Don't Let These Ten Gap Year Myths Stop You

You can probably think of lots of reasons why a #gapyear is NOT a good idea. Or, it's a good idea for others but not for you. Your reasons may have to do with money, family, or other responsibilities. Really, the decision is yours to make. As we now know...

"Self care is not selfish"

If a year off is what you need, who's to say you can't do it?

Creating a list of common blockers is the best way to tackle them. This works not just for gap years, but for all things in life. Here are some I've been hearing lately:

1. It’s great for other people

2. I feel like I'm abandoning my family

3. I don’t speak the language

4. I can’t afford it

5. Going away is selfish

6. People will judge me

7. My business needs me

8. My spouse is a homebody

9. I can't plan that far ahead

10. Something bad might happen while I'm away

I'm going to address these one at a time in my upcoming posts and I encourage you to address yours too. Your top ten might be different from the list above. Maybe you only have three; maybe you have twelve. Write down your own list of blockers so that you can work through them on your own schedule.

Clockwise from left: me at Avellanas, mangos at the local fruit stand in Villareal, shell at Avellanas, sunset in Tamarindo

I've been in love with #CostaRica ever since my first visit (more about that later). As for #myadultgapyear I've been thinking about this for a while, and I know nothing is going to stop me.

You might not be there yet, and that's ok. Stick with me - you've got this!