I quit a good job at age 25 to go backpacking through Europe and, needless to say, it wasn’t waiting for me when I returned. But if you do your job well and make as many industry contacts as possible, you should land on your feet. Just be sure to save as much money as possible before quitting and try to have at least a couple grand remaining when you return, in case it takes a few months to rebound (as it did for me). And if you have student loans, get those paid off early. While you travel ‘round Europe they just continue to accruing interest.

I use to travel to work for extended periods.
Radu[url=‘http://www.outdoorholiday.com’]Adventure Tours[/url]

I dream about it…

Have faced same issue. I solved it by working overseas for the US government for 12 years.

angelfire.com/film/casale

quote:
Have faced same issue. I solved it by working overseas for the US government for 12 years.

angelfire.com/film/casale

Thats cool..so you took the foreign service exam? What branch did you work in…I’d like to hear about that experience….from getting a job to how it was. Thanks.

The plum jobs are indeed those in the State Department. Very tough to land, however. Although in the process of downsizing, the military still hires a good number of civilians in GS and other positions at their military bases overseas. The positions I found were in Vicenza, Italy and Mons, Belgium.

that doesnt sound like a bad idea, thats always something i could look into. how did you go about that? do they look for people with a variety of skills, since im working in sales im not exactly sure howd thatll translate into the State Dept.

im lookin at their website and i see info about foreign service officers. is that the program you did?

Matt..I must have missed what was on his site, but this link will tell you more about working as a foreign service officer

http://careers.state…

quote:
Matt..I must have missed what was on his site, but this link will tell you more about working as a foreign service officer

http://careers.state…

hey thanks.. ive been lookin through that site for the past hour actually.. haha. it looks like a pretty interesting job and its appealing for your job to actually mean something on a global level as opposed to the job i’m in now. i’m pretty open to places i’d like to go but i dont know if id like being sent some places (i.e. Africa) for an extended period of time. its a huge committment…

Hello,

I am in the process of figuring out how I am going to do the same type thing. That is, that I am in my mid-twenties, have a job (in the field of education), and am looking to quit, probally this coming January. I am looking into getting a working-holiday visa in Australia and working there for about 3 months. The good thing is that New South Wales public school system advertises job opportunities for working holiday visitors, thus, I can still work in the field of education and obtain more experience.

Yes, sure, quitting a job you enjoy or are good at is probally not the "wisest" in some people’s eyes, especially one with health benefits and retirement funds. However, you are in your twenties, a time of the most rapid change and possibilities. A time to discover just who you are, who you are meant to be, and what you really want. Some people have said to me "If you don’t do it now then you will never do it". Others have said "that is a big risk and you are nuts".

I am taking a little bit of both comments and am running with it. I figure, if I carefully plan, save, tie up all my loose ends, don’t burn any industry bridges, and be open to changes when I return, I will be fine and perhaps I will fall into an even better place.

It is a risk, but take it now, because one day you may wind up settling down with a mate, getting a house, having kids, etc etc etc, all both emotional and financial responsibilities, and at times, burdens.

I think the advice and information that people provided on here was great and I hope you decide to do it.

Take care and happy travels!!!

Do it…you’ll never regret it. We quit jobs, sold a condo, and put stuff in storage for a 10 month rtw. It was the BEST thing I ever did. Having a solid plan for when you return is a good idea though as it took us some time to readjust to "life" again…still working in it!

look at it this way. If you were ever to do somerthing like quitting a job to travel, you better do it when you are young. You will just aquire more and more `burdens` like debt, marriage, and babies as you get older that will inhibit your freedom. Jobs come and go, freedom is a different story. It is definetly wise to have some kind of plan for when you return. I am now living in Japan for a couple of years, and will do a 2-3 month sutheast asia/Europe/US trip when I am done. I am planning however to go to graduate school afterwords. (We`ll see about that). Good luck with your decision.

I’m 28 and have quit my jobs several times to go travelling long term. This time around I managed to get my job back after 7 months of travelling, but I wasn’t counting on it – things just worked out that way. I like my job, stress free, pays ok and is a great environment but I plan to give it the boot again early next year to work abroad yet again.

I figure that, if you manage to get a good job once, there’s no reason to think you won’t get another good job after you return. I know that travel breaks aren’t looked upon as favourably in the US as they are in other places, but so what? Unless you plan on working with one company for the rest of your life, then you’re going to quit at some point, and travel is as good a reason as any!

Do it, you won’t regret it!
Kirsty

http://www.travoholic.com

I agree with Micah – do it while you’re young, because once you marry and have kids, it will be a long time before you feel like you can be gone more than 3 weeks at a time. I wish I’d done it in my youth. I’m 46 now and making do with 2 or 3-week European vacations every two or three years.

I’m a Human Resources Director and, from that standpoint, I’d say to decide what you want to be doing when you return and where you want to do it. Then form a relationship with a manager at a place you’d like to work and let them know what you are planning. That way, you won’t be starting completely from scratch when you return. But I wouldn’t count on finding that job before you leave. Most companies don’t know their needs several months in advance.

I did it last year, and it was so hard to get back on my feet again… A year later I am finally starting to get on my feet. Not that it took me a year to find a job, just to find one that suited me and viceversa. Now that I have a stable job, I’m not sure I would toss everything away and start all over again. But then again, I’m not sure I want to be doing this for the next 50 years. Time will tell, I guess.

What I am hoping for is to get transfered to London. It seems like it’s gonna be a tough one, but who knows. I guess I’m trying to plan a trip, but not for 3 months, but leaving for good.

In the beginning of the summer I was on the fence about this,well I just returned 2 days ago jobless broke and tired.But have never been happier.Each time I go I seem to find a better job in the end.

By all means, do what’s in your heart, but also be wise and have a backup plan…start thinking about how you will support yourself when you get back. I’m not saying don’t go to Europe…you just need t plan, that’s all. (it seems like you’re already doing this, so good for you.) Have you thought about going to grad school and doing a study-abroad program or internship in Europe? You’ll be killing two birds with one stone: career and pleaure.

You need to balance work and pleasure, not because you should "think about your career," but because you need to work to survive…which is exactly what you need to do: work to live, don’t live to work. Now, as for "climbing up the corporate ladder," I’m not gonna worry about that until I turn 30, and you shouldn’t either. Hell, I graduated college 3 years ago, and still don’t know what I want to do with my life. Something travel-oriented would be ideal.

Oh my gosh go for it! I am 42 and finally realizing my dreams to travel abroad. I have a friend whose brother has traveled for years, self employed by teaching conversational English to corporate types in all different countries. No books, tests etc just talking to them. Apparently it is easy for these types to learn text book English but many want to refine their speech to make their English more natural. I have no idea how to get started with that, but it’s just a thought.

There have been a lot of really great posts, but figured I would toss my two-cents in. A few years ago I had a pretty good job as a software developer, and I had announced my intentions of quitting and heading to Europe for awhile. I gave them about an 8-month notice (originally I was thinking of doing it in September but quickly realized travelling in the winter months wasn’t the wisest of choices). At first, my co-workers and managers were saying it was a great idea and to do it while I don’t have any attachments. As the time got closer and closer, everyone was trying to convince me not to go. Once the day hit I left and went to Europe. I had actually bought a one-way ticket expecting to find a job. But after two months I started to miss my friends and family and wanted to see them again. Once month three hit I flew back for my friend’s wedding and my employer ended up contacting me and offered my old job back. By then money had almost run out, so I took it and have been there ever since. Hopefully before I’m 28 or 29 I’ll make it back over there for an extended period of time. I’ve got a few years left of saving, but I look forward to the day I board that plane again.

-Dan

thanks for all the responses guys, its been great hearing some actual stories to kind put things in perspective. The thing is im not actually in my dream career or anything right now anyway and if i plan on shifting gears in a year or two, with enough saving and planning i bet i could make it work. even if i had to get a crappy job waitin tables just to make ends meet for a couple months i’d be able to make it work. who knows, even if my job didnt hold my position open maybe when i got back and contacted them we could work something out, who knows. sometimes the greatest risks reap the greatest rewards. i dont know if i’m just being optimistic but i feel like i’d be able to recover esp if i’m not just doing it on a whim, but i should really work my ass off for the next couple of years to really make myself valuable to my current job if only to make myself more attractable to other potential employers if i am forced to switch companies.

i guess it really should come down to what i want and not be afraid to be a little selfish. my last trip was amazing and i definitely impacted my life in a positive way i just feel like its an experience i HAVE to have again.