Traveling Smart Can Change Your Life
In spite of this lofty goal, what really happens to most of those students? They finish up their brief tour of the world, come back home, and then fit neatly right back into their old lives and their old patterns and habits. Instead of actually allowing the experience to change them, most people retain only the memories. Sure, they might references changes in perspective—but how many people actually choose a new life path?
If you’re thinking about traveling after your undergraduate studies are complete, why not actually take the plan seriously? If you’re trying to “find yourself,” why not actually plan to do something about it if you do? Go somewhere that excites you, and aim not only to get away from it all, but to bring back something genuine with you—maybe a new aim in life or a new career path. That doesn’t mean abandoning everything you’ve learned in your undergraduate studies. You can build on those studies instead and gain direction and not just perspective from your travels. Let’s look at a couple of examples.
Choosing a Career
Susie has just graduated with a bachelor’s degree in History, and wants to travel the world and visit some of the exciting locations she’s read about in her textbooks, and see some of the ruins of lost civilizations. Susie’s travels take her to impoverished areas of the world, where Susie sees a lot of crime and inequality. This makes Susie interested in finding a way to bring justice and tranquility to poor areas in her own country. Susie realizes that History can be used as “pre-law,” and decides to go back to school to study Law.
Choosing a Niche
Kevin has just graduated with a biology degree, but has no clue what he wants to do with it. He decides to go traveling before he settles on a career. While traveling, Kevin visits a number of national parks in the UK, and realizes that his passion is for preservation. When Kevin is done traveling, he does some postgraduate work in ecology and then applies for a job at his favorite park. Once he is accepted, he moves there and is able to immerse himself in the environment and work he loves.
Many people look on traveling after secondary school or college as something frivolous, something to cross off of a personal “bucket list,” but it can be much more than that. Instead of traveling just to change your perspective, why not consider taking a trip that could change not only how you think, but also what you do? Come up with a travel plan that could help you to figure out what you really want to do with your life. Then, when you get back, take some postgrad courses which can help you realize your new dream!
Blake H. is a freelance journalist and occasional blogger specializing in topics related to business and education. He currently writing on behalf a company offering postgraduate courses.
