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Chief
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WEAR A MASK!!!!!!
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WHY ARE STOCKS DECLINING???
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... Maybe I need to be responsible for my own happiness, versus looking to my work for fulfillment? I admire friends and colleagues who talk about their twenties with so much nostalgia and color. What stories will I tell? I worked like a dog and learned a few recipes? I know life on the road would be a challenge, but I think I need the personal growth. Has anyone done this? Any advice? Finding the latest cool city restaurant isn’t cutting it anymore.
OP Are you secretly writing my biography? Because it’s incredibly similar to my life too. Totally down for life on the road and feel like there’s nothing stopping me from making the leap except for well..me.
Rising Star
I think all of this sounds fine if YOU are doing it for YOU. And not necessarily just because you want a “cool” story to tell other people.
@EY1 Not exactly the message I intended—I genuinely love exploring new restaurants (among other places) with folks. But maybe you have a point. I like the stability and creature comforts that others may be more inclined to put aside as they backpack through Europe. And I do find fulfillment in being good at my work. Maybe a life on the edge isn’t for me, but at the end of the day I need to get out of my shell a bit. Lean into something new... whatever that looks like.
Chief
Alternatively, move overseas and work in another market. That will give you some stories to tell while you’re there and then more stories if and when you eventually move back to the US.
Enthusiast
Wife and I decided we wanted to have an adventure before we had kids (she's pregnant with our first right now). We moved to Hawaii for 2018 and 2019. Best 2 years of my life. Do something fun and outside the box. You will not regret it.
Chief
Even better, Hawaii is still technically overseas.
Chief
I think this all sounds exciting but do it for you BUT I have great friends from High School who started their own business. We are all 50 now; 1 is retired but two have struggled financially for decades. The one who is retired is married with kids. The other two aren’t married and not dating at the moment. I took the boring road - I am happily married with kids. Worked in B4 as a lawyer most of my career. I have a great career. Make great $$$, traveled the world, etc. I have had a great life to date - but “did everything right” as you said.
My friends and I talk about it, the grass always appears greener. They look at what I have with envy but I never had the gumption to start and run my own business. The retired one was an early employee at AOL. Cashed out at a good time. While smart he was lucky and he knows it. So we don’t count him :)
So I would say go make some stories, but just keep in mind what your long/er term goals are and try make sure this helps you achieve them too. Your long term goals may also change once you have been in the road for a bit too.
In the end it is your life; to the best of my knowledge, it is the only one you get, so you need to do what makes you happy and keeps you healthy, mentally and physically.
Good luck OP!
Thanks for this insight! Guess the grass is always greener... I’ve got some thinking to do. And thankfully, some time to do it while I save up
Chief
Make sure RV life is right for you. I have thought about it but not the best fit for me despite a lot of the advantages of travel that way. Sounds like you’d still be working at the same time too so one more thing to balance.
Instead of working and traveling at the same time, my spouse and I worked hard and saved, then quit our jobs and just traveled for a year together in our 20s. We saw all the continents, splurged on reasonably nice accommodations, ate where we wanted, and enjoyed the world. Blew through a chunk of our savings but it was worth it.
Got back into “normal” life within a few months of being back. No regrets.
OP not right now. Prior RVing activities
I’m kinda in the opposite ship right now didn’t really take school and work seriously made just enough to afford everything I wanted. Difference is that I traveled extensively. I took that generous PTO and ran it through it’s paces big time. I’m unemployed now and can’t travel which is what I would normally do right now. Job apps suck because I’m not the “traditional” applicant at 27 post college. I live in a incredibly competitive city (Miami) the jobs that have called for interviews have been relocation jobs so we’ll see.
TLDR: I suggest taking a long sabbatical after covid explore the world while you’re young. It’s hard to hike when you’re 70.
Great to hear the flip side, thanks :). Maybe I need a real vacation
The consulting industry could create a whole new culture of travellers in the US. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Romanichal
Part of me wonders if this would even be a value-add in some ways? Realistically I’ll be spending months at a time in one location for reliable internet and some stability, but could go anywhere within continental US for extended periods if it makes sense for the project...???
Go for it!
Chief
If not now, when?
Do it. And good luck.
Get out now. You have enough experience in consulting to last a lifetime. Joining consulting immediately after work gives you a mindset that helps you succeed anywhere else.
I have OK career, would like to have it at a better place, BUT, have million stories to tell, lived in different countries, been to most of the states, and most the the major national parks in US, and all the continents. When you are old, that’s what you gonna remember, not the billable hours and overtime you put in. By the way, after 10 years in this city, still don’t know the best restaurants, but know how to cook food from different countries. JUST DO IT! And don’t think twice!
I’m the same way - I’ve wanted to live the dirtbag lifestyle, but not sure I could ever pull the trigger.
I think it sounds awesome. Do it.