My Kids’ Dream Jobs

This post is sponsored by Disney’s new movie, Tomorrowland (available on Blu-ray™, Digital HD & Disney Movies Anywhere October 13).

“You may say I’m a dreamer. But I’m not the only one. I hope someday you’ll join us. And the world will be as one”– John Lennon.

I have always been a “dreamer” and I’m happy that my husband and I are raising our two sons to be dreamers also. Since both Michael (11) and Sean (8) were very little boys, we have always encouraged them to express what they want…the desires of their little hearts. That’s part of being a dreamer. Unfortunately, that is where a lot of people stop. However, we also teach the kids that it is their responsibility to figure out how to make their dreams come true. The reality is that it takes effort to live the life of your dreams.

I’ll be the first to admit that raising opinionated dreamer kids can sometimes be a challenge to my patience. “Why not?” is Michael’s favorite question. Meanwhile, “I don’t understand. Can you please tell me the reason why I can’t?” is one of Sean’s favorite questions. However, their little minds thrill me more than they exasperate me thankfully. Their dreamer mindsets have led to some pretty interesting conversations over the years. For instance, I remember listening to one of their conversations on the walk home from school a few years ago…

Michael: I think that I’ll be President one day.

Sean: Really? I wanted to be President.

Michael: Well, I’m the oldest so you can be my Vice President.

Sean: Or we could take turns. You can be the President. Then, I’ll be President when you are finished.

(They worked out a deal before deciding that neither of them wanted to be President because “it’s a lot of work”.)

Their dream aspirations have changed over the years. If they are like their mama, I’m sure that they will change again over the years. I tell them that the great thing about living in today’s society is that people are no longer confined to one career. As long as they are willing to put in the work, reinvention is possible. Currently, this is where they stand on their future career thoughts:

Michael: I want to be a computer programmer, a video game developer and also do some web design work.

Sean: I want to be an actor, a comedian and author.

I believe that it is our jobs as parents to encourage our kids’ dreams. In that spirit, Michael has taken several classes related to his career goals and we plan on sending him to a video game developer training class next summer. He has also been active in various STEM related activities…including 3D printer club where he designed items on computers.

Michael’s 3D Printer Creations

Sean is still a little young and has switched up his dream career often. He has camped on this actor wish for a little while though, so we are planning on sending him to acting classes next summer if he is still interested. He is funny and has a great sense of timing. Who knows?

Give Sean’s regards to Broadway!

I was sent a “Dreamer Traits in Children” quiz by Ashley Soderlund Ph.D. It included 10 questions for me to answer about each child. It was interesting to see the boys’ characters and personality traits. At the end of the quiz, Ms. Soderlund uses the answers to define what type of “dreamer” (Artist, Professional, Innovator and Humanitarian) each child is.

Michael was primarily a PROFESSIONAL.

Your child’s dreamer traits are CONSCIENTIOUSNESS, ORGANIZATION, and RESPONSIBILITY. They are detail oriented, observant and careful. Children who have these traits are also usually very well regulated, get along well with others, and have a good sense of responsibility. Thus, they work well in groups and may often be leaders. They care about the state of the world and want to work hard to make it a better place. Your child may enjoy a career in business, law, engineering or science.

To cultivate your young professional and set them up for success, help them start and execute a project. It may be cleaning up a local park and organizing the neighborhood children to help, building and setting up a lemonade stand on the day your neighborhood has a garage sale, or helping with a holiday toy drive. These kinds of activities help to nurture your child’s sense of leadership and responsibility, skills they will use their whole lives.

Chief Justice Michael

That’s not a big surprise. Michael is one of the most self-disciplined people that I know and was recently asked to participate in the Junior National Young Leaders Conference. I do think that it’s a great idea to have him start and execute a charitable project though so I will get to work on that.
Sean is a HUMANITARIAN (with ARTIST being a strong second).

Your child’s dreamer traits are AGREEABLENESS, CARING, and INTELLIGENCE. They are empathetic and are able to take other people’s perspectives. They usually love animals and are nurturing to younger siblings. Healers have a natural insight into how to make someone feel better. If your child is a healer then they might become a doctor, social worker, nurse, teacher, or veterinarian, or work for a non-profit. Whatever your healer decides to do it will definitely be something that will allow them to connect with and help others.

To nourish your young healer get them involved in volunteering and giving back at a young age. Depending on their other activities, it could be something you do once a year (like the soup kitchen on Thanksgiving) or every summer (like helping at the local animal shelter). Volunteering not only benefits the recipients, but also the volunteer. Some of the benefits of volunteering include enhancing positive well-being and has even been linked to higher grades in school.

Sean delivering for God’s Love We Deliver

Once again, this was not a surprise. Sean has a compassionate heart and really likes to help others. His teachers constantly have him assist his struggling classmates because he is a patient helper. Our family is already active in volunteering in both our church and community. I think that it would be a great idea to have Sean partner up with Michael in order to come up with a special outreach opportunity though. The last time that they came up with an idea it was to celebrate several single moms on Mother’s Day. (Reggie and I provided the funds for the moms to go pamper themselves while the boys helped entertain their kids as we babysat. It was great!)

In any event, the types found in the quiz definitely serve to help describe potential careers for the kids along with suggestions regarding activities to do with the kids to help support them. I think that the types were accurate for both Michael and Sean. My husband, Reggie, and I will definitely continue to actively nurture and encourage their dreams.

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Join former boy-genius Frank (George Clooney), optimistic, science-minded teen Casey (Britt Robertson), mysterious Athena (Raffey Cassidy) and the brilliant David Nix (Hugh Laurie) in a world of pure Disney imagination and adventure. Tomorrowland transports you on an inspiring and magical journey of wonder and adventure to a place where if you can dream it, you can do it. It’s available on Blu-ray™, Digital HD & Disney Movies Anywhere October 13!

For more information on Tomorrowland you can visit their website and follow them on Facebook and Google+.