The yearning of scratching that wanderlust itch and venturing halfway across the globe to see new vistas, meet new people, and immerse yourself in new cultures can become too much to bear. Travel is one of the most life affirming experiences that you can ever undertake. In the twenty first century the world is becoming smaller as more and more destinations become accessible to the masses. When venturing overseas, it’s not unusual to become enamored with a place and want to spend longer there. The temptation to stay needn’t be one that you have to resist.
By taking some time out and choosing to make your presence in a destination more permanent, you can truly immerse yourself in the environment of a place. To fund this jaunt, you may choose to use your life savings, or perhaps more sensibly, you could take up a job where you plan to stay. You could take the plunge with something relatively menial in the first instance before working your way up in your chosen industry. As long as you have funds coming in, you can finance your dream of living abroad. Take a look at the sorts of things that you can do to make your travel adventures a way of life.
Teach
While the thought of having a classful of potential banshees to teach may fill you with dread, this sort of work can actually be the most fulfilling role that you can do abroad. Places such as Thailand, Indonesia, and the Far East are eager for native English speakers to teach English to their youth, businesspeople and college leavers. The work is fairly well paid in accordance with earnings in the destination you have chosen to teach in, and you will have plenty of free time to travel and immerse yourself in your selected culture.
You don’t have to teach little human beings if you find them too scary. Many corporate positions require native English speakers to teach business speak for the international stage. These positions may require a willingness to work evenings, but the hourly rate can be lucrative.
Make your job more permanent and you could be buying a good class bungalow in Indonesia, checking out the city studios in Tokyo, or renting a beachside condo in Bali. You cannot simply walk into a teaching role and do need to complete relevant qualifications. If you have a degree, it’s simple to enroll onto a TEFL course. You will learn the pedagogy needed to teach English specifically as a foreign language and enjoy meeting like-minded individuals on your course. Before you know it, you could be in Japan, Goa or Peru teaching and empowering your bank balance to travel.
Fruit Picking
While not the most salubrious of jobs, picking fruit can be one of the easiest roles to walk into. If you fancy backpacking across the outback of Australia or you want to take a jaunt across the Napa Valley of the United States, picking fruit can be an easy way to fund your travels. You don’t need any particular skills other than being physically fit and motivated to work long hours to earn your keep. Many of these roles also come as a package. You could get your bed and board for free as well as a decent pay packet. Working with travelers from across the globe means that you can create long lasting and meaningful friendships with fellow wanderlust seekers. Fruit picking might not be the most vibrant and exciting role to take on, but it is practical, easy and can help you achieve your travel dreams.
Secondments
If you already work for a company with international reach, you could inquire about taking a secondment in a foreign land. It doesn’t matter whether you work in administration, law, finance or investments, you can put the feelers out to spend some time in another office overseas. It always pays dividends if you can speak the language of the country that you are trying to secure a position in. While English is the business language of choice internationally, you will not find many English speakers in the head office of Huawei in Beijing. Take an introductory course to at least learn the basics, upskilling yourself and enhancing your chances of securing an international secondment.
Working abroad is an exciting concept. While it takes courage, determination and a willingness to overcome a few barriers, you can scratch that wanderlust itch, immerse yourself in new cultures and fill your wallet at the same time.
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