OK, I was writing yesterday’s post and I was surprised when I noticed that Tracey Curtis Taylor describes herself, on her her website, as an Adventurer.
Now, sure, that’s as cool as ever but…
…
OK, quite simply, I was told you can’t be an adventurer.
And fool that I was, I believed it.
Despite being primed – as a generation – to become adventurers, raised on a steady diet of Moon landings and Skylab, undersea exploration and travels in foreign lands, ancient mysteries and lost civilizations, we were told it was quite fun and all that, but now we should forget about it and find ourselves a job.
Possibly something very boring, capable of killing any remaining spark of life still residing in our soul.
Even those of us that – contrary to all common sense – went and became geologists, paleontologists or oceanographers, were later told we had had our fun, now go and get a proper job.
So, let me get this straight once and for all: I hate the guts of every single person, family member, girlfriend, teacher and colleague, politician and man on the street that ever told me you can’t be an adventurer.
Can’t be an explorer, can’t hope for anything but a 9-to-5 premature entombment.
And they actively worked to make it be the truth – even if it wasn’t.
But wait, hatred is sterile. Let’s do something constructive and positive!
And so, for the love of adventure, here’s a collection to a series of websites and blog posts by adventurers and for adventurers, on how you become one.
Thoughts on Becoming an Adventurer
A very thorough analysis, by adventurer and author Alastair Humphreys
How to Become an Adventurer
Basic information and strategy on WikiHow
What it Takes to be an Adventurer
A short video on the National Geographic website
How to Make a Living as an Adventurer
A down-to-earth take on the subject by long-distance cyclist/explorer Tom Allen
How I Make a Living as an Adventurer (Hint: I Don’t)
Tim Moss’ very detailed breakdown of how much an adventurer makes (or doesn’t), and how.
How to get paid being an adventurer
Nicole Manuel on the nitty-gritty of making it a paying job…
A brief pause.
Have you noticed how many of these articles are focused exactly on the things those people told me and my friends?
How it all seems to be a matter of money, and not just of attitude.
Interesting, what?
So, you want to be an adventurer?
Mark Eveleigh on the Kitbaggers website offers an inspirational read
5 Steps to becoming an Adventurer
Treme.ie makes it sound pretty easy…
How do I become an adventure photographer?
Michael Nichols addresses a specific segment of the “adventurer” class.
And finally, a video from the ReWildUniversity channel…
And here we are, for starters.
Ten starting points, and they all seem to boil down to one basic idea: you can be an adventurer, as long as you take yourself seriously.
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