Flying was my first idea as a career!

Not fixed-wing though, but helicopter. For some reason I thought flying a helicopter is way cooler because you can land basically anywhere. I wanted to specifically become a rescue helicopter pilot. But yeah, the money you need is a big hurdle. I think helicopter training is even more expensive than fixed-wing.

I didn't pursue it further because the only way to make it happen without any money was to join the armed forces first and hope I would be able to go down the officer path and learn how to fly. But I didn't because I would have to commit to the armed forces for years before I actually knew if I would be trained as a pilot.