- 12 January 2011
- 3:22pm
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Travel vs career: does it have to be all or nothing?
Jane OrmondLonely Planet author
Travel can be wildly intoxicating, there’s no doubt about that. And the comedown, that return to ‘real life’ can be conversely depressing for most.
But maybe you’re happy to get back to work – or at least you feel you need to come home in order to have a satisfying career.
It’s a tough balance to strike – travel vs ‘real’ life. Is there a way to have it all or is that just a pipe dream? Does it really have to be all or nothing? And does it get harder to breaker away from work the more established (and older) you get?
This is a concept our travel-loving forum members grapple with on a regular basis.
Are you a sucker if you’re working?
Yep, we’ve all met those ‘free spirits’ who make you feel like a real Dilbert because you’re racing to a train to work while they’re just hanging out in your city, going with the bare-footed flow. It can set off panic alarms in your head, worrying that time’s slipping by and you’re not out there seeing as much of the world as you should. But world travel doesn’t come free…
In a great post on the issue, one forum member recently noted:
Lately I’ve noticed an attitude amongst travelers where, if you are not living in a 3rd world country on $5 a day the second you save enough money to quit your job when you are able to, then you’re a sucker for not doing so, and I find this incredibly pretentious.
I LIKE my job. I compromise so I will probably never go out traveling for more than a few months at a stretch but make sure I can take those stretches along the way. I think people lead a sad life who only view work as a way to save money to travel.
Does saying goodbye to home mean saying goodbye to a career?
Another consideration is how long-term travel can interrupt or derail the trajectory of your career. Would you be willing to gamble with your ambitions in order to travel?
What would you do if you had planned a big trip, only to be offered a promotion? Take it and postpone your travel (when you can do it P-Diddy-style) or turn it down and hit the road with a jaunty ‘que sera, sera’?
Can you have it all – career and travel?
Hey, it worked for Richard Branson, surely it can work for us too? A lot of people thrash around trying to bundle travel into their working lives – either by volunteering or trying to transfer their skills to another country.
To some this might seem a viable option. For others, the sheen might wear off quickly when they realise they’re working a crummier job than if they were back home, just under different skies. But perhaps those skies are worth it.
So what do you think defines the smartest travel attitude? A bit of column a, a bit of column b?
Well, wherever you are in the world right now, at home or in some gnarly jungle, just remember this piece of forum wisdom:
‘Hey if we were all huge travelers then who would stay at home for the rest of us to visit ‘em?’
Let’s hear what you think!
Very good article and very true, Jane. I have recently noticed the same thing about travelers looking at you differently just because you have a base and a real job. I personally enjoy my work and it gives me enough room (and money) to pursue my travel career too, as I have recently posted. I have considered to be a full-time traveler before, but more than the opportunity cost, I fear the depressing return to real life you mentioned too. So by now, I will continue to be regarded as conventional and capitalist, I guess.
Keep going,
Diego
Find a job that pays you to travel. I did. And I love it. Sure I might not be able to take off for months on end. But I get to head overseas 6-8 times a year at my employers expense for a few weeks at a time. I only have to pay for my sightseeing/side-trips. I’m not a fan of long-term travel, so it works for me. Some are “big city” trips and some “totally out of the way” trips. And I’m happy with that.
I have exactly this problem. I’m trying to develop my career in the media but my real and first passion is travelling. I can’t book holidays longer than a few weeks so I end up having to quit my job
Great article, believe you me it’s very difficult to strike a balance & not planning properly can cause no end of problems career wise.
I didn’t take a gap year & left travelling to just recently after being made redundant in 2007 from a ten year career in Client Services. I was only planning to go for six months but ended up travelling for two years.
Don’t get me wrong I had the time of my life & will never forget the people I met or the amazing places I visited, friends I made & things I did.
But coming back down to earth & trying to get back into the job market in the UK has been nigh on impossible.
It seems the current employment market frowns on travelling especially for long periods of time as they are unable to check up on you & getting references from multiple people in multiple countries for exact dates is a nightmare. Even personal referees & enhanced CRB checks are not enough to satisfy a vast majority of companies out there.
Don’t let this put you off though I wouldn’t change what I did for anything, it was a truly life changing experience. Just plan ahead & if you planning to stay abroad in different places for more than six months keep a written record & try to get contact details of places & people of who you were with or worked for.
Happy travelling
Good points and there is no one way to mix travel and career, but tweak it to how it works best for you!
We have been on an open ended, non-stop world tour as a family for the last 5 years on just 23 dollars a day per person to 38 countries on 5 continents ( including in very expensive places like Bora Bora, Moorea, Hawaii,Sydney etc and extensive time in Europe from Paris to Portugal, Santorini to Stockholm etc).
http://www.soultravelers3.com/
We have found that it has been fantastic for our careers ( I’ve been asked to write a book, we have become one of the most popular travel bloggers, we’re considered number 2 of the top 50 online travel influencers, won 2 Lonely Planet Travel Blog Awards, featured in NYTimes, the mega hit book 4-Hour Workweek & much more) NONE of it was planned.
We are monolinguals raising a very fluent ( like a native) trilingual/triliterate kiddo ( Mandarin/Spanish/English), so have also found it to be the best possible education for our child who was 5 when we began and is now 10. She has dear friends around the world, we’re teaching her online entrepreneurial skills, and love the quality and quantity time we have together as we explore the world and learn first hand.
She’s ridden a camel deep in the Sahara, then played a violin concert for 60 Berber kids there at 6, swam with dolphins in Portugal, ate reindeer meat in Sweden, swam with sharks in Bora Bora, gone to foreign local schools in Spain and Asia to immerse in the language, takes piano & violin lessons over skype via webcams with teachers on another continent, can find her way on any subway from NYC to Paris,London, Vienna etc & feels perfectly comfortable on sailboats, cargo ships, horses or any mode of transportation & Has enjoyed every mode of lodging from camping & couch surfing to luxury suites in the world’s best hotels.
I think we are living proof that one CAN have both if that is what you want and you CAN do all of that with a family.
It’s a fast growing trend & since tech allows one to easily work & school ANY where today, it’s an option that is available to all!!
Great post. I do think one can have it all, only it depends on what each other’s balance is. I for one like to use all of my vacation time (4 weeks) to travel to a new country. It keeps my need to disconnect in check and although taking all my vacay time at once can be a drag, it’s the best way for me to keep that balance.
That being said, i’m off to work…
This is one good article. It is always possible to have both career and travel working parallely.
Richard Branson is one lucky guy to have both working successfully. It works for me as well.
I can still go backpacking whenever and wherever i want. You need to have a little bit of both and sometimes you always have the option of mix-n-match (volunteering & working in another country). As for me, i always feel good to come back home to a comfortable ‘real’ life after each journey.
FP.
“What would you do if you had planned a big trip, only to be offered a promotion?”
That is exactly me right now. A year ago I decided that I will quit my job in January 2011 (which is, TODAY) and backpack Central America for a month. All that time I’ve been saving up my money for the big trip of a lifetime. In October, I got promoted and took the offer, this having to cancel my backpacking plans. Do I regret it? No. I can always plan my big trip anytime, but getting better in your career, that doesn’t come often. To me, it’s the most sensible thing to do.
At the moment, I’m thinking of working for another year, and possibly just do my big backpacking trip next year. With the promotion, I earn more money, therefore can save up much better for the big trip. Sometimes you have to pick the most sensible choice.
I’ve been fortunate enough to travel A LOT with my job, and although I have seen some awesome things and had some phenomenal experiences, it is always at the sacrifice of something… for me it wasn’t my career as the travel was part of it, but it was at the expense of my ‘life’. I missed out on all of my closest friends’ weddings, big birthdays of families and friends, doing more things for me that I enjoy outside of travelling, building relationships and also falling in love. If you are never in one place for very long it is impossible to form lasting connections with people and continue to invest sufficient time in those relationships. Your true friends and loved ones will always be there when you come back, but you definitely miss out too when you are away for very long stretches…
For me, working for myself, I couldn’t afford the time or cost of a committed long-term trip, so I focused on an achievable itinerary with a realistic budget in a doable time period. The result: Around The World In 18 Days! A picture-perfect itinerary; Hong Kong, Singapore, Cairo, Istanbul, Venice, Zurich, Bruges, London and Paris. You can read all about it in my new book for iPad: Around The World In 18 Days ( http://www.aroundtheworldbook.com ) – point is, I was able to do all I wanted to do without it costing me work and too much money. And the best part is there’s still so many places to see! I’m working on a similar itinerary for 2011. Stay tuned!
I have a progressive career and at the same time addicted to travel. So, the way I have been quenching my thrust is by spacing out my 4-weeks paid vacation for 3 or 4 countries/vacations a year. This way I always have something to look forward to every 3 months. And I also read a lot of travel books while at home. Here is where I blog my travel details. http://www.deeparaman.com
I agree, it is all about making the sensible choice. I’ve had a love for traveling all my life, so I decided to pursue a career in management consulting where I travel all the time. However, business travel is not the same as leisure traveling, so it is important to keep that in mind. But it does allow you to gain things (e.g. airline points etc)that help facilitate those dream voyages that we all want to go on. Above anything its important to try to make your passion your purpose as much as you can!
-J
MyHotelGuy.com (Coming Soon) Twitter @MyHotelGuy
I keep saying, travel is not a competition. There is no reason people shouldn’t be able to enjoy lazy beach vacations if they so choose. Or do quick European tours that allow them to sample foreign cultures and see sights they’ve longed to see for a lifetime without leaving their comfort zone. My elderly grandmother did that for years, bless her, and got the most excited pleasure from it. How is that wrong?
Yes, it’s fabulous to be able to immerse yourself within a country, a culture – and to keep doing that over and over again in different locations for years at a time. And, obviously, there is a depth to that kind of travel which doesn’t exist in other forms. But that doesn’t mean it’s for everyone.
I’m hoping to very shortly become the kind of nomadic traveler who gives up a home base and all possessions but for what I can carry. I am so looking forward to roaming the globe, visiting familiar favorites and seeking out wholly unknown to me destinations. Those of us who yearn for that and are lucky enough to be able to achieve it are truly blessed.
But I don’t see that there is any kind of superiority built in to that type of existence. And the kind of people who sneer at those who take a week’s vacation on a Caribbean beach are, in my opinion, guilty of the most baseless arrogance. People being different from each other is what makes the world such an interesting place. There are many different kinds of travel, none of which is THE right way.
Wow, what a great discussion. It’s so inspiring to see how people approach this issue – rlynnt, you are so right, travel is NOT a competition. The world is there to see it as you choose. I keep going back to New York even though I know I should expand my travel repertoire, but I get something new out of it every time.
Scubanut, that is some excellent advice about negotiating a career post-travel – hope you’ve landed something by the time you read this!
i resigned from the bank n decided to go travel. now when i sit n do nothing i always think ‘what the fuck am i doing now’? hmmm…
the rich old man sayed to the poor young man ahh i have a lot of money and the poor young man said yeh but i have a lot of time.
I’m 28 and currently in a full time admin/events job but all I can think about is going off and exploring more of the world!
I only started to travel alone last year, I never did a gap year, and now looking into ways I can work or study abroad. It is hard to decide how much longer to stick with my job. I have been using it to save for both travel and a deposit on a flat. I can only go away for 2-3 weeks at a time and wish I could take 2-3 months at a time or longer. I am hoping I can get a sabbatical later this year or next year. I do feel tied down by my current job but hope I can get more of the experiences I want in life. I will find a way!
How is viewing work as a way to save money for travel “[leading] a sad life?” Not everyone’s fortunate enough to have a job they enjoy and some people take traveling as an opportunity to explore and get away.
I agree with whoever mentioned that it’s all about balancing time and managing effort. The idea of competition, envy and pretentiousness is what’s really sad.
Enjoy your travels!
I didn’t take a gap year and worked then traveled and returned. I think employers can look down on you at times, if you have traveled. Maybe they are jealous because they never did for whatever reason or because you might not be as committed as you should have been and they think you might leave and travel again. I lived and worked overseas in areas unrelated to my uni degrees and came back wanting to work in those areas instead…even though they weren’t as high paying or as trendy. I think traveling can open your eyes not just for the cultural experiences but in what areas might suit you career wise. I wrote about my experiences here. http://www.barnardbarnes.blogspot.com
Great article! I especially related to this part about transferring your skills to another country:
“To some this might seem a viable option. For others, the sheen might wear off quickly when they realise they’re working a crummier job than if they were back home, just under different skies. But perhaps those skies are worth it.”
I’ve been living and working in Japan for about 3 years and have discovered that the sheen certainly does wear off. Don’t get me wrong, I would never swap this experience for anything, but I’ve come to realise that I can probably have more exciting adventures if I move back to England and focus on my career first. So that’s what I’ll be doing in April… (http://www.haikugirl.wordpress.com)
I agree with the comment that those who work purely to save money travel, do not lead ‘a sad life”! I recently returned from home after 18 months living overseas. i worked, i traveled. i gave up a relatively good job, and it was only good becasue i worked closely with a friend. I would never trade my experiences, i have incredible, happy life long memories of my adventures! I have friends around the world, and i learned alot. Travel is my passion, im not as lucky as some who have a job they enjoy, or they love, i have a job where i only work so i can save for my next big trip. My adventures have already given my insight into what career i might like to pursue one day, but at the moment, im following my heart, and i love travel, i love what the world has to offer, so im working hard, and one day ill be off on another andventure. One day i will settle down, but for now, im young, no commitments, and im living out my dreams. i say, do what makes you happy, you have your whole life to live and you do whats right for you!
A sunny day is all the more beautiful after a month of rain.
Travelling constantly becomes a grind. I think it’s so much more ‘real’ to be _doing_ something, wherever that may be. Living in Thailand, I meet people all the time who just seem to be hanging out for long stretches here, but not having the anchor of real commitments (like jobs) means they can easily end up having a life which is not particularly productive in any sense. And of course that’s fine, if that’s what they’re after.
My personal approach to this issue has been to go on working holidays — and find jobs in other countries which help rather than hinder my career. I’ve pretty much loved most of my jobs at home but I want to live in different countries, not just travel. When I was 24 I took a year off and worked for more than half of that year in London and travelled the rest of the time. I chose roles which definitely helped me land good jobs when I came home again. I stayed home for four years and worked solidly in a great job for most of that time. That job led me to working in Thailand for a consultancy for this past year. It’s been a great learning experience — I’ve gone from working health in a local context to working in international health. Being here, I travel a lot around Asia. But after I’m done with this job, I’m keen to go back to my ‘real’ life surrounded by my family and friends, in a stronger position for a good job than before.
Reading these comments, I also think it really also depends what country you come from, as well as what career path you’re going for. Australian employers on the whole have a pretty relaxed attitude to long stints of travel I think. I can only imagine that people who try to see as much of the world as they can in a couple of weeks are from places like America where you barely get any leave.
As a hostel manager of 15 years standing I have seen many, many changes in the travel market. And hostels, in particular, are having to run fast just to keep up with these changes. Just a quick example – in 2009 about 15% of travellers had a means of accessing the internet with them – in 2010 this figure jumped to about 45%. This means we need better broadband wifi and a whole load more electric outlets for all these machines and to recharge ipods, phones, etc.
Coming back to the subject in question – more and more people are finding a way of earning a decent living whilst travelling. I recently hosted a Canadian couple for a month – he would work on his laptop for 3 or 4 hours every afternoon (until he had earned $140 providing technical support for an American company) whilst she lazed on the beach! As they did not have to get up early they enjoyed a drink or 3 each evening. They were in their 40′s and planned on travelling continuously.
This is one story from many that I could relate.
The moral – find a way of making money with the internet and travel 365!
I am 24 and I have been working six months to the day;(in my first real job, waitressing and babysitting aside)I am extremely grateful that I have a job, especially after just recently graduating and given the current economy. Even though I am in a well-paid career with over a month vacaction a year, I still consider the much less stable alternative,living paycheck to paycheck in a foreign country, a more attractie choice. I spent not quite six months in Spain and traveling around parts of Europe last Spring. I took a shallow dive into the surface of that experience, and will remain restless until I completely submerge myself in a different culture and way of life.
as they say in Africa, white people have the watch, we have the time.
I agree, because I work for the State I get quite a bit of vacation time. However friends of mine think it is ridiculous the number of hours I have. When comparing my personal/vacation time to Europe and many other countries – it doesn’t seem so odd!
Having a week off is the norm here in the USA and I think it’s pretty sad. Even more sad is that people either don’t use it, or spend that time on a cruise ship or an American all inclusive resort in Mexico(ie not much culture…
This is a dilemma I am currently dealing with. I am an addict. I have traveled many places and usually go for 1 month to 1 year. I’m itching to go all the time. It has been 2 years since I have traveled on any major trip. I am an archaeologist and my work has me constantly traveling……in the surrounding areas ( so not to far off exotic destinations). I do love my job and I just bought a house, but it just doesn’t seem to fill the void. Some of us can never be satisfied. The grass will always be greener, so I try to just smoke it………….I just try to tell myself that if I did choose the romantic vagabond lifestyle that i have lived in the past, that it would not be satisfying either. both sides take sacrifices and you wouldn’t know until you’ve experienced it. Those of my friends who have chose the perpetual traveller lifestyle I find to be alone as the years pass by. Balance is key and I am still trying to find it. Good luck.
While science is seen as second-rate compared to careers such as law, finance, medicine or even MBAs, it lets me do just what this article describes. Everywhere has a university, and a PhD lets you get a working visa anywhere, at a decent salary. Three years living in each of Canada, Germany, UK, and now China lets me travel so much. One year we visited 40 different cities in Europe whilst working, and four of the last five weekends included travel to Xi’an, Haerbin, Chongqing, and the round-houses in Yongding. Also picked up a couple of languages along the way. And I love my job in research – we are doing good things.
But on the flipside I was chained to study and not much money until 27 in the most isolated city in the world (Perth). Actually sold my car for a one-way ticket to Toronto. In the meantime I watched my friends travel and have their adventures. If you know anyone young who loves adventure but doesn’t know what to do – science, hard work and a bit of persistence is not a bad option to achieve a life/work balance.
A subject I think a lot about. I haven’t been able to get myself to pursue my career goals because I’m unwilling to give up my low paying airline job that allows me to travel often and affordably. I’ve accepted a low wage in exchange for the the freedom to trade shifts to create free time and of coarse, free airfare. Someday my priorities will change. Okay, gotta go… leaving to visit my friend in Hawaii on my way to try out a muay thai gym in Thailand.
Personally I’ve managed a few chunks of decent travelling around a career. I first went traveling after graduating and spent a year backpacking round Africa in the 90s.
After drifting into an IT career I’ve generally saved my holiday time and taken a month off every year or two. I also managed a three month unpaid career break a few years back to go diving. Key there was timing: one project came to an end, and the next had some ramp up time so there was a window of opportunity. Some careful negotiation allowed me to make the most of it.
Then in 2009 I got made redundant so I took off on a bicycle from the UK to Vietnam. Eleven months later it didn’t look too bad on the CV. I’m not sure it got me interviews but it certainly didn’t seem to harm my chances.
Now I’m working on contracts. When the last one ended I took a month off to travel round Egypt and managed to line a new contract up that I’m starting next week, in Africa. Got to admit that one was pure fluke though :D
If you do work in a field like IT having a good reputation helps. Last contract, before I nipped off to Egypt I worked pretty much seven days a week for five months. If you can keep your skills current and your contacts up it can be done.
I’d say I’ve managed to strike a pretty good work/travel balance. I just graduated two years ago in the healthcare field, and my job pays pretty well. I get 3 weeks of paid vacation per year, and I take an extra couple weeks of unpaid time off on top of that. My work schedule involves tons of evening and weekend shifts, which isn’t always fun, but it allows me to be extremely flexible with my vacation time. I usually take one “big trip” abroad every year, and then I take shorter 4- to 6-day trips every couple months. My schedule is nice because it allows me to work, say, 10 consecutive days, take 5 days off, then work another 10 consecutive days. I work hard and I play hard!
I would love nothing more than to be a perpetual traveller, but it would be a shame to give up my current job, which gives me a solid income and plenty of flexibility to whet my travel appetite with regular (albeit short) trips.
I have reached the age of sixty, and there are a couple of things I regret not having achieved yet. One is not having seen as much of the world as I could and the reason is work. Y’ see, we all think we need or are needed much more than we do / are. I say in hindsight, if you feel like travelling, work at the way in which you can obtain your goal, rather that work to achieve it. I intend to start travelling a lot more in the very near future. Sounds like a contradiction!
I have been fortunate enough to work for a Italy based company so I get the big holidays as our plants close (fashion) at Xmas and August, add to this my US holidays, which is 4 weeks. So I take a vacation at Xmas for 18 days, and also in August for 10 days, and then a week at Memorial, 4th July and Easter.
I work from my home and travel from Chicago to major markets in USA, mainly central US, but fly 1-2 times week, as HQ is in NYC.
So, between Frequent Flyer Miles and hotel free stays, we have a good time. My boss is from UK and is a travel hound, so he like the fact I get to a new country or two every year. In 2010 it was France, Morocco, China, Costa Rica and Guatemala, plus a San Diego and Florida vacation.
I dont make a ton of money, but I live well, in a great city, have a moto and sportcar for weekend jaunts, and with 6 weeks off, its worth $40K to me. My wife commuted from Hong Kong/Biejing for work, we meet in Paris for a long weekend too.
This year due to a the competitive climate, work has me traveling even more, so going to another hotel and airport for a vacation gets old, once warm weather hits, we will take some road trips to Yellowstone and Cali coast. South Carolina this year…
2011 plans are Turkey and Colombia as a focus. China again, and a Costa Rica trip is yearly for me, warm surf and nice easy beach venues.
Ive been able to go for a couple of 4 week trips since leaving uni and entering the workforce about 5 years ago. I had a great time and saw and experienced much, but had this over-riding feeling that the experience was missing something.
I have since decided to leave my job which had excellent career prospects (leadership courses, 2 promotions in a matter of years) and do a 6 month high paying contract to fund my indefinate travel overseas. Making the decision to leave the security of a full time job and my comfortable life in Sydney wasnt an easy one. But a quote “the dreams of youth are regrets of maturity” echoed in my head constantly.
My career probably will be impacted in the short term. The experiences, stories, memories and personal growth will well exceed stepping off the corporate ladder for a year or two.
Besides what will I tell my grandkids stories about; How I drove profit in company x in 2011 or that I sailed from panama to Columbia, did the running of the bulls, learnt spanish and surfed portugal, morroco and Copsta Rica…..
I cant wait!
good discuss to all you said.
in china, we learn that you never got two best one. we couldn’t be much greedy.
my opionion is like this: (also my motto)
“rational life, emotional livinghood.”
to keep banlance every emotional time.
this one is better:
“rational life, emotional exist.”
Best comment ever about working and travelling is from Paul Theroux in his book The Old Patagonian Express. He is in Chicago on the very first step in his journey travelling on the L (Chicago local train) from his place to Chicago Central station – all around him are people going to work – he is going to Patagonia.
Inspires me just to think of it again.
Well,I think travelers just have a whole different perspective on life. People these days are usually judged by their ‘career’ and ‘what they own’. This sadly seems to be what makes you ‘succesful’. It depends what ‘you’ consider ‘successful’. Promotion or travel,I’d go for the travel myself! Life is too short. People slave and save all their lives for a future they may not even see just to be surrounded by ‘things’!! When someone turns round to me,like my sister…who is ‘jealous’ of ‘life style’,I remind her and anybody else that my life was ‘my’ choice and they made ‘their’ choices by having a mortgage,career and a family. I always remind people that as a consequence I barely own anything,have no home or stability at all and work 24/7 the rest of the time…..and remind them of the sacrifices I make to travel. I then carry on to remind them they need live-in carers so can do the same..just give up your home,’stuff’,social life and relationship and they can do the same and I can get them work..but oh no,they want their cake and eat it too! It all depends what you value in life. I was born eager to ‘experience’ the world and life..I done/doing it so in my eyes I’m ‘successful’. As for people like Richard Branston..people like him sadly tend to ‘stamp’ all over people to get where they are. This is something I personally couldn’t do..morals come in to the equation here.
After all don’t you think we are here to learn about life and people? I do! You can take your experiences to you after the grave but possessions I’m afraid are left behind. Well this is my opinion on he matter anyway. ; )
I love this discussion. Many thanks to all contributing!
I belong firmly in the camp of those who love their jobs and cannot see themselves constantly living out of a suitcase. It is great having a firm career / default base at home and being able to leave it all behind every now and then and freshen up the mind in a new location.
And I do believe that it is possible to combine a successful career with active travel. I spent 120 days on the road in 2010 (in 25 countries): a blend of long-ish business trips, weekends away, public holidays and my annual leave allowance (25 days). It certainly helps living in London from where a legion of low-cost flights originate daily. And my work life is developing well: I have just been promoted ahead of schedule, with excellent reviews.
I believe it is the balance that makes life complete and enjoyable; and I am lucky to have achieved that balance. At least for now.
This is a good topic, and something I think all travelers at heart have spent a good deal of time thinking about. Some of my best memories are from the experiences and friendships I’ve made while traveling… the new surroundings keep you living in the present.. and all the moving seems to adjust you well for change.. the different places bring out different aspects of you, and so much that I’ve learned about myself I owe to the time I’ve spent abroad. There’s no denying that there are many positives to travel. However, some of my other favorite memories are of the every day stuff at home amongst the comfort of family and good friends. Some consistency is important too, and the gratitude I have for those people that make my everyday life such a pleasure is immense.
Whenever I’ve come back from a long trip of moving from place to place, as sad as I am for the trip to end, deep down there is always a desire to set roots somewhere again. Being a part of a community – not just visiting one – is a very important part of the human experience. Contributing to the place you feel you belong and forming relationships with your neighbors all helps you learn about who you are too.
In the end I think balance is the key. Allow the time you are fortunate enough to have for traveling to shift you into your “passionate gear”, and let that continue when you return home. Spend some time while you’re away reflecting on what you love and what you don’t love about your home life, and resolve to make the changes that will improve your life when you return. If you feel trapped in your town- with your travelers mindset, remind yourself no one is telling you how to live your life, you are free and capable of moving and setting up shop someplace new. If its excitement you think your life at home lacks, you’re likely just looking at your town/community from the wrong angle. As you return, try to view your home with the eyes of a traveler. Remind yourself what you are proud of, where you would take your visitors, and seek out new opportunities! They are definitely there waiting for you!
Honestly this is a matter of personal preference. As someone who is considering taking a step in this direction without a single thought of my future career, I think this life style suits me best. However, that does not mean that I have disdain or lack of appreciation for people that don’t mind showing up to their 9-5 because they enjoy it. I say kudos to you! I wish I could be that way, but I’m not and I can’t and I’m not going to try to fit into that shape anymore.
Whether you love to travel and take that on as your way of life, or you love your job and choose to work and travel as you can, then do what works for you. This topic is great, but at the same time, nobody needs to justify their decisions. Whatever you do, do it and follow it and believe in it because that’s all that matters.
I found a trick to both travel and work (not career). At 27 I turned down a hotel promotion and went to the UK on Ancestry visa and 6 months in I ended up working on live on ferries(12hr days, min wages, no expenses and tax back each year). 3 weeks on 2 weeks off, with 3-4 weeks when ship is in dry dock. While I never traveled as much as I could/should have I got my head straightened out, met some great people at work from all around the world and loved my travel time. It is definitely easier from the UK with all the cheap flights to disappear for a weekend Prauge and have a week in Italy. I lived out of a backpack (and storage locker) for 5 years. I came back home after I felt that that stage of life had run its course(wished for a home base)and being offered the job I turned down by my old boss. I have been here 2 1/2 years now and changed employers during that time, yes my backpack still calls to me from the top of the cupboard (dam was the first year of 5 day weeks HARD!), and all the arguments of home + base vs travel and experience flood back on a regular basis, especially when the weeks work wasn’t all that!. It is such a personal preference and luck of the traveler whether it is the right choice or not. When your ‘career’ isn’t all it could be or you can’t balance life and work, long term travel looks great, whether it works out is part of the adventure. After this length of time I now think traveling is an addiction more than a stage some of us go through … the urge to relapse is high today.
I’m personally struggling with the idea of travel vs career at the moment. I’ve done a couple of trips ( the last one was 14 months.) and I appear to reach a point where I just decide it’s time to go home (I’m not a homesick kind of person). The thing is, I get home, and it’s great for a few months hanging out with family and friends and getting some kind of normal routine back in life, but then I find I start to feel suffocated. It’s not that I don’t want to have a career, but more how to combine a career with travel in a way that doesn’t compromise either side of my personality…
Here’s my two cents… I’m from the US and when we graduate from College we are very pressured to start work right away. We don’t normally do Gap Years like Europeans, just straight to work. We are young and full of energy so we tend to do well in our jobs. The more we progress the harder we find time to take off besides our 2 week vacation per year (which we just want to relax on a beach somewhere) instead of experience what life is like in a different culture. We tell ourselves, I will go see that place when I save up enough money! But then we get married have kids and they opportunity passes. Yea we can go see the places when we retire but that’s not the same.
To me traveling when you are young, poor and open minded is the best time. This is when new ways of life can really make an impact on your life! Beyond seeing sights its seeing how someone your age lives their life in a different place. I think traveling is VERY important to living a full life and although I don’t discourage careers I think people start way too young, especially in my country. If you start working hard at 22 or 30, you have plenty of time to establish yourself. Two week vacations and living abroad in a new culture for an extended period of time are no more comparable than apples and oranges… I’m in a cubicle right now at a job I’m just working to make money for my next move to Panama… I speak no spanish, dont know anyone or have anything lined up, just a one way ticket. Follow me on my adventure if your interested I leave in one month..
I recently gave up a promising job which I loved to be a another on of ‘those people’… Backpacking through South East Asia living on $5 a day, cliché I know. I strongly live bye the motto ‘I work to live, not live to work’. While I’m young with no commitments like a mortgage or children, why not? My mum always tells me she wishes she travelled more when she had the chance, I don’t want to be the dreamer who could have done it, I’m the cliche that did it and loved every second!
My husband and I are faced with this decision at the moment. He has been offered a promotion at work that will give us stability, an opportunity that will lead down other paths which may help us have a stronger position for when we have kids etc.
BUT for the past 5 years we have been planning to travel around the world for 12 months – wild and free before we settle down. We were planning on doing this trip in June 2012, but the promotion takes place in January 2012. They are also giving him the opportunity to travel for two months before he starts this new role. We are planning on using this time to see if we could do 12 months, or if 2 months is enough, and we could go home to work.
It’s a tough position (although we appreciate that we are lucky enough to have a choice!) because if it were up to me, I would happily turn down any promotion at my work because travelling for a year has been a life-long dream of mine. However, for my husband, he loves his job, and he is super excited by this opportunity. So it’s two equally worthwhile dreams that are in conflict.
So we are trying to compromise.
Travel for 2 months as freely as we can (although I think having a return ticket vs a one way ticket is suffocating as it is!) and really take a look at that life, and then work for a year in his new role, and really give that a go.
The only thing at the back of our minds is that we are in our early 30’s and we want to start a family, and we’ve already pushed back this trip for the past few years for other opportunities thinking “we’re still young”. But if we keep pushing back our family plans, we’re worried that we may start too late and that will be an even greater regret. We’re pretty conservative people so travelling and backpacking with young children is not an option for us. So it’s crunch time – we have to decide! Travel for a year now, or forever hold our peace.
Any other perspectives, ideas, suggestions or words of wisdom are very welcome!!
I think the same could be said for ‘true love’: I fell madly in love while living abroad, and am now faced with the issue of developing a career back home/in the US in order to have the financial prowess to start a marriage/family. It’s been very painful living in the US after living/working abroad for the last eight years, holding jobs that were amazing and unattainable (for me) in the US. It has been extremely painful trying to adjust back to life in the US…
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