Is it okay for taking time off from work to travel? (1 Viewer)

[NutterButter]

My question is this, will employers look down on this and will I even be able to get a job when I get back? I plan on continuing sharpening my skills while on the road, I think my resume even now is pretty good, and I have good contacts who could probably help out getting a position.

Thoughts?

Most will. Few wont. Put yourself as an employer. So this guy took months off to go travel. Do I want to put money into this person who has a history of folding up shop and leaving? Can I trust this person with an important account?

Build the trust into the resume first. It's not like he's job hopping. A one-time trip of a lifetime is not a "history."A long trip that took years of thought, imagination, planning and saving, then having it come to fruition? As an employer you can sign me up for employees like this who think, set goals and accomplish them.

If it happened in the past it's history and could happen again. As an employer you can have him. I'll pick from the other 5 people with similar resumes and are stable.Look, I'm not saying don't do it, but OP has a legit concern.

This is exactly why you'd never tell a future employer the truth.

You better be a good liar or live in big city. Getting caught lieing in interviews will get you black-balled quickly.

C'mon, this is too easy. Just say your mom got sick and you had to take the time off to care for her. No one is ever going to ask for specifics and there's really no way to get caught.

 

[Fennis]

My question is this, will employers look down on this and will I even be able to get a job when I get back? I plan on continuing sharpening my skills while on the road, I think my resume even now is pretty good, and I have good contacts who could probably help out getting a position.



Thoughts?

Most will. Few wont. Put yourself as an employer. So this guy took months off to go travel. Do I want to put money into this person who has a history of folding up shop and leaving? Can I trust this person with an important account?

Depends on the job, depends on the career.....

absolutely. thats why I asked the OP what kind of work he does. For example, if he is tech people would like at it as a positive. If he flips burgers, it will be looked at as a negative.

It depends on the culture if the company. The idea that most tech companies would take it as a positive is definitely not true. While the tech industry image may be open and free-wheeling the good companies have very high standards and scrutinize considerably.If this is something he really wants to do he should do it, but it's highly likely to damage his career. Whether it's worth it or not is up to him.

[SIZE=10.5pt]That’s not my experience in tech.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.5pt]In most industries (I agree not all), someone out of college working for two years and then taking a year off to travel is not going to damage his career. [/SIZE]

 

[bosoxs45]

what kind of work do you do?

Vocational Rehabilitation Counseling. It's not the best paying job, but it's a career I enjoy doing by helping teens/young adults.

Btw, are you independent wealthy? 6+ months is long time to travel. You plan on working odd jobs while traveling?

Far from being independently wealthy, but my girlfriend who is.

 

[jonessed]

My question is this, will employers look down on this and will I even be able to get a job when I get back? I plan on continuing sharpening my skills while on the road, I think my resume even now is pretty good, and I have good contacts who could probably help out getting a position.



Thoughts?

Most will. Few wont. Put yourself as an employer. So this guy took months off to go travel. Do I want to put money into this person who has a history of folding up shop and leaving? Can I trust this person with an important account?

Depends on the job, depends on the career.....

absolutely. thats why I asked the OP what kind of work he does. For example, if he is tech people would like at it as a positive. If he flips burgers, it will be looked at as a negative.

It depends on the culture if the company. The idea that most tech companies would take it as a positive is definitely not true. While the tech industry image may be open and free-wheeling the good companies have very high standards and scrutinize considerably.If this is something he really wants to do he should do it, but it's highly likely to damage his career. Whether it's worth it or not is up to him.

Thats not my experience in tech.

In most industries (I agree not all), someone out of college working for two years and then taking a year off to travel is not going to damage his career.

The more skilled and competitive the industry the more impact it will have. This definitely includes tech. The high-end tech careers are just as demanding and competitive as any other industry. Maybe even more so.

It all depends on what he wants to do. Maybe he doesn't want to work at the highest levels. Many people don't. It can be stressful. Maybe he's a genius and can overcome the hiccup. It's unlikely, but possible. Maybe he has a friend/family connection he can use to get back in at the level he left.

There are exceptions, but quitting a job two years out of college to go on walkabout for six months will detrimentally impact most people's careers.

It still may be worth it though. That's up to him.

 

[johnnycakes]

what kind of work do you do?

Vocational Rehabilitation Counseling. It's not the best paying job, but it's a career I enjoy doing by helping teens/young adults.

Btw, are you independent wealthy? 6+ months is long time to travel. You plan on working odd jobs while traveling?

Far from being independently wealthy, but my girlfriend who is.

Whose idea is it to travel for six months, then? Is this something the girlfriend will do with or without you?

 

[NutterButter]

what kind of work do you do?

Vocational Rehabilitation Counseling. It's not the best paying job, but it's a career I enjoy doing by helping teens/young adults.

Btw, are you independent wealthy? 6+ months is long time to travel. You plan on working odd jobs while traveling?

Far from being independently wealthy, but my girlfriend who is.

Well done. Might as well get married before going on this sabbatical just to lock up that source of funding.

 

[Fennis]

what kind of work do you do?

Vocational Rehabilitation Counseling. It's not the best paying job, but it's a career I enjoy doing by helping teens/young adults.

[SIZE=10.5pt]Way to do meaningful work. From what I know, you’ll be able to find something when you get back. Social workers types are always hard to find. I vote go for it.[/SIZE]

.

 

[belljr]

So glad I don't like traveling. ..

 

[Thunderlips]

what kind of work do you do?

Vocational Rehabilitation Counseling. It's not the best paying job, but it's a career I enjoy doing by helping teens/young adults.

Btw, are you independent wealthy? 6+ months is long time to travel. You plan on working odd jobs while traveling?

Far from being independently wealthy, but my girlfriend who is.

Go for it. Something like that might burn you out in the long run if you don't strive "for yours". Plus....I'm sure that's a career that you could go anywhere in the country and be in demand.

 

[Otis]

Pics? If she's both hot and wealthy, time to engage.

 

[mr fancypants]

I've traveled a lot in my life. I've never been interested in staying in any other country more than a week. I did 10 days in Bogotá and that was just too long.

Albeit, most of my travel has been for work but I always manage to find some free time.

I think you should just find a job that requires a lot of travel. You'll get rid of that travel bug quickly.

Anything more than 2 months shows up a "gap" in your resume. Saying you took 6 months off to travel tells me you're a flaky rich kid with no work ethic.

Yeesh, if anybody on this board exudes living life on the fringe it's ARon. Now that I see he is a company man, I'm speechless.