But what about working? Your career? Are you looking for a job here?
Questions similar to that have been brought up during my travels more often than I expected.
Then the questioner often continues by saying that they could never take time away from their career. They would have to start again from scratch and work their way up from the bottom.
Sometimes they look at me with pity in their eyes. Particularly if I let slip the price of the hostel where I live, or my daily budget.
I’ve had this conversation with two physicians, a judge, three lawyers, the list goes on.
None of them with actual experience with taking a timeout.
No matter what the future have in store, I’ve found that traveling like this is the best thing that’s happened to my career. I’m beginning to enjoy life a lot more. Learning what’s important and what’s not.
Important to me.
When – make that if – I go back to a normal job, I expect to enjoy it more. Which is worth everything.
Besides, since I quit my last job, the market for me has never been better. I’ve talked jobs with a lot more people than is common. Five to ten times more interesting opportunities than I used to get.
Is it international experience, or just plain existing that pays off?
I’ve so far said no to everyone, but recently started to say a tentative maybe.
I’ve completed the important part of my journey. Getting to know my family. If the assignment is challenging and fun, I’m game.
There is more than one way to explore the world and oneself.
Especially if the possibility should happen to be in an interesting city.
What offer would make you leave your current location and move to a different continent? I know my price, do you know yours?
Cheers,
Daniel
10 Comments
I love what you’re doing! You are really living life like it should be lived
Hypothetical question – if I could show you a way to replace the “bucket carrying” income of a normal job with a “pipeline” style residual income, would you go back to a 9 to 5 job?…… Some of those people you have talked to would no doubt have impressive incomes, but with no time to experience life is it really worth it in the end?
Great to hear that you get inspired.
I don’t really see myself getting back to a 9-5 job ever. Most likely I’ll go to an 9-9 job or even more. I’ll get myself a job where I’m passionate enough for that to be my normal workday. Probably an early stage startup. I’d love to have a future career of six months to a year of working, interleaved with six months to a year of not working.
Most pipeline style residual income streams I have seen reek of network marketing, which is just a fancy word for pyramid scheme. So not really my thing.
Investment in companies (i.e. the stock market and/or early stage seed capital) and education for myself though, that’s a good place to put my money.
Cheers,
Daniel
Hello Luna, how nice of you to share your life in this blog! Good to see you again my friend!
.
When people talk about their careers they mistakedly use that word for salary development. Which is part of a career, yes it is nice to get more money as you grow more experienced. But really, once you get past the well off limit (quite fast in our line of work, in our part of the world unless you are unable to keep your wallet in your pocket) other things are much more important. Like what we want to do, and how, and with whom. You don’t have to go around the world with a backpack to figure those answers out, but I’m sure it helps!
Most of us who say we are unable to do what you do now are just not admitting that we choose otherwise, or even worse: Aren’t even aware that we have made a choise! Not having the money is often b-shit, we just choose to buy nice new clothes, or get a haircut, or eat out every day or a million other small luxuries eating away on our budget. I don’t claim to be good at saving money, but at least I am able to see that I live a life in luxury and be happy about it.
Have fun, I’ll be following you!
And if you come close, there’s a nice “B&B” outside Kungsbacka (our house) which is well worth a visit!
/Mary
Great comment.
I also believe that the money turns irrelevant after a certain level. Anything above that is just gravy. It is hard to see that we do have the choice of something else when living the life of careerism.
You are probably right that you can do this soul searching without travel. I still believe in something I told a friend when I left Sweden: “I have to get away from Sweden to find myself, so that I can know that I don’t have to leave Sweden to find myself.”
Just som du säger, en paus i karriären, kan vara det bästa för den framtida riktningen i livet, den framtida karriären.
Mary skriver att man inte behöver åka runt jorden för det, och det finns absolut fler sätt. Att vara mammaledig har givit mig en underbar paus och möjlighet att fundera över framtida karriär. Det är vanligt för just föräldralediga, att de startar eget efter en sådan period. Förverkligar en dröm om något, exempelvis.
Bara gott alltså, att kliva ur ekorrhjulet. Men ack så svårt att se när man är mitt i det. Då tror man ofta att man inte kan missa ens en dag på jobbet utan att halka efter eller förlora ett uppdrag.
Din blogg har verkligen blivit inspirerande att följa!
Jo, det kan verkligen vara svårt att acceptera att det är ok att missa uppdrag (eller en bra fest) när man är mitt i det. Under min resa missar jag ju allting och jag tror att det nog är lättare att veta att jag inte ens kan vara närvarande även om jag ibland skulle vilja.
Det gör mig glad att du blir inspirerad av bloggen.
Cheers,
Daniel
To me it sounds like the people claiming you have to start from the bottom are colored by a very different workplace culture than technology. In a hierarchical system, if you drop out of a middle tier, you probably have to climb up again. In a less rigid system, it isn’t such a big deal. I suspect that South America is a bit more on the hierarchical side of things.
I know some people who have managed to mix work and time off quite effectively. Working 9 months, doing other things for 3 months, seems to be a common success formula for independent consultants with a good reputation and a steady circle of customers.
Great insights. I’m sad to say that some of the people I’ve spoken with have been tourists from Europe. So the belief that you have to go by the system is strong also back home.
I think that if you just don’t accept the system and do what you want, you can get anywhere. Or at least to a lot of great places. While having a lot of fun.
I am very lucky to have friends back home with a curvy career, and they have been my inspiration when I realised that I’m not going straight to the target.
Rather going around the target. And not really knowing what the target is…
Cheers,
Daniel
HejDaniel Du gör en spännande resa både på bussarna och inuti dig. Det ser ut som dutrivs med livet och jag blir glad av det.Jag saknar dig. pussar och kramar från mamma
Hej mamma,
Kul att du läser bloggen. Livet är rätt bra just nu. Underligt, men bra.
Kram,
Daniel