Why I Do This....

What do you want to be when you grow up? We are constantly asking children this question when many adults do not even know the answer. I have always been intrigued about why people pursue certain careers. Is it money? Prestige? Power? A desire to give back? The answer will never be the same. For me I had always known that I wanted to help people. From a very young age I felt drawn to helping others. Although, I had no idea exactly how I could do this in a paying profession. Really my only examples of helping professions were teachers, first responders, and medical professionals. For me, I knew the second two professions were not for me. Being the daughter of a fire fighter I knew that I wanted nothing to do with the field. I also wasn't very keen on blood or bodily fluids so I crossed any medical profession off my list. That left teaching as my only option.

As I went through my school age years I never once questioned going into the field of teaching, but then again no one ever challenged me to explore other options. Once I began my undergraduate degree I was placed in a "laboratory" classroom and realized that spending a full day teaching children was not my cup of tea. There were very limited career services at the small liberal arts college that I attended. I was lucky enough to have a professor mentor me and provide me with some exposure to other options within the human services field. Shortly after graduation I took on a position working with individuals living with Autism, assisting them in the home and in the community. As I worked with many of these individuals I noticed that there was often limited discussion about what they would do when they became adults. Although many would need accommodations in the workplace I saw that there was potential for them to succeed. Again, I was somewhat clueless in understanding what services were available for them especially when it came to employment.

As I thought more about the next steps in my career, I realized that I would need more education. Making $12.00 and hour for the rest of my life just wasn't going to work. I was naive and literally went to the local university web site, as my goal was to complete my education as close to home as possible (this was before remote learning was the norm). I stumbled upon a masters degree in Rehabilitation Counseling. What is that you say? Rehabilitation counseling is the study of assisting individuals with disabilities in living as independently as possible (work, home, education, etc.). Ding, ding, ding we had a winner! Not only would obtaining this degree help me move forward in my career but it would also allow me to be a part of challenging the issues I had seen when working in my first human services job.

Over the past 15+ years I have seen how any individual can have a successful career. With the right guidance and support everyone can find a meaningful career. Not only does this allow for people to have purpose, but it also promotes positive mental health, increased self-esteem, and is also good for the economy. This is why I do what I do :)