11 ways on How long-term travel break positively changed me at my corporate job

In Aug’15 I quit my corporate job along with my wife and we took a 10+ months break to fulfill our dream of traveling round the world. We can proudly say that we are one of the first couple to complete Round the World across 6 continents and 35 countries on an Indian Passport.

We returned back to Toronto this summer and both got back to 9 to 5 desk jobs. I realized that long term travel break has a massive positive impact on my work. After completing 1 month at desk job these are 11 changes I find in myself

1. Complex project management can be achieved with simple apps: Let’s face it. MS-PROJECT is pure evil. Planning a 10 months tour on a very weak passport required enormous effort. We wanted to attempt a genuine RTW, which means not flying back even for visa and travel in 1 direction only. Finances for a year had to be planned. Both would not be having jobs after return to Toronto (one of the most expensive city). So a huge buffer had to be kept aside. We started planning a year before the trip. It was no less than managing large scale project (minus the team members of course :) ). We just used free tools. Google docs, Google spreadsheets, Evernote & Trello (free version). Trello is an excellent app where you can create and share lists and cards. Checklists, images, videos etc can be embedded in them. I have used Confluence and JIRA at work and I still feel that they too are very complex and time-consuming. A simple app like Trello does the work for you.

2. Working stress-free when Project is in Crisis Mode: Even after 50 flights, I am as scared of flights as a toddler on the dentist chair. A small turbulence sends me in a panic mode. I have learned a technique from frequent fliers. When flight hits turbulence, look in the eyes of the flight crew. If they are at calm, there is nothing to worry. Similarly when project is in crisis mode and if the team (can be QA, Dev, BA etc) who will be directly held responsible and will be subjected to escalation are calm then there is absolutely no need for you to panic (provided you are not part of the team who will be held responsible). Even if you are part of the team against whom escalation is expected we commit mistakes by only thinking of the worst case scenario since we are under extreme stress and pressure. Remember, that there is a higher chance of death by a bee sting than a flight disaster.

Stay self-funded as long as possible. -Garrett Camp

3. Selecting a role where people don’t report to me: I have always worked for service based IT company. So I was always vying for a role where ‘x’ number of people report to me. Before quitting the job even I used to fill out my appraisal form asking for a leadership role. It’s implicit meaning was always focused on a position where many people directly report to me. After my travel, I exactly knew what I wanted. That was the primary reason why I selected a contract position.

4. Easier to build personal rapport: If you are typically working with multiple vendors and teams which are spread across geographic regions then there is a tremendous amount of dependency on individuals. And to get the work done sometimes ‘Agile coaches’ or even an escalation from VP does not help (rather it makes things worse). What matters is only 1 thing — The personal rapport which you share with your colleagues. Toronto has one of the most diverse workforces in the world. Today, I can talk with my Vietnamese colleague on their underrated coffee culture or appreciate Port wines when discussing with a Portuguese team-mate. These small things help build a good long lasting professional relationship.

5. Minor office politics does not affect me: In big projects, there will always be that one odd insecure person who will not invite you to meetings and then play the innocent card. Earlier these things used to take a toll on me. Now it hardly matters.

The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing. -Walt Disney

6. Share and contribute knowledge: We received tremendous support and help from online travel forums like Lonely Planet Thorn Tree and Trip Advisor. This is anti of typical corporate culture. I have started to contribute to many forums etc and share knowledge on topics of my interest. There is more satisfaction when an anonymous user appreciates it than FB Like from a college friend. Recently I scheduled a meeting and shared what I have learned with team members. I was amazed by the response as everyone shared the knowledge they have on the subject too. It’s all about taking the first step.

7. New found confidence to achieve anything: I will be dead honest. I was always an average student. Average in studies (never flunked, neither topped), average in school sports etc. I got a job — stuck to it; Never thought of switching it for the love of comfort zone. I was the only one in all of my friends who had not switched in 8 years. And then I quit it all. Today, I have a new found confidence that I can achieve anything if I focus and set my eyes on

8. Working patiently in unexpected circumstances: Flights get canceled, Weather ruins your dream plans but you don’t let it ruin your trip. This was our mantra in the trip. We always had backup plans and if things were out of our control we never mentally affected by it. Similarly, there will be many unexpected scenarios when working in projects like server may crash,offshore teams might not be able to work (floods/ tense political situation). If things are beyond your control then there is absolutely nothing to worry about. Communicate in a very transparent way to top management and you will get all the support from them.

There’s Only One Thing In Life You Can Control: Your Own Effort — Mark Cuban

9. Unaffected by a minor difference in salary/billing rate: Many people often asked me why to spend on travel. I used to reply — ‘To be richer in experience’. We landed in Toronto with minimal things and have often thought of the worse. Now small differences in pay scales really do not affect me. Of course, I am not a Buddhist monk and if difference is huge I still do get jealous :)

10. Appreciation of different work ethics: Working in a very multi-ethnic work environment like Toronto has its own interesting perspectives. While everyone is expected to work in a “Canadian work culture”, in reality, each person brings in her/his own working style heavily influenced by their ethnic background and culture. When I was new to Toronto this was a bit of challenge. But today I genuinely appreciate and more importantly empathize with a person’s working style and understand that it is because of the religious, cultural and socio-economic upbringing that a person works in a particular style.

11. Laugh off on a few corporate terms: After visiting many museums and World War spots, especially “Topography of Terror” in Berlin, I have come to realize that we hype our work a lot. Nowadays I tend to just laugh off on terms like “War room” and “In the line of fire” when used in the sense of our corporate world.

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