Thoughts on growing up

Hey everyone!

I hope you are doing well. I've seen this sign all over London recently and wanted to share a few thoughts with you :)

When I was little - about six or seven maybe - I REALLY wanted to be an adult. I thought that it was the best thing ever: not being told when to go to bed, eating as much chocolate as possible and buying ALL the toys without my mum reminding me that my birthday or Christmas wasn't for another 3 months.
I wouldn't exactly describe myself as a "proper" adult yet, in that I don't have to support a family or get an actual full time job, but as a uni student I'm probably only a few steps away. And yes, no one is telling me to go to bed (apart from myself because I know that I will be knackered the next day) and I could theoretically buy all the toys six year old me wanted (if I also had all the money mini me thought every adult would automatically have). And whilst I enjoy being fairly independent, a lot of responsibility comes with it: bank appointments, living away from home, all of which sometimes makes me wish I could be the six year old version of myself who thought that her biggest problem was that spelling test.

I think that especially after leaving school, whether you are at university, doing an apprenticeship or something completely different, everyone is trying to find their place in the world, what type of person to become and what kind of career would suit them best. With all the deadlines and serious business career talks going on it's SO easy to feel lost in the whirlwind that is growing up.

The other day, I chatted to someone at uni and somehow we ended up talking about what we wanted to do in the future. He told me that he had accepted that he would end up doing a job that he wouldn't enjoy but would pay him well, and that this was okay for him as this was "just what it means to be an actual adult". 

This really shocked me and I honestly didn't know how to respond. I still have that idea in my head, stemming from when I was little, that I will one day have a job that will pay the bills AND be enjoyable and I had not once second guessed that. Maybe it will turn out to be unrealistic, and maybe he will be right and having to "accept" doing a job will be the inevitable consequence of me growing up, but I don't KNOW that this will be the case. Life goes its own way, so it might well be - but I still cannot understand that someone would, at this very early stage, already accept something he knows he won't enjoy.

To me, THAT is the trap of becoming an adult. Not really the responsibilities, because they cannot be changed and we get to experience independence and all the nice things that come with it in return. The real trap is settling for something we don't enjoy. No matter how old we are, I don't think it can ever be wrong to keep that positive and hopeful attitude we had as children. 

I would love to know what your thoughts are on this. Let me know in the comments :)

Have a great day xx