Hi all,
I'm 27. I left my job last summer. Been travelling sinse.
It's no bad thing, if you want to do it do it. Go, now. Don't look back. You're on this planet once. Life is for enjoying my friend. Conventional wisdom tells you to focus on a career and your travelling days are over. I prefer to wake up every day with a smile on NJ face and an adventure ahead of me.
I also think travelling will never close doors for your career. Unless you end up travelling for 15-20 years. It only really opens them, I was offerred a job in Indonesia after a chance encounter with a british guy. Who introduced me to his chinese-indonesian boss.
I will say this though, if you think 6 months of travelling will satisfy your curiosity. You are lieing to yourself. I thought the same, I'm due to finish in March - April. Then planning the next trip for 2016. Bigger, better, longer.
I left university at age 24, and knew very firmly that I didn't want a regular career. I didn't know how else to approach my life, but I did have the travel bug, so I went travelling for a bit over two years (one year each in Australia & New Zealand, with stops on the way there and back). During my time in Australia, I worked as a freelancer, since the way IT companies are set up there, that just makes a lot of sense. And so without quite intending it, that's what now, nine years later, I'm still doing. It's not a traditional "career", but I am quite successful, in demand to such a degree that I can pick just those projects which I actually want to work on, have raised my rates well above what I'd earn with a regular salary, get to do some serious travelling in between projects, and am continuously learning and growing my skillset. So, much better than having a career, really, but still with a palpable sense of progress and accomplishment. And even when I was just starting out, I found that the two years of travel on my CV were a big plus, at not at all a barrier to finding work. Long term travel tends to give you a problem-solving mindset, and shows you to be capable and independent - which is worth a lot.
Obviously I don't know what your "industry" is like - but non-traditional work arrangements are becoming ever more common, so don't rely too much on preconceived notions of what you "should" be doing at any point during your life...
I'm 27. I left my job last summer. Been travelling sinse.
It's no bad thing, if you want to do it do it. Go, now. Don't look back. You're on this planet once. Life is for enjoying my friend. Conventional wisdom tells you to focus on a career and your travelling days are over. I prefer to wake up every day with a smile on NJ face and an adventure ahead of me.I also think travelling will never close doors for your career. Unless you end up travelling for 15-20 years. It only really opens them, I was offerred a job in Indonesia after a chance encounter with a british guy. Who introduced me to his chinese-indonesian boss.
Consider this an upvote
Agree with all of this. There is no 'right' way to do anything, just the things that make you happy...
P.S. 31 and roaming
I cant talk from experience but I have a similar scenario. I am 25 in February, and have a career with guaranteed progression that I have been in over 8 years now. At the end of 2013 I went around Thailand for 5 weeks and ever since I came back I have just wanted to go again and I cannot get it out of my mind. I asked my boss for a lengthy amount of unpaid leave (6-12months) but they said no. which is fair enough as they are running a business. so long story shortened after a lot of thinking and weighing up pros and cons I asked on here, asked friends, relatives all giving a mixed answers and the only person who could make the decision at the end of the day was me...
well I have a 1 way flight booked on nov 2nd and wont be looking back.
so many people have said they regret not traveling when they was younger and I hope to have no regrets when im older.
hope this of some help and good luck
Thanks for your help, much appreciated.
I will be saving money and waiting until I have enough to do it, i'm not going to put a time limit on it, but I think ill be going by myself. That's the second question, its so daunting doing it by yourself, how do you overcome it?
Again, after travelling I realise its probably better, because I went with 5 friends and we hardly met anyone really, but to disappear for 6 months is a long time by yourself, any advice on this?
Thanks again,
Matt
Lol I don't think I read that part. Currently doing 6 months on my own and it's going swimmingly I really enjoy time on my own because I have met new people constantly throughout my trip so far. Honestly travelling alone, staying in hostels, these are the ways to meet people, but you can also take time out when you want (or need) it.
I think it’s best to get a job after graduating from college to build your credentials; then travel. Most employers want to hire people with at least some work experience. I worked for about four years after getting my degree, saved some money, then quit at age 25 to travel around the world for 18 months. When I returned, I quickly found another job in my profession, based on my work and travel experience. Traveling alone isn’t a problem, particularly if you have some basic social skills. It’s easy to make life-long friends on the road. When traveling with others, my motto is, “caring and sharing.”
You're right. At 23 you're way too old. Have you considered your plans for retirement yet? Best get cracking before it's too late.
Just get on a plane and go. Life's too short. Have fun.
Some advice from one who's done it already - this aged, poor guy from Oregon.
I always put travel ahead of everything, and now I must say that while travel has kept me in the poorhouse, it has been the world's best teacher. I would have the really bad habit of quitting jobs just so I could travel the world, and then in my early 50's I discovered that my skills were no longer worth a great deal, and now in my early 70's, I'm just plain poor, but still traveling. Traveling has kept me happy and young. I don't have the American dream of big house and bigger car, but I do have the knowledge that travel has given me. Would I do it all again - well, yes, but just a little differently.
My advice is to compromise, and if you live in the western world, you know just how expensive life can be. Just don't work yourself to death, or travel yourself into the poorhouse!
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