Dream job as Lego professional
RYAN McNaught is a kid who never truly grew up.
Well, Mr McNaught got married and had two kids, but he was able to turn his love of Lego into a full-time career.
Mr McNaught is one of only 13 certified Lego professionals worldwide and the first and only Australian professional.
Over the weekend he visited Toowoomba to help hundreds of enthusiastic kids create their very own Lego masterpieces.
Known as The BrickMan, Mr McNaught was fascinated by Lego as a child but turned away from it in his teens.
Three years ago Mr McNaught was working as an information technology professional.
When his sons started experimenting with Lego, Mr McNaught used his knowledge to install extra technology to their A-380 model plane, including a touchscreen for the cockpit and robotic wheels.
Mr McNaught said he decided to send pictures of the model through to Lego and his career as a professional grew from there.
Mr McNaught's speciality is building interactive models of all different sizes.
Some of his creations include a 5.6m tall replica of the 1968 Saturn V rocket and a replica of the Love Boat from the television series of the same name, which won best mega-creation at last year's Brickworld exhibition in Chicago.
In Toowoomba, Mr McNaught helped the children create pyramids, pirate ships and palaces.
Mr McNaught urged children with a passion for Lego to chase their dreams.
"If you want to have my job, you need to study. What I do is very mathematics-based," he said.
"But you also need to love what you do."
