Lesson #15:

Lesson #15: Hone Your Craft While Indulging Your Passion

That title was hard to write and perhaps a bit confusing. It's often hard to create a title that encapsulates everything I want to write about in a concise and interest-grabbing way.

What the title could have been is: Things I'm Going to Share With You About Ways to Expand Your Life While Also Doing Something You Love

...that still may sound confusing. Alas, let me just begin. 

Seems I'm on a particular theme here recently, that being TRAVEL. My blog is about much more than just travel, however, I find myself harping on it because it really has helped to form the me that is vibrant, curious, life-loving and a bit more interesting than if I had just stayed at home. And since my blog is about learning lessons and sharing them with the world, why not share some more on my favorite topic! (Travel...if you hadn't already guessed). 

So, you want to finally do it. You've finished school (college or high school) and you are ready to open up your world. You've decided you want to work with kids now you want resources. Here are some tools to help you navigate these opportunities. Other sites I will reference have even more information to help you out. Just do some good research then, BAM, go for it! 

1. BUNAC Work Experience

Bunac is an organization in which I have participated. It grants you a temporary work visa in another country, (those being in the Commonwealth) and guides you in the process of finding a job, housing, and basically setting you up for a 6 month- yearlong work experience in another country. It's FABULOUS but is limited to certain restrictions, depending on the country:

•  Age Restrictions (must be 18+ and often under 30)
• Financial Responsibility (must have secured funds to support yourself for a given amount of time)
• Must be recent college graduate (sorry...you can't go if you've graduated 2-3 years ago)

I'd recommend doing further research on the country you'd like to work in and find out what their requirements are. The advantage to securing this type of working visa is that you have tons of jobs available for you to choose from. They have live job listings available for each country so that you can secure something before leaving.


Check out the current job listings for Australia:

AVAILABLE JOBS

Current Available Jobs = 713

State AllNew South WalesAustralian Capital TerritoryNorthern TeritoryQueenslandSouth AustraliaTasmaniaVictoriaWestern Australia

Generic Jobs 06-06-2013 Housekeeping QLD - Mt Tamborine Required a casual Housekeeper for approximately 24 hours per week. Weekend work is required although no nights/evenings are included. 06-06-2013 Wait staff QLD - Beaumaris Experienced wait person and assistant floor manager for busy Restaurant. Full time and Part time positions. Looking for outgoing and service orientated persons. Must able to work in fast pace environment and have own transport. 06-06-2013 Waitstaff QLD - Cairns Looking for a waiter/waitress Previous experience in a similar role essential. You will be required to; Greet guests Provide full a la carte service Upsell products Offer Food and Wine knowledge Cocktail knowledge Use a POS system Handle cash Work in a team Clean 06-06-2013 Waiting staff QLD - Cairns Seeking waiting staff Experience in contemporary Australian dining and food and wine knowledge essential. Approximately 30 hours a week available for the right candidate with the wage rate $20 - $25 per hour. You will be required to: Greet customers Follow an order of service Share knowledge of Food and Wine Use a POS system Handle money Be a team player Make cocktails 06-06-2013 Short order cook QLD - Sunshine Coast Must be experience cooking fish and chips ,operating 3x deep fryers and grill cooking.Immediate start.

Granted these may not be your dream jobs, but it's just the first few I came across. And, you aren't limited to just the jobs that appear in the job post site. The world is your oyster. 

2.  CCUSA

I have not experienced this organization personally but I have heard about it. If you are interested in working with kids, starting out at summer camps is one of the best routes. You get lots of resume-building kid experience (if that's what you're also looking for) plus it's FUN. This organization seems to have a plethora of camps, located in the USA and abroad. If traveling outside the US is too much at first, why not try a stint in the USA. That way you have it under your belt and maybe the following year, with more experience and know-how, you'll be ready to take that next step. 

3. Go Abroad

This organization links you up to volunteer, teaching or intern experiences. It can also direct you to securing a TEFL teaching certificate in order to teach English in other countries. Seems like a pretty sweet deal to me. 

4.  Great Au Pair or Nannyjob

There are also other resources for Au Pairing, these are just the two that I have used. Please see my post here or here for more information on becoming an Au Pair.  

5. I-to-I

This is another great resource. It has a lot of volunteering options, but can easily connect you to work with kids and can make that part of your travels. If you have money already saved up but would like the experience of working with kids, either for your resume, for your personal well-being, or because you want to give back, this is a great organization. We used them often when I was a travel agent for STA Travel. 

Now that I've given a few resources, here is some personal advice: 

If you feel you don't have any experience working with kids and think you won't be qualified or won't know what to do, try volunteering at a local Boys and Girls Club, school, or church. See if they need help with any of their functions that involve children. Ask a teacher you know if they need help in the classroom or if you can come read to the class one day. Become a mentor. Or a tutor. Of course, be prepared for some no's due to security. Also be prepared to be heavily screened. But that is a necessity and I'd rather go through the annoying screening to know that our kids are being kept safe. Once you feel like you've spent enough time around kids to feel confident (it shouldn't take that long, they're a pretty easy audience) then go out and start applying for some of the jobs listed above. 

What's that? You want to teach kids? As in a profession here in the States? Well...that is a whole 'nother post for a whole 'nother day. But it's a wonderful profession and I'd be happy to share that information in the near future. 

But for now, all you dreamers, wind catchers, wanderlusters, do your research and get out there. The world awaits. 

“Some girls need men to take them places. Others just click their heels, spread their own wings, and fly." - Coco J. Ginger

Lesson #14:

Lesson #14: Think Outside The Box 

Travel is a beautiful thing. I've mentioned it already on this blog, but I wanted to reiterate the importance of this topic because it matters to me and I hope it inspires you. 

I think it is essential for the opening of the heart and the expansion of the mind to get out of your day-to-day routine and narrow perspectives.There are a lot of people out there who assume that my travels in my early to mid 20s was because I had wealthy parents. That is false. My parents paid for two semesters of study abroad and then said "Fin". I studied abroad one more semester (I couldn't help myself) and this time financed it all alone. It wasn't easy - I had to work and save all the money I was earning. I had to apply for grants and scholarships (which I received) and I had to be proactive about budgeting. But it was worth it to me. And I made it happen. 

There are many, many ways you can make your dreams happen. Some people say, "I'll never travel the world, or never get to go to that place I've always wanted to go, because I'll never be rich enough." FALSE! The world is a big and wonderful place full of opportunity and you just have to put yourself out there in it to experience all it has to give to you. Seek out opportunities, and then (like I've said before) JUST DO IT. 

I opted to travel around by myself for a year in 2005. I had to do a variety of jobs, some great, some not. But I managed to support myself the entire year and managed to see amazing places, meet amazing people and have experiences that I will remember for a lifetime. 

One of the ways I managed to travel for so long was by becoming an Au Pair. It was great because I was saving money on living expenses while also earning money to be used later on in my travels. 

I've written about this experience in a guest post for the blog Escape Normal. If you have not already visited this blog, I strongly encourage you to check it out. It has all sorts of ideas for ways to incorporate travel into your life. Ways that perhaps you may not have ever dreamed of...

Did you know you can work on farms during harvest seasons for room and board? 

Did you know you can work at summer camps in other countries? I've even seen a few on the coast of France....hello!

The important thing is that if you dream of doing this, by gosh-golly, go do it. You really do only live once (and I know that's a slogan now, or at least I've seen it on T-shirts and wrist bands...YOLO!) but regardless....it's true. If you don't think you're going to land on that giant pot of gold any time soon, then do it without the gold! 

People are very willing to take your picture when traveling solo. I didn't feel bad asking on several occasions.

An interesting mode of transportation...Santorini, Greece

On the Via dell'Amore, Cinque Terre, Italy

Someone got a kick out of making this statue (Manneken Pis, Brussels)

Rome, Italy

Salamanca, Spain

Beautiful sunsets...this one in Sevilla, Spain was amazing

Costa Brava, Spain

Plenty of time to figure out how to be a true Italian, Rome, Italy

Tours seem cheesy, but you actually do quite a lot and meet great people. Plus...excellent photo ops! Scotland

Wandering streets...Spain

Again...never miss an opportunity to witness a sunset. This one is in Scotland.

 Thanks to Jacqueline over at Escape Normal (www.escapenormal.com) for allowing me to write on my experience as an Au Pair! I hope it inspires anyone out there who is interested in stepping outside that box and experiencing the life they dream of. 

"Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose." -Steve Jobs

Lesson #8

Lesson #8: Travel Doesn't Have to be an Exclusive Luxury

"Certainly, travel is more than the seeing of sights; it is a change that goes on, deep and permanent, in the ideas of living." – Miriam Beard

So I have to go on a little rant here that is inspired by a friend I know. We may be opposite in so many ways, but we also have many things in common, hence our ability to sustain a friendship. And I have learned that through our extreme differences, I have been able to grow as a person. If you are in a vacuum of thoughts and beliefs and actions that are similar or the same as your own, you aren’t able to grow, you continue to bolster your own shared opinion without actually having to think about it. Whereas, with someone who is constantly differing in opinions and actions, you are challenged to either defend your beliefs, or change. In doing so you must take a good, introspective look at the ins and outs, and reasons and emotions that shape these thoughts and attitudes you hold so dear.

So what does this have to do with travel??

Well, anyone who knows me also knows that I love to travel. I spent most of my formative years traveling and in fact many of my early twenties were spent bumming around the world, poor but happy , because I was seeing and experiencing so many new things and meeting so many new people. My views and opinions about everything were changing and then changing again and constantly being reshaped by my growing and evolving perspective.  

My friend often views travel differently. Whenever I bring up wanting to take a trip or ideas about travel in general, this friend becomes flustered and bothered. They claim it as a frivolous expense and one that people can do when they are extremely wealthy, or retired, but not right now.  They go on to explain that their family didn’t do a lot of traveling growing up, that’s not how they were raised, and that they didn’t have money for extravagant things like that. However, this friend has no problem spending $600 on a nice pair of shoes (because they are a quality pair of shoes and  will be worn for a long time), or a nice pair of jeans, or going out to nice restaurants or bars on the weekend. I, in turn, balk at these expenses and call them just as frivolous, then my friend looks at me like I’m the crazy one now.

When I tell anyone that I grew to love travel because I was able to travel as a child, I get many responses like, “Oh that must’ve been nice having all that money to travel. Seems nice.” And they quickly dismiss it as something wealthy people do just because they have the money to do it. Well, for most of my childhood we were not wealthy and we still did A LOT of traveling. But, many of our travels were like this:

Let’s load up the Honda with two tents, sleeping bags, a cooler and whatever else can fit and drive to Ohio (from Texas) where we can stay with our uncle. So, along the way we stopped to camp. We stopped at road side stands and stores to get food for picnics. We pulled over for historical markers. We went on back road detours to find quirky museum my dad had read about. We met interesting people that talked funny (they call it “Pop”!) and after 10 days of traveling like this, to and from Ohio, we had ourselves quite an adventure.

I doubt my mom would call it a luxury vacation (I’m sure she missed her blow dryer, coffee pot and hot shower while we camped). But it was important for my dad to take us on trips like this while growing up. In doing so, it has made me into the curious, intellectually stimulated, open-minded, free-thinking, world loving individual that I am today. And it has made me truly appreciative of what travel gives to us.

Now, in saying that, I must also point out that there are differences in types of travel, and this will help to delineate a big difference between me and my friend.  I think all travel, as mentioned before, is good for the soul. 

However, I think some types of travel offer you more internal reward than others. Here is my thought:

So, my friend probably went on a few vacations growing up; they've mentioned a couple resort type vacations. And there is nothing wrong with those- we also went on those types of vacations. But I don’t think you’re going to be opened to learning things, seeing new perspectives, broadening your horizons, given mental clarity, appreciating the beauty and simplicity of nature on a trip to the casinos or an all-inclusive in Cancun. It is fun though, don't get me wrong, and isn't a bad thing to do! Maybe that’s the difference that we’re experiencing. Their idea of a vacation is an excuse to get away from work or school or life and do nothing related to work, school, etc. - just to let out excess stress and decompress. This is needed, I think, to stay sane and continue to be productive in life. Reducing stress is good for overall health and happiness so I’m not saying all travel needs to be for the greater purpose of expanding your horizons and becoming a more well-rounded person. But, I do think this other type of travel, the kind that changes you and gives you reason to think and believe differently, is important for everyone to experience at some point in their lives. That’s why study abroad is so popular at University. I know some think of it as a chance to have an easier course-load and goof off under the guise of “studying” in a foreign country. And, yeah, when I studied abroad my coursework was a lot easier so I spent less time in the library. But the things I learned during those three semesters were far more valuable to me and have enriched my life in ways I can’t enumerate.

Maybe that’s the issue. I have a hard time really explaining how this one type of travel - one that involves cultural immersion and personal expansion, going someplace that challenges you or introduces you to something you’ve never experienced before - benefits you more than just taking off work and paying to go somewhere else to blow off steam by a pool or in a casino. How this type of travel is essential to building your character and giving you a life well lived. Some may disagree and add that we are spoiled in thinking that traveling the world is going to somehow make us better people. I agree with that too – perhaps traveling to the wrong side of the tracks or to some of the ethnic neighborhoods in your city would be just as beneficial to opening one’s eyes as would a round-the-world ticket.  And, if you can manage it, why not a bit of both?

I think seeking knowledge and always yearning for a new perspective is part of growing and fulfilling the destiny of becoming your greatest self.  

So, that being said, let’s plan that next vacation.

Pack up the car! We're going on an adventure!

Lesson #5:

Lesson #5: Really Learn a New Language (or Learn a New Language Part II)

So yesterday I talked about the importance of learning a new language and why it has meant so much to me. Well, afterwards I thought about it and realized that I have quite a bit of experience in learning new languages. I have a little bit of advice to give with regards to how I've gone about learning new languages and what has worked (and not worked) for me. I can't promise any of my techniques will have the same results with everyone out there, but I can offer my detailed opinion of the experience.

To preface this list of language learning techniques, I'd like to add that along with Italian, which I began learning when I was 20, I've also spent some time learning a couple other languages, including Spanish and French. I have dabbled in learning German, only because I was there traveling for a while and it seemed like another important global language. I'd like to say I have tried some of the more difficult languages such as Chinese or Arabic but I haven't even begun to tackle those yet. Someday, perhaps.

This list covers methods I've used in all languages. I'll start my list in today's post with the most effective means of learning a new language that I've found, and work my way down in following posts. That's not to say that the other methods don't add or enhance language learning. I think together they all make it easier to tackle a new language. But if you can only do one I'd start with:

1. Immersion

This is by far the easiest way to learn a language rapidly. Not only does it allow you to hear the language being spoken all around you throughout the day, but you have the opportunity to speak it yourself and learn from your mistakes. You can also meet real people which gives you more motivation to try to practice speaking and they can help you along the way, showing you the correct way of saying things. They can also teach you things about the spoken language that a book just can't show you. How to develop accents or ways to use slang...these are all things learned "on the job" so to speak.

Some ways that I've tried immersion:

• Study Abroad Programs- obviously if you are still in school this is the way to go. You get college credits while also getting to explore a new culture and learn a new language. There are so many opportunities for study abroad, and many offer generous financial assistance or grants and scholarships that you can apply to. My study abroad program in 2004 was completely covered by a grant because I had done such a good job representing the study abroad office at my school after I came back from my first stint in 2002. Visit your study abroad office and see what's available or look through brochures of schools that have programs and see how you could manage a credit transfer for a semester. If money is really the biggest issue, there are many ways to try to overcome this. You can use the aforementioned resources of loans, grants or scholarships or you can use the internet. There is a website: www.gofundme.com. There you can fundraise whatever money you may need, as long as you are able to plug your purpose and reach out to people. It's good practice for the real world, too, where you need network support for just about everything you do. 

• Language Schools- Too old to study abroad but still want to get the same experience? I've been there too. I've found that there are tons of language immersion schools within practically every country of the world where you can go to learn the language during the day, stay with a group or home stay, and meet a lot of cool people to hang out with at night. It's really the best way to vacation, I think, but also the BEST way to learn a new language. Here are some of the language schools I have been to and experienced. I loved them all: 
• http://www.culturaitaliana.eu
• www.babylon-idiomas.com
• https://www.unistrapg.it/en
• www.scuola-toscana.com

          By doing a google search you can find a lot out there. Make sure you check for reviews and
          other qualifications. Another good place to start look is the STA website. There they have
          options to look into language learning programs that they have tested and know to be of good
          quality.  You can do these for as little as one week, or many months, even a year...who knows?!
          I found all the programs I completed to be very accommodating and extremely friendly. At one
          point during the Sevilla program I wanted to visit the Salamanca campus they had. But I had
          already paid for that week in Sevilla. They were able to transfer me with no problem and I got to
          continue my Spanish lessons but in a brand new awesome city.

• Volunteering- Unfortunately my only experience with this is when I was already in Rome and was seeking activities to do. My friend and I volunteered at the cat sanctuary in Rome. It was a good way to practice speaking the language. However, there are far better volunteer programs that put you in places where you will instantly be immersed. Some programs offer language classes in the morning, then volunteer activities in the afternoon. Others are straight up volunteering, but I think any of these experiences is worth it. I'm looking into a few of these myself! 
• www.globalvolunteers.org - I've been in contact with this group. They are great so far!
• http://www.statravel.com/volunteer - 
• www.gviusa.com
• http://www.wwoofinternational.org - this one looks like fun! I love working outside.
• Check with your local church to find out about mission trips. 

• Au Pair- I also did this to help with finances while traveling and boy did it turn out to be the best way to learn a language! I actually learned more from those kids than any other class I took. The point of being an Au Pair is to share your language and culture with the kids so they get an international exchange. But, it really works both ways. I found that I NEEDED to learn the language pretty fast since these kids were in my care. The way I found my Au Pair gigs was through these two sites (although many find them through word of mouth): 
• www.greataupair.com
• www.nannyjob.co.uk

• Work Abroad- Unfortunately if you are an American, it is a bit more difficult to find work in Europe, Australia, Canada simply because of work visa requirements. I did a work abroad stint using a temporary work visa offered through the UK and the Commonwealth. It is called BUNAC. It is a work visa with pretty particular requirements (I believe it is geared towards college aged or just having graduated college). I met that criteria just barely and decided to go for it. Pretty cool opportunity if you ask me! Just make sure you have your ducks in a row. don't expect to make a lot of money - I made just enough to support me continuing to live abroad. Nothing extra. NOTHING. 

• Teaching Abroad- There are, of course, other work abroad options for those with qualifying degrees. One that I really want to do that I still have not is teaching english abroad. There are several programs to get you certified. Having not tried either, I cannot recommend one or the other. TEFL certification is one, TESOL is another, and CELTA is one more that I have heard of. I'd love to learn more about these options. 

So, as you can see, as far as immersion options go, there are A LOT of choices out there available to you that can really kick start your language learning. I'm sure there are many more that I didn't post here, only because I don't have experience with them. I sure wish I had more photos to share of my experiences with these options, unfortunately that was during film camera days and most of those photos have yet to make the transition to a digital copy. Eventually.

Stay tuned for next post on language learning techniques! If immersion is something you can't do right now, fear not! There are other ways!

Volunteering in Italy. Check out this blog: Beers and Beans

"One language sets you in a corridor for life. Two languages open every door along the way." - Frank Smith