Many people ask me if I enjoy being a travel sonographer and away from home so much. The answer to the first part of that question is a heartfelt and resounding YES! The second part of that question is a bit more complicated than a one word answer. Do I enjoy being away from home most of the year and away from my family and friends for so long? Of course not. But the other side to that question is, do I love to travel, meet new people, make new friends, learn new things, and see parts of the country that I otherwise may not have seen? Absolutely! I struggled a bit with the being away from home part however, in my initial year of travel work. If you are like me, and a very social person, being away from home and all that is familiar to you for long periods of time, is an ENORMOUS challenge. But five years into travel work, I can safely say there comes a time, if you stick with it long enough, that you learn to get past that. At least, as long as you are the kind of person who does not stay inside your apartment all weekend long in your down time, feeling the inevitable effects of isolation and loneliness that is sure to ensue, by not venturing out into the land of the living. And so, in that first year when it is all new to you and you have not quite mastered the art of being alone with yourself for more than 60 continuous hours over the course of your weekend off, you have to really force yourself to explore your new surroundings solo. At first this won’t be easy. Even years into my travel work, I may find myself texting a friend or spending time looking at my phone when sitting alone waiting for my meal to be served. This is especially challenging to an extrovert, like myself. But ultimately forcing yourself to get out there and sightsee or dine solo is necessary, to feel that you are getting something out of your new job, beyond just a paycheck. A paycheck, combined with loneliness, is no-one’s idea of fun, and will quickly make travel work become both unappealing and unfulfilling. Which in turn, will most likely put an end to one’s travel career.
So how do you make spending time exploring your new area more enjoyable? Figure out tricks that make doing these things work for you, like bringing a book with you if you are going to a winery and you want to sit outside and enjoy the fresh air with a glass of wine. Or maybe you don’t like the idea of sitting in a restaurant at a table alone, feeling like it draws attention to yourself – try eating at the bar instead. That is an opportunity for you to not just have the potential to carry on a conversation with the bartender, but perhaps someone dining alone beside you. Maybe you don’t go out to dinner at the more popular time of 6 pm when the crowds are heavier, but instead go to an early dinner at 4 pm. Another great idea for a solo traveler is to sign up for a food tour that is offered in a lot of the bigger cities around the country. This is an excellent opportunity to not only get a tour and some history in about the surrounding area from your tour guide, but also a chance to meet new people, as well as trying several restaurants in one afternoon, filling both your soul and your appetite! Although most people participating are couples or a small group, I have definitely seen other solo people participate in these type of events … and I have been to many! Any city tour is equally an easy and comfortable thing to participate in when traveling alone and is a great way to learn a lot about your new temporary hometown. Certain things like taking in a movie and visiting museums are definitely the type of activities that do not require the need to be shared with other people. Instead, these are activities that are personal for everyone experiencing them.
I think what you will find after you spend that first year forcing yourself to get out there and do these things, is that you will actually not mind, and maybe even appreciate, having some solo time to yourself. That is a big reward that is not really thought about much in this line of work – the reward of learning how to be “okay” with your alone time and knowing that you don’t have to have others with you to do things. I’m not saying my extrovert self has learned to prefer that, but I have learned to be okay with it – at least for a while anyway. And when you have been away long enough and that desire for others becomes overwhelming, you hop on a flight home for the weekend and recharge your batteries, if you are geographically close enough to make that feasible. If not, then try to stay connected to your friends and loved ones by way of text, phone, or video calling. Scrolling through precious videos and pictures of your friends and loved ones, reliving fun memories of times spent together, can also do wonders at lifting your mood. And if you are really lucky, maybe you will work in a place that you will meet other travelers who are also alone on assignment, or fellow coworkers, who would welcome some time out away from work, to go have some fun together.
If you have been in the field for three years or more, which I think is ideal so you can gain experience in your role as a sonographer and be better suited to adapting to constant change with each new job assignment, and you are considering the idea of becoming a travel sonographer, you may be asking if it is right for you. The first part of this blog post addresses the biggest concern of all: Will you be alright being alone. If the answer is yes, then that is half the battle. And if you are lucky, and maybe your significant other has a job that can be taken on the road or you have a friend who has a mutual interest in traveling for work, then this is an obstacle that you can avoid by traveling together. Some people bring their pets for companionship. That is another possibility, although it will limit your housing options, and maybe the nicer ones, but it can be done. This is especially do-able, if you feel your pet will adapt to new environments and not be stressed while you are away at work all day.
In this blog post, we have addressed just one aspect, albeit a major one, that needs to be considered before venturing into a job in travel. However, because there is so much more to consider when trying to ascertain whether a career in travel is right for you, I will be breaking this topic into three parts. In part 2, I will continue to dive a little deeper into this topic. Stay tuned!