality as I grew more and more comfortable and became lazier and lazier in life.

Have you guys always thought about what you want to do when you retire too? Wouldn't it be perfect if it is the same thing you always wanted to be when you were little?

LOL the latter

Like most boys, I wanted to be either Michael Jordan or a helicopter pilot who chased down bad guys and blew them up

LOL... that was funny, they turned out to be gay...