What do you want to be when you’re older? This is a common question which we have all heard from our parents, teachers, and friends. Naturally, as we grow older our answers evolve with us. Some people may argue that over the course of four years at school we determine what we will be; however, I strongly disagree with this opinion. The degree we earn in college determines what we will do from nine to five, our profession. Yet, it’s our perspective on life and what we put back into the world that follows us through life. Our jobs after college are merely lines on our resumes. Therefore, this question doesn’t concern what we want our LinkedIn to say, it regards the type of life we want to lead and the person we want to become.

As high school seniors we were being told when we were allowed to use the bathroom, what we were allowed to eat for lunch, and where we should go to college. Then, when we arrived at college life made a complete 180-degree turn and left us with more freedom than we’ve had in our whole life. However, with freedom comes responsibility. In college it’s easy to get overwhelmed with how much we are expected to grow and figure out about the rest of our life in a minuscule four-year span of time. These years are spent with people still questioning who we are and what we want to become, yet how are we supposed to know the answer if we haven’t even experienced real life yet?

As senior year slowly approaches and I anticipate what the next ten months have in store, I remind myself that I still have time to figure life out, and I don’t have to answer life-defining questions at someone else’s demand. I’ve grown an incredible amount over the last three years, and I know that this year will propel me even closer to who I will be in the future.

I’m majoring in accounting and I will graduate with a degree in business administration, but my future career as an accountant does not tell the world who I want to become. Only I can answer that question. So what do I want to be when I’m older? I used to answer this question with: princess, cowgirl, doctor, and president. For now, I simply want to be happy, and I will figure out the rest as it comes.