Even when we’re thriving in our careers, making good money and feel relatively content with the way things are going, we may have pretty frequent callings to reflect on the hustle and bustle world around us and think, “Can I just quit my job and travel for a year?”
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Financial expert Ramit Sethi talked about this common wanderlust, wondering in a recent email newsletter sent to his subscribers. He looked at a real-life example of one of his readers, a 25-year-old product manager based in California who was in incredibly strong financial shape. He asked Sethi, “Can I quit my job to travel for a year? How will this impact my future career prospects?”
Even When We’re in Great Financial Shape, We May Hold Back
The question of when you can take this kind of risk-loaded “big swing” may be 100% feasible financially, but you need to have a crystal clear look at your money situation. If you live below your means, hold no debt, have a strong investment portfolio and plenty of savings, as this person did, then you can absolutely “afford” to take the risk.
But even if you have the dream financial situation and money isn’t really a problem, you may resist seizing the opportunity to embark on freedom. It’s a sort of mind over matter issue. But rather than using our minds to overcome something, we’re using them to hold us back.
“The problem is that it is very difficult to break out of the mindset of needing to ‘maximize’ how much you invest and save,” Sethi wrote. “Many people I’ve talked to who have savings rates like this are in the FIRE community. They find it incredibly psychologically crippling to reduce their savings by even 5%. They also find it very difficult to spend money.”
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Careers May Be More Resilient Than You Think
Whether quitting your job and traveling for a year will hurt your career is a whole ‘nother beast to tackle. It’s highly unlikely that you can quit (unless that job is in academia and you’re approved to take sabbatical) for a year and have a guaranteed good job upon your return.
“How will this affect your future career prospects?
“It’s likely that it will affect them negatively,” Sethi said. “It’s possible that if you go away for a year, you may come back to a recession. You may come back to your industry being reduced.”
But don’t just think about the probability of things being tough when you get back. Think about how different and more culturally enrichened you’ll be a year from now.
“I know a lot of people who have traveled for a long period of time and came back with an amazing narrative that they could share in interviews,” Sethi wrote. “That depends on the market, your abilities and the combination of both.”
It’s OK To Take a Break From Being Aggressive
More likely than not, there will be some bumps in your career if you decide to quit your job and spend a year doing something you’ve always wanted to do (and make nada while doing it). That’s why it’s so important that you ensure you’re well ahead of the game with saving, investing and living debt-free. But a rich life, as Sethi reminded us in this newsletter, isn’t just about generating the max amount of money all the time. It’s about enjoying money, too.
“A Rich Life is not just blindly accumulating more money,” Sethi wrote. “In fact, a Rich Life might be actually prioritizing the numbers second.”
If you’re in amazing shape financially and see no evidence that a big swing of a risk will disable your future or hinder your retirement, go for it. And as you take the leap, recognize with confidence that part of the point of doing as well as you’re doing with money is to be able to luxuriate in it (within reason) while you still can. One day, doing something as extravagantly carefree as traveling the world may not be a realistic option for you.
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This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: Ramit Sethi: When You ‘Should Take the Big Swing’ of a Financial Risk To Be Happier
