Girls and the dream of tomorrow
- Lizzy Adams initiative
- Sep 11, 2018
- 2 min read
Updated: Sep 17, 2018
As children, we all dream of what we want to be when we grow up and my eldest daughter was not an exception. I remember on one of our trips back from our local library she was just around 10 years old then she said to me:
“Mum I’ve decided I am going to be an author when I grow up.” She said with a huge grin on her face as she looked up at me.
I looked down at her smiling to myself thinking here we go again. This so called announcement of hers wasn’t new as my daughter has been announcing her career choices every few years since she was 5. It started as a Kangaroo, a princess, an actress, a dog trainer, a teacher and now a writer.
I was curious on what made my daughter conclude that she wanted to be an Author this time.
“So tell me,” I started to ask. “How come you want to be an Author?”
“Because you’re an author and I want to be like you!”
Looking at her I realised at such a young age, my daughter didn’t actually know that there was such a wide choice and variety of different jobs out there for her, all she truly knew was what her parents did. At that moment, it dawned on me I had become the biggest influence on my child’s thoughts about her future career.
From that day on, I became fully aware of the influence I had and how I needed to try my best in making it a positive, supportive and empowering one not only towards my daughter but also to other girls out there. My mission was to ensure girls are equipped with the tools, skills, and experiences that will enable them to go out into the world and make a better career choice and make it a better place for themselves and everybody else. It is vital for young people to have aspirations and become more aware of the opportunities available to them in the Big Wide World.
My daughter is now 12 and she is growing to understand mummy is not only an author but also a Clinical Research Consultant. She is growing up to understand not everybody is as lucky as she is to be a girl born in the UK, with free access to computers and Internet in school. In many regions of the world girls suffer from having no (or little) access to education and jobs. She is becoming aware of the wide choice she has and the variety of opportunities she can sink her teeth into if she wanted to.
Here is one of my favorite guide for parents on how best to support their children in their career choices written by Virginia Issac (The Guardian). In the article, she shares her top tips on guiding your child into the world of work.
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