Who am I

The question should be, "Who Am I?" rather than "What do you do?"
"Who am I?" should reflect more of who or what a person is than the other question which is in debate.

If I were to answer that question, I would say:
I am Nizamuddin Ameerally. I am a son, a brother, a brother-in-law, a student, a teacher, a friend, a nephew or a cousin. I would define myself by my relationships I have with my family members and any past or present connection or identity with an organization. For many years of my life I was a student, whether it was in primary school, secondary school or college. It was not until my late twenties did I encounter career identity issues.

My identity as it related to finding a career took me to wear many hats. I became a college student, a teacher, a tutor, a writer, a blogger, a tennis player, and a peer support person.

"What do you do?" is a subset of your identity. It does not define all of you. One should not make your work your whole life. There must be some sort of balance in your life.

A Personal Path

I believe every person embarks on a journey of self-discovery when seeking their career path. That's what it is, a path. The famous Chinese proverb applies here well, "a journey of a thousand miles, begins with a simple step."

From where I stand now, I could not have predicted all those years ago, that I would encounter the changes and difficulties I did when choosing a path. Perhaps my path is still uncertain but I do know that this is where I am whether I am moving or stationary.

What do you do?

"So what do you do?" is usually the question that follows after two people are introduced to each other...and the reply may sound like,
"Oh, I'm a doctor..." or
"I'm a teacher..."  or
"I'm a lawyer..."  or   "Accountant" or something of the sort...

I'm a X, or I'm a Y
If you sell shoes, then you're a shoe salesman
If you sell stocks, then you're a stockbroker

My point is that answering the question, "So What Do You Do?" is extremely limiting. I am not defined by what it is that I do. In the movie Uncle Buck the lead character is interviewed by a kid and answers the same question by saying, "I do lots of things,"