There is no better way to discover yourself and grow as a person than long term independent travel. You will be offered a sense of freedom never experienced before and be removed from your comfort zones exposed to the world.
College is a time to figure out who you are and to decipher what you want to do with your life. That is a challenging endeavor if you never stray from your bubble or the structures of society and the expectation to go straight from high school, to college, to a career. It is important to take a step away and view the world from a different lens to add perspective and offer the planet the opportunity to unveil herself to you in a way that formal education never can.
People will often say they cannot afford to travel. Outside of caring for a sick loved one, these are generally nothing more than excuses. I can run down a laundry list of ways to travel for dirt cheap or options to work part time abroad. The truth is the hardest part about traveling the world is committing to the decision to go.
I know it can be done because I have backpacked Asia for 20 months, Eastern Europe for six months and lived in both Canada and Mexico. I will continue to live a life full of travel and have met thousands of people who do similar.
If you have the passion to travel there is nothing that will stop you. Money is not an impediment to your dreams and ambitions coming to fruition. Anybody who tells you otherwise does not understand what you are capable of or have knowledge on the immense number of options available to you.
That is why you need to travel. You will meet inspirational people along the way who will embed the fact that you can live the life of your choosing. You will experience other cultures and become more well rounded in your world views and understanding of the world, which will make you more desirable in the workforce and in future relationships.
Being separated from your friends and family will allow you to mature and experience new things with total freedom and no constraints but your own. That freedom will allow you to explore yourself and build on the character that you have already developed in ways that will not occur staying within your circle of friends at home or even away at college.
The above cannot be attained to the same degree on short trips. It requires a longer journey to immerse yourself in a culture and the flow of travel to reap the rewards. Extended trips allow the time to reflect and ponder how you want to spend your days on earth, opposed to being rammed through the system and coming out on the other side still unaware of what you want to do.
You will be a better person and have a greater appreciation for life when you come home. Plus it will probably be the most fun thing you ever do and the best decision you ever made.
