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I wanted to be a teacher or a writer. Even though I passed the CBEST, I never became a teacher. But I do a lot of writing in my current position as a classified (non-teaching) employee with my local school district. I also have had several articles published, one of which was in the San Diego Comic Con Souvenir Book. A No-Prize to anyone who can find the article. (And extra points if you know what a No-Prize is.)

I was going to be a doctor, just like the best role model a guy ever had: my father. But that didn't quite work out.

When I was 17 I became a lifeguard, and on my very first day watching over a very cold lake I had my first rescue, and it was a doozy. 3 kids capsized a canoe and though wearing lifejackets they panicked. I dove in alongside another lifeguard to swim out to them, but the other lifeguard was shocked by the cold water, so the first thing I had to do was save her and bring her back to the dock. I then swam out to the 3 fairly hefty 9 year old girls, who immediately tried to climb on top of me in their panic! I got the calmest of them to grab hold of the water-filled canoe, and dragged the other two by the jackets and pulled them to shore, barking orders at the other counselors, before returning to bring the last one in.

I remember thinking to myself afterwards: "How did I do all that?" I did everything right, yet I didn't remember making any decisions or weighing any options... I just acted. My subconscious knew exactly what to do, and it did all the driving. And that's when I realized what I should be: An Emergency Medicine & Trauma physician.

I arrived at UF for college, and on my father's advice, picked up a volunteer shift at Shands Hospital on campus. My job was to sit with patients as they came out of various procedures still a little out of it from the anesthesia, inform their waiting loved ones that they were out, and afterwards clean the gurneys so they could be used again.

I hated every second of it. I felt every bit of the pain, fear, confusion, and loneliness of each sick or injured patient, along with the sadness, anxiety, and worry of their families. Just walking the halls and glancing into rooms as I passed was killing me. I knew that there was no way I could become a doctor....

Fast forward about 7 years. I'm working at an insurance company in a position they created for me - Claims Data Analyst. One night I'm at a concert and bump into a buddy of mine from high school & college. He tells me he works in I.T. and then says "You know, you should look into getting some training and getting into I.T. I think you'd be really good at it." So I started thinking about how I'd get some training...

I had recently saved my company several million dollars as a result of my data work, so I asked them for $15,000 so I could go to night school and get I.T. training, and then to find me a position in I.T. when I was done. They went for it, and by the fall of 2000 I was officially an I.T. guy!

When I was a kid I wanted to be an actor, which is a bit ironic for me because I was cripplingly shy!!!!! I remember in the 3rd grade I was in a school play and took a non-speaking role. Don't know why I wanted to be an actor. Maybe I just thought it would be cool to be famous. Who knows what was going on in that brain of mine. Instead, I ended up in Procurement. I didn't want to be in Procurement, it just kind of fell into my lap. I got my BSBA in eBusiness which at the time sort of tied into what I was doing. Here I am a zillion years later, still in Procurement. Thankfully it is more a Policy, Process and Systems role.

What a fun question!!! As a child I didn't want to do the typical doctor, lawyer, movie star; I wanted to be a politician. That being said, I did find my way into local government but a very small roll in a suburb of Chicago. My full-time job is data analysis.

When I was a kid, I wanted to be an animator. I got my undergrad in Art but soon found I needed business to back that up which got me into computers. Getting my MBA and MSIT in May and now working in IT.

As a child, I dreamt of becoming a Cardiac Surgeon, attracted by the prospect of saving lives through complex heart surgeries. However, my career path led me to become a Project Management Officer (PMO) in the construction industry. While different from my original dream, this role has proven equally fulfilling, involving project oversight to ensure timely, budget-friendly, and quality completion. Both careers, though seemingly disparate, share themes of precision, planning, and making a significant impact—be it on individual lives or entire communities. This transition underscores that while our dreams may shift, our underlying values and passions can manifest in varied, yet meaningful, ways.

When I was a kid I wanted to help others navigate their world as a counselor. Today I help people learn how to navigate and succeed in their new work role as their trainer. I may have taken many pit stops along the way, but they all were geared at helping others.