Do you remember career day in junior high? I recall being dismissed to the gymnasium, where we were able to meet with potential future employers in almost a speed dating fashion. I already knew I was going to be the next Oprah Winfrey, so I’m not sure how seriously I took the day. More likely than not, it was a great social hour for me and my friends.

A few months ago, the counselor at my son’s middle school reached out to me to see if I’d be interested in sharing my career with her students. I jumped at the opportunity, especially knowing that this would give me a chance to check on my son and see a few of his teachers (you can never do this often enough with teenagers).

I put career day in the back of my mind for a while, but last week, as Friday approached, I became a little bit nervous. How can I make being a journalist, and writing for a newspaper, sound interesting to these kids? Talking about my job with kids who spend majority of their days texting and snapchatting, I wasn’t sure how I would keep their attention.

So, Thursday evening, I gathered newspapers (one for each student) and candy and gathered my thoughts. I decided to engage the students in interviews, asking them about their passions, their hobbies, their interests and their lives, which, surprisingly, seemed to work.

These kids are talented. I spoke with future artists, doctors, writers, athletes, engineers, and musicians. One girl wants to be a veterinarian, with a focus on helping elephants. One boy is determined to play in the NFL, but if that doesn’t work out, he’s also a pretty good singer.

I also learned that these kids have been through some tough things. Some have seen violence. Others have witnessed death, or suicide, or traumatic events that have surely left some invisible scars.

I learned more from these kids than I could ever teach them about me. Sure, I explained my day-to-day, and what it’s like to work at the newspaper. But, in a short amount of time (I had roughly 20 minutes with each group of around 20 kids), I learned what makes these kids who they are.

After one of my sessions, a teacher came up to me and said, “I learned more about my students in five minutes with the questions you asked them than I’ve learned about them all school year.”

A seventh-grade girl approached me after another session. “Thank you for inspiring me. I didn’t ever think that being a journalist could be cool, but you made it sound like such a fun job. Maybe I could be a journalist like you one day,” she said.

My job was done. I went into the day thinking that if I could reach just one kid, and inspire them to write a little more, or maybe take a journalism class in high school, then I would consider the day a success. It was definitely more than that.

I learned so much at career day. I learned that despite their backgrounds, their race or their social status, these kids are all going to be something great. I learned that our kids all have a story to tell. You just have to ask the right questions.