I arrived home from my walk that beautiful autumn day and headed straight to the drawing board. It was time to devise a plan!
Step #1: Research Tour Guides
I fell in love with the idea of becoming a tour guide on my very first group tour. This tour was the incredibly epic Contiki Big Chill 2014! I admired my tour manager and thought that he had the coolest job in the world! It would be so much fun to meet people from around the world, lead them across countries, leave a lasting impact on their travel experience and inspire them to travel more! It was my dream job! This love was rediscovered two years later on my amazing G Adventures trip to the Inca Trail! These tour guides were so knowledgable and passionate about their country and their job. I was dreaming once again!
Given this desire of becoming a tour guide I knew right where to start my search. I immediately downloaded both the Contiki and G Adventures applications and got straight to work!
Step #2: Research Locums
Although, I felt tour guide was what I wanted I couldn’t be sure. I had to look at other options too! Plus, I also needed a back up plan!
There is a position in the medical field called locums. This is a person who temporarily fills in for another person. As a locum PA I could sign a contract to work as a PA anywhere in the U.S. for 2-6 months at a time. This would allow me the flexibility to take off for a month or two between contracts to travel wherever I wanted!
This option would actually allow me to pursue my personal travel interests more so than as a tour guide. Another advantage to this option is that it would allow me to keep a “foot” in the medical world. I was really worried about completely abandoning medicine and how difficult it might be to return after taking 1-2 years off to pursue life as a tour guide.
Locums would allow me to stay up to date with medicine and pursue personal travel interests. It had great potential, but was I willing to give up on my tour guide dream? Probably not, but it was the perfect back up plan!
Step #3: Combination?
Really?! A backup plan to our backup plan?
What can I say?! It’s good to have options!!! Yes, I’ll admit sometimes more options make decisions harder, but in my case this plan was a good one!
So what if I could combine both options? It would be the best of both worlds, right?
Going into this whole process my heart bled Contiki. Contiki was my first ever group tour and it changed my life. As I like to say, “Contiki was my first love” so of course I wanted to work for them! However, as a Contiki trip manager I would be leading trips all year long. This would not be very conducive to a combination plan.
On the other hand, G Adventures was more of a seasonal position. I would lead tours for just six months out of the year. That would mean in the off season I could work as a locum PA and pursue personal travel interests! G Adventures had the potential to provide me with everything I wanted: tour guide, continuing to work as a PA and traveling the world! This option was looking great!
Step #4: Celebrate
I had a plan!
1. I would apply for tour guide positions with both Contiki and G Adventures.
2. If I didn’t get offered a tour guide position I would work as a locum PA.
3. Or maybe I could do both?!
With a plan in hand it was time for my celey!!! Woot woot! (Fun Fact: I love ice hockey! Celey is a hockey term for celebration, typically a celebratory movement or dance after scoring a goal.)
#drawingboardcomplete #getyourceleyon
