WHEN you were young, what did you dream of being when you 'grew up'?
Did you eventually achieve the aspirations and hopes you had, or did you end up doing something completely different?
As an adult with responsibilities and bills to pay, you may dismiss those childhood dreams as unrealistic now, but did those hopes as a child not help to make you what you are today?
My parents recently came across a box filled with my homework books from my primary school years.
With my name neatly written on the front covers and beautiful drawings inside, they gave a clear indication of what I would end up being as an adult.
I gathered my three boys around and we delved into the stories I had written as a pony-tailed seven-year-old girl.
Amidst much laughter and smiles, we took turns in reading aloud the paragraphs that filled the books, going over the funny tales.
From stories of meeting Captain Cook on a ship to Bristol to living on Sunbeam Island where sunbeams came down every day, there were many humorous stories I had written.
What was striking was the imagination, my eagerness to tell a story - an indicator perhaps that from a young age I quite clearly wanted to be a writer.
While many of us turn our backs on our childhood ambitions when faced with the realities of life as a 'grown-up', some of us do really end up in their dream jobs.
Sometimes our careers begin at such an early age that there's little to think about, we end up following the path we set ourselves - without even realising it - and getting that job we have always wanted.
Children nowadays though are setting the bar high in terms of their career ambitions.
Research has revealed kids in Northern Ireland hope to find their dream job by the age of just 21 and earn just under £462,000 (!) a year - unrealistically high hopes by the sound of it.
Whilst parents looked to more traditional careers such as a nurse, vet and fire officer within their top five career vocations, today's children are aiming to be the pop stars (23 per cent), footballers (20 per cent) and video game creators (20 per cent) of the future.
And with modern technology revolutionising the workplace, kids have ranked jobs in the technology industry - including video games, app development and computers and coding - as their favourite job area (27 per cent).
The research by Argos was aimed at looking at the career aspirations of kids as well as asking parents about their perceptions of both their own and their children’s career paths.
Parents said they believed their children have better career prospects than they did when they were younger - and 43 per cent said technology plays a part in this.
Andrea Derrick from Chad Valley, who commissioned the research, said the findings allow us to "really understand children’s hopes for the future and found that we clearly have an ambitious nation of youngsters with wonderfully bright hopes and dreams".
"And parents are just as optimistic about what it holds for them," she added.
Childhood dreams are not necessarily an indicator of what you will want to do as an adult, but it's useful to look back at your younger self and consider what you enjoyed doing compared to what you are doing now.
While the majority of workers will shy away from such soul-searching and decide instead that 'no dream' in particular will do, what's the harm in trying to pursue what you want in life?
No matter how early we step onto that treadmill it's never too late to change direction and think back to our childhood ambitions and how they can help us work out what aspects of our current job we love.
When we were children our aspirations were limitless and anything seemed possible - that dream job we aspired to as a child was an indicator of our passions and talents.
By recapturing that excitement, maybe this year could the one when you find your dream job.
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Competition
Halloween is coming and the time has come to dust off the cobwebs from your broomstick. Asda has teamed up with the Irish News to offer readers a devilishly good treat (without the trick) this Halloween.
For one lucky reader, Asda is giving away a £50 voucher so they can get their fangs stuck into the array of Halloween goodies on offer in-store.
Whether you’re looking for a perfectly priced pumpkin, available in stores from 50p (medium) to £1 (large), to carve with your own little ghosts and ghouls, or to throw a Monster Mash of a party, Asda has everything you need to make this one a screamer.
In the glow of the moonlight, why not tempt your visitors to try out Asda’s Petrifying Pumpkin Smash Cake or some Gruesome Gummies, shaped as frightfully-fruity insects.
To get your werewolf-worthy paws on this scarily good £50 voucher, then simply email your name, address and telephone number - along with the answer to the question below - to competitions@irishnews.com
Closing date for entries is Tuesday October 25 at noon.
(Q) What type of creature are the Gruesome Gummies?
Normal Irish News Rules Apply
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What's Hot!
Spooky Events at the Railway - With ghosts on the platforms and ghouls on the train, it can only be the return of the Halloween Ghost Train at the Downpatrick and Co Down Railway. The Phantom Flyer will be departing on Halloween weekend, October 29 to 31 from 4pm-7pm. On Halloween night there will also be a fireworks display after the last train in Downpatrick Town Centre Visit www.downrail.co.uk for further information.
Back again - Cold Feet has been recommissioned for a new series following its successful return this year. The ITV drama series, starring James Nesbitt, aired in September with a warm reception from viewers as the first episode pulled in ratings of 8.4 million. Production on the new eight-part series will begin next year.
What's Not!
Forgetful - Sharon Osbourne has denied being drunk on The X Factor after forgetting one of her singers' names. She appeared to ask fellow judge Louis Walsh, 'What's her name?'. She later said she was 'just terrible with names'.
Growing up - Nicole Kidman has opened up about the dread she feels about her youngest children growing up. The Oscar-winning actress has two young daughters, Sunday Rose (8) and Faith (5) with husband Keith Urban. She said she 'will be sad when there is not a five-year-old in the house'.
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Competition winners
The winners of last week's competition to see Made in Liverpool are Philip Johnston from Belfast, Danny Druse from Newry, Joan Connaghan from Lisburn, John Connolly from Crumlin and Paul O'Hare from Donegal.
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Easy Peasy Recipe
This week's Easy Peasy Recipe is Fillet of Beef with Truffled Potato Cakes, courtesy of Forestside Cookery School.
You will need:
2 x 120g Butchers Select Irish beef fillet
Salt & pepper
Cep Butter:
100g butter (diced & softened)
1 tbsp of dried ceps (rehydrated & dried well)
Tarragon (chopped)
1 tsp whole grain mustard
Flat parsley (chopped)
Potato Cake:
100g mash potato
30g of flour
1 egg yolk
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp black truffle oil
Chives or scallions (finely chopped)
To make:
Leave beef out of fridge for a half hour before cooking, season on both sides with salt & black pepper
Place on a medium to high heat, brush beef with oil and cook 2 minutes each side (rare), 3 minutes (med-rare), 4 minutes (medium/well)
Rest beef for two minutes before serving
Cep Butter:
Mix the butter, tarragon and chopped ceps together until soft
Add chopped parsley and season well, roll and place in fridge until chilled
Potato Cake:
Place potato, baking powder and flour in a bowl
Mix together with an egg, chives and truffle oil
Roll the mixture into balls and flatten slightly to make potato cakes
Bring pan to a medium heat and lightly flour
Gently add the potato cakes and cook until lightly browned - 2 minutes each side
Now pull out of pan and keep warm
Serve steak on top of the potato cake with butter, roast baby leeks and shallots
Do you have an Easy Peasy recipe you would like to share?
Are you the queen of quiches, magnificent at muffins or can you turn out some nice scones?
If so, then we want to hear from you.
You can send your name, address, contact number and recipe (plus photo if possible) to:
Easy Peasy Recipes,
Suzanne McGonagle,
Irish News
113-117 Donegall Street,
Belfast,
BT1 2GE
or
s.mcgonagle@irishnews.com
