Posts Tagged ‘social media’

Photo Friday: Career Break Timeline
Friday, February 17th, 2012

At Meet, Plan, Go! we follow a lot of people who are currently on their career break. It’s great to live vicariously through others and watch their career break transformation on their blog, Twitter feed, or Facebook.

One person we have enthusiastically watched on their career break is a ‘graduate’ from our Career Break Basic Training class,  Val Bromann from Chicago; she’s been recording her career break travel on Facebook. We believe that it’s a great example of how a career break can take many turns, has many highs, and some realistic lows. It’s been amazing to see her transform into a real extended traveler, moving through her fears, and coming out the other side.

If you want to know what it’s like to be on career break, then enjoy this special Photo Friday edition of a Facebook Career Break.

Val is making many new friends on her career break...

Follow/Subscribe to  Val on Facebook

Facebook Life Events and Career Breaks
Wednesday, February 15th, 2012

Our goal at Meet, Plan, Go! is to have a career break on every resume.

Yes – you heard that right – every resume. We know it’s ambitious, but you need ambitious goals in life. In addition, life is about adapting to change; and real change doesn’t come in small packages.

Just ask Facebook – they recently made a big change and introduced the term “timeline” into our daily vocabulary. Regardless of if you love the new Facebook timeline or hate it, it’s here to stay. Now you are able to go back and create a timeline of your life, adding “life events”. They even have some pre-populated life events such as Engagement, Marriage, Breakup, Moved, Bought a Home, Broken Bone, Weight Loss, Tattoo, Piercing, Changed Beliefs, New Job, and Retirement. But sadly – there was no pre-populated life event of Career Break.

However – that doesn’t stop you from adding it!

Maybe we will know that we accomplished our ambitious goal when Facebook has Career Break as a ‘Life Event’, but until then, we’ll keep working on it – but we need your help. Maybe if enough of us add career break as a life event on our new Facebook timeline, Mark Zuckerberg will notice! After all – I’m pretty sure that Mark will be taking a big career break after this Facebook IPO – I’m sure he’d want to record his career break like that…right?

Have you taken a career break, or are you on a career break now?

Then please mark it on your timeline! Simple go to your Timeline and click on the “Life Event” button on your status box. Choose “Work and Education” and then choose “Other Life Event”. Add a picture and a description and save it.

Once you add it to Facebook, head over to our Meet, Plan, Go! facebook page and let us know about it. Leave a message on our wall saying that you added your career break as a life event and we’ll give you fistfuls of ‘likes’!

We are asking you to help us reach our “career break on every resume” goal by starting with getting it on Facebook. But don’t stop there – put it on LinkedIn and, of course, your resume! Finally, register your break (past, present, or future) with us.

Meet, Plan, Go! is working on ambitious changes in how we view our lives – our timelines – and you can be a part of that ambitious change!

Starting a Career Break Movement
Monday, April 26th, 2010

I know that Beyonce is on a career break. I know this because I have a google alert set up for the term “Career Break” and get an email every day showing me recent activity on the internet which includes the phrase “Career Break”.

[singlepic=1771,400,,,right]Other hotbeds of career break talk on the internet seem to be about mothers (expectant ones and especially those going back to the workforce), people who had a ‘big break’ in their career, and our global neighbors the Brits taking a gap year. It seems that in the UK the idea of a career break is a regular part of their vocabulary. What I’ve learned from my Google alert for ‘career break’ is actors, singers, mothers, and Brits can take them; it’s socially acceptable.

When I started researching the keyword “career break’ for our SEO plan for Briefcase to Backpack I knew we had a hard climb ahead of us. I learned Americans don’t really search for the word…ever. I tried the word ‘sabbatical’ and had a few more hits, but in general Americans don’t consider this extended time off concept really part of their vocabulary.

This made me sad and happy. Sad because as Americans we just don’t get it. There are people all over the world taking a break from their career and employers who support that idea. They find a break rewarding, invigorating, educational, and they actually enjoy going back to their job more productive; but not in America. Sad. However I’m happy because it does show the need for Briefcase to Backpack to exist. It shows there’s an opportunity to bring this concept to overworked and burnt out Americans.

One problem – there’s a need, but the people who need it don’t know about it. How do you get people to search for a phrase that they don’t really think exists? Actually, they know it exists because they follow Beyonce’s career break; but they don’t really think that it exists for them.

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On the Road: Splurging on a Budget
Wednesday, April 14th, 2010

When traveling long-term, you are usually watching every penny in your budget. But sometimes there are experiences or amenities that you are willing to splurge on like sailing in Europe or surfing lessons in Bali, or a 5 star hotel in Bangkok. And sometimes you just miss the most basic of creature comforts.  So we asked “Traveling on a budget? What’s the one thing you did or would splurge on?” and you answered!

[singlepic=680,300,,,right]VIA TWITTER:

@EmilyRHarris – I’d splurge on going to see the one “must-see” natural/cultural attraction of each place I visited.

follow-up:
@EmilyRHarris – Sapa in Vietnam by overnight train from Hanoi – both beautiful and culturally fascinating.

@TransAmericas – SCUBA diving

@travoholic –  Flights to the other side of the world to do fun things. Last year Haiti – Australia. This year Asia – London – Pakistan?

@solitarypanda – Sadly, shoes

@thom_sean – truly once in a lifetime stuff; helicopter over grand canyon, train from Beijing to Moscow etc

VIA FACEBOOK:

[singlepic=1749,300,,,right]Brian Peters – A fancy hotel room, at least for a few nights

Sarah Girard – A fitted backpack

Angela Petitt – A great authentic meal!

Martin Withington – A hot shower, with lots of water pressure and no time limit

Darren Wells – Private transport to go literally anywhere…

Charles J Forsythe – I think the nice hotel room. We’ve been traveling for 4 months and try to get a night or two in something decent once a month.

SO WHAT WOULD YOU SPLURGE ON?

Travel Blog Success Giveaway
Thursday, February 4th, 2010

You’ve heard the buzz, now here’s your chance to win a subscription to Travel Blog Success.

Travel Blog Success GiveawayNow through February 9th, leave a comment under our Travel Blog Success Review about why you want to join Travel Blog Success, and you will be entered to win!

For an additional entry, Tweet this:

  • I just entered to win a subscription to Travel Blog Success via @CareerBreakHQs – you can too! http://su.pr/5sPJ1z

We will announce the winner (chosen at random) on Thursday, February11th!

Focus on Youth: Gap Years and Social Media
Monday, August 24th, 2009

We were inspired to start Briefcase to Backpack after encountering the lack of Americans doing the same thing on our own career breaks. We did, however, run into many Brits, Aussies, and Europeans embracing the experience – cultures where gap years are very common.

We’ve read reports that the concept of the gap year is starting to become more common in America, and now there is even a national movement behind it. Much like Briefcase to Backpack, Let’s Get Global wants to create a new mindset in the country, but this one focused on youth.

[singlepic=1509,125,,,right]Founded by author and experienced traveler, Rita Golden Gelman, Let’s Get Global’s mission is to encourage and assist youth in the United States to have international experiences – particularly during the year between high school and the next phase of their lives.

Their public relation efforts will include a campaign to educate the American public about the benefits of taking a gap year, creating a comprehensive website full of gap year-related resources, and providing funding sources for potential “gappers.”

We look forward to seeing the progress of this movement! For more information and to make a donation, visit:
Let’s Get Global Blog
Ethical Traveler Article

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