The main problem any travel lover faces is financial resources. All we want to do is travel and all our bank balance does is mock us. Our life is an ongoing cycle of earn, save, travel and repeat but somehow, the saving takes a lot of time and we miss out on our to-visit list by a huge difference. Over our years of travelling, we experimented with different ways of earning our bread and butter on the go. Read below to know the most effective ways that worked wonders for us. Just remember one thing, travel might be your passion, but work is work and you need to be disciplined to achieve the desired results; unless you are exceptionally pro at conning people or winning a hand at casinos.

1. FREELANCE YOU WAY INTO TRAVELLING

This millennial generation works best when working for themselves. No wonder, freelancing is on an all-time boom. When freelancing, you have the freedom of choosing what to work on, who to work with, and the best thing? No 9-5 and getting stuck in peak time traffic. When you work in an office, following orders, you are forced to deal with things that you have no control over. But, when you are your own boss, swalalala.

To get on a serious note, it is not everybody’s cup of tea. The number of rejections is always higher than the number of acceptances, the deadlines might crush you at times and you will find yourself pulling all-nighters after all-nighters and still, still, you would miss the date of submission. But do not, I repeat, DO NOT get disheartened. It is one tough job to play a boss and take rejections after rejections. Within no time you will find your ground, learn to say no to demeaning projects and build a discipline to deliver by the deadline ( I doubt the last point. My heartfelt respect if you do).

So just take account of your skills, talents and creativity – writing, photography, designing, whatever it may be and put it out to the world.

 Photography and Videography are the best skills to enter the travelling field as freelancers

2. FIND A JOB THAT NEEDS YOU TO TRAVEL

The easiest way out is a job that lets you travel. While you might lose the flexibility of choosing your destinations and dates, but at least you have a constant, trusted source of income and that is quite a relief, believe me. Your family will be content, your bank balance will be content and you will never wake up in the middle of the night wondering how to fund your next travel. You might not be able to explore a place to your heart’s desire but you will recourses that a full-time traveller will never have.

Some options you can explore are working with photographers, journalists, filmmakers, set designers, wedding planners. With some planning mixed with a little luck, you can be in one state one month and other state the next month (sometimes, even countries; if you somehow hit the jackpot). So just leap onto any such opportunity. Believe me, you will thank yourself later.

Working as musicians can also be a worthwhile Travelling Job

3. GO ON A WORKING HOLIDAY

A working holiday is when you travel to another country for a long time and you have working rights to back you up. In this situation, you can pick up a job or two, in different areas or the same, while you travel and explore the place. For vagabonds like us, this is a perfect setting that needs no selling.

But!

The Indian passport does not allow a working holiday anywhere in the entire world. Sad and unfortunately, true. But, with a country like ours, where every state is a world waiting to be explored, do we even need to complain? Travel to one state at a time; find a job and explore it to the fullest. Dive into the colourful mélange of cultures, festivals, lifestyle, landscape and food. You don’t even need to save before you start. So, just go. Wherever you are, just, go. Give your country a chance to surprise you.

4. WORK UNDER A TRAVEL FIRM

In the past few years, India has seen a huge wave of travel startups crashing on the shores of well established and renowned travel companies and destroying all the sand castles on its way. It would be fair to say that a good portion of these travel startups and even established travel companies operate on the go. Voila!

But, be sure that you act as an asset to the company you apply for. We have seen people wanting to work with travel companies for the sole reason of, ‘I love to travel’. Now, it might be true; but make it a point to mention other factors that would help you crack the offer. It might be a travel job, but it still requires a certain level of discipline, a hierarchy of order and responsibility. No travel company will hire you if you are one rebel, questioning everything in your way kind of person, but you wholeheartedly love travelling. Every professional work is a two-way street; you are getting your fill of travel and adventure but ask yourself, ‘what will they get out of it?’ Research about the company before you apply and know how you can add value. In a gist, make sure your email does not create an impression that you wish to leverage the company, just to travel.

Working in a Travel firm is fun, you earn and learn from it

5. PUT ALL THAT WRITING TO USE

Now, this is the most common option. Not because it is easy, but because there are endless things waiting to be written. Travel writing opportunities are popping up by the minute and so are travel writers. If you choose to do this, make sure you do justice to the soul of the place you write about. Travel writing is not just describing a place or writing about your experience. It is about convincing the reader about your vision of certain things. With every line a reader goes through, he/she should be moved, inspired and empowered. If you cant does that, let this option be; for there are many writers out there, telling you the history of a place, but very few who tell you the poem the place recites.

6. WORK FULL TIME FOR 6 MONTHS

Working while on the road is a total spoiler. Ain’t it? Well, you can opt to divide your year into 2 halves. Work the first and travel the latter or visa-versa. This situation helps you earn for 6 months so you could spend it in the next 6 months. Some seasonal travel firms or professional jobs on contract basis help you attain this kind of luxury and believe me, it is a total win-win; the perfect balance strives to strike. Though this option restricts you to half a year of travelling, it does relieve you from the hardships a full-time traveller has to face. So, if you do manage to stumble upon a seasonal job, take it, cherish it, love it; and know that you are lucky.

Volunteering in a School in Madhya Pradesh