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Have you ever fantasized about making a massive life change to pursue a dream job in travel? Take the Leap: Change Your Career, Change Your Life (Simon & Schuster) is about to become your how-to guide. This new book features inspiration and advice from more than 60 people who have made a daring change of career. Many of them are traveling the world as a result of this switch — and loving life.
The book's author, Sara Bliss, has been a writer for almost 20 years, reporting on topics ranging from beauty to celebrities to travel. Her previous book, Hotel Chic at Home: Inspired Design Ideas from Glamorous Escapes (The Monacelli Press), showed how you can bring the travel experience home with you. (You can read about some inspiring female hoteliers profiled in the book here).
Throughout Bliss's career, the two constants have been travel and writing profiles. "I love the thrill of discovering a new place and understanding what motivates people," she says. And during the course of writing profiles of some of the world's most fascinating people, Bliss realized that many of them had entirely different lives before they found what clicked. So it makes sense that she decided to write this book.
"I think there is something really inspiring in realizing that you can live many different lives and have many different careers in a lifetime, especially if you want to make a big change yourself," says Bliss. "Who you are in one decade may not fit in the next."
Bliss says she learned a thing or two about career switching while talking to all the people in the book. "Living abroad or traveling constantly for work seems like such a dream job for so many people that feels out of reach because of finances, but the people I featured in the book were really clever about making it work," says Bliss. "I learned that you can make travel your work and make money, too."
Here, Bliss shares the stories of a few of the inspirational people in the book who are pursuing dream careers in travel.
Who: Marina de Lima
What She's Doing Now: Nomadic yoga instructor currently based in Mysore, India
What She Was Doing Before: Reality-television producer
How She Made the Switch: As a stressed-out, unhappy reality-television producer, de Lima didn't like the person she was becoming. But when she discovered yoga, something clicked. She eventually got her teacher's certification, but she was afraid to make the switch. Then she met Jorge Branco, who decided he wanted to live a different kind of life, starting a business doing 10-day adventure and volunteer trips around the world. He asked de Lima to join him as a yoga instructor. She said goodbye to New York City and TV and now lives in a different country every three months, working together for their business, World Travelers Association.
Top Piece of Advice: "There will never be a right time or the perfect opportunity," de Lima told Bliss. "You will never have the right amount of money saved to do this. Had I waited and not jumped at the opportunity as it was presented to me, I probably would've chickened out and never left. Although it was scary, I needed to plunge deeply into the life I wanted and seize the chance I was given."
Who: Eulanda and Omo Osagiede
What They're Doing Now: Founders of Hey Dip Your Toes In, a food, travel and lifestyle blog plus brand content creation firm working closely with travel brands
What They Were Doing Before: She was a dance teacher; he is a risk management IT manager who works on Hey Dip Your Toes In on the side.
How They Made the Switch: The Osagiedes started blogging about their travels and with their rich blend of photography and unique content won the UK Blog Awards in 2016. Things built from there and they were approached by big brands like IBM for travel and lifestyle content that takes them around the world to spots like Abu Dhabi, Monaco, Tunisia and Cyprus. Thanks to multiple income streams like workshops for content creators, public speaking, food photography and destination films, they are able to make travel their life.
Top Piece of Advice: "If there is a possibility to get into content creation, have a strong plan. It's not for the faint of heart," says Eulanda Osagiede. "Have some savings. Don't just walk away from your from your job, it's not realistic! There are so few bloggers who earn all their income through blogging. You have to have multiple streams of income."
Who: Nadia Aly
What She's Doing Now: Professional scuba diver and founder of Scubadiverlife.com
What She Was Doing Before: Tech, social media marketing for Google
How She Made the Switch: Aly won an online contest to go on a scuba diving trip to Fiji. She became obsessed with scuba diving and realized the sport didn't have a website that felt current, so she founded the site to form an online digital community. She used her marketing skills to grow the site, and began traveling on sponsored trips to create content. She now leads underwater photography trips around the world including Tonga, Indonesia and South Africa.
Top Piece of Advice: "I think getting only two weeks off a year is crazy," says Aly. "I don't think humans should live like that."
Who: Allison Fleece and Danielle Thornton
What They're Doing Now: Founders of Whoa Travel, an adventure travel company for women
What They Were Doing Before: International education advisor and advertising executives
How They Made the Switch: Allison Fleece and Danielle Thornton met on a hike to Kilimanjaro. It was a trip that started with a New Year's Eve bet and involved climbing and raising money for a women's vocational school in Kilimanjaro. The experience was so transformative that they cooked up the idea to start Whoa Travel on the way home. Their business model required no upfront capital, and they used some savings and freelance work to make it through the first two years.
Top Piece of Advice: " When you find something that lights you on fire, you have to just do it ," says Fleece.
Who: Julie Deffense
What She's Doing Now: Wedding cake designer in Portugal and Sarasota, Florida
What She Was Doing Before: Magazine publisher
How She Made the Switch: Julie Deffense initially moved to Portugal to do a paid internship in web design, but she never left, falling in love and marrying a man from Portugal and eventually running her own magazine. On the side, she loved baking and became the designated cake baker for her husband's extended family (he is one of 11 siblings with 35 nieces and nephews). She took a master course in cake artistry and baking, hoping to have a side business. She ran an ad in her magazine and realized she had more cake requests than advertising inquiries, so she made the leap. She's famous in Portugal for her cakes, regularly appearing on TV and writing bestselling books.
Top Piece of Advice: Bliss says that Deffense's top tip is not to follow a conventional path, even if it feels safe. "There were many times I wished I had stayed in the U.S. and followed a conventional path and earned lots of money," says Deffense. "But deep down I know I wouldn't have been as happy."
Who: Brittany and Scott Meyers
What They're Doing Now: Owners of Aristocrat Charters, a charter sailboat company in the British Virgin Islands
What They Were Doing Before: Recruiting and sales
How They Made the Switch: At first, husband and wife Brittany and Scott Meyers saved up and bought a boat and sailed to the Caribbean, living on their boat and working for the sailing company, Windjammers. They sailed with their first child and then bought their own charter sailboat company when they were pregnant with twins. They now run Aristocrat Charters.
Top Piece of Advice: " Living on a self-sufficient off-grid sailboat is significantly cheaper than living in the suburbs ," says Brittany Meyers.
