Man took a 18 months off to travel the world, now unemployable! (job hunting, highest)

[chit chatter]

He told me that he expected potential employers to think he was a dymanic and interesting person who now was more enlightnend to the world because of his 18 month adventure.

He made over $600K in the sale of his home and had quite a bit of savings so the $50K his wife and him spent on the trip was not that difficult.

He chose Cary NC because the economy of the area is strong and the Raleigh area had a strong business base with lots of college educted professions but his costs are low with relatively cheap housing.

His parents died in their 60s so history said it was best to have this type of adventure when he was middle aged.

[lifeexplorer]

Originally Posted by chit chatter

He told me that he expected potential employers to think he was a dymanic and interesting person who now was more enlightnend to the world because of his 18 month adventure.

He made over $600K in the sale of his home and had quite a bit of savings so the $50K his wife and him spent on the trip was not that difficult.

He chose Cary NC because the economy of the area is strong and the Raleigh area had a strong business base with lots of college educted professions but his costs are low with relatively cheap housing.

His parents died in their 60s so history said it was best to have this type of adventure when he was middle aged.

Does the job he was interviewing for require the person to be "dynamic, interesting and enlightened"?

Again, it would be a lot better to use my answer.

Even the job requires international travel, I would simply answer that "I have traveled to many countries in the world, and I love different culture and work with different people."

That will be enough.

[LexusNexus]

There is so much that isn't known here. Maybe he doesn't look presentable when he interviews or sounds like a raving lunatic when he talks. Maybe that trip was a sign of diminishing capabilities or a mid life crisis. Maybe he comes off as a self-absorbed bore capable of dropping everything in unexpected fashion, abandoning his responsibilities to pursue whimsical endeavors. Maybe his teeth are yellow or his eyes are bloodshot.

Instead of talking about travel, the least he could've done was say he was writing a book or something. Not just being a bum during that time. I'd pass on him too.

[Mystique13]

Because it's clearly unacceptable in this workplace culture to take time off and travel unless you're the elite, I would not reveal that fact to potential employers. I agree with the posters who suggested to say he was writing a book or use some other excuse, or maybe not mention that he "took time off to travel" at all. I also agree that choosing the North Carolina area was not a good idea. The culture there is probably a bit conservative.

[alphamale]

With freedom come responsibility.

[ALStafford]

He is an accountant/MBA/CPA who moved to an area that has one of the worst persistent unemployment situations in the US (9.8% in the state, 8% in the county he's chosen). It's just been since this summer that the rate dropped to single digits. Of course, these numbers do not reflect the long-term unemployed, I have three friends in construction that have been out of work since 2009, with nothing on the horizon. He also is competing against many locals who were laid off starting in 2008 (our unemployment rose as high as 12%). Additionally, we have, within 25 miles of Cary alone, 3 major universities (most folks, no matter where they're from, have heard of UNC and Duke, we also have NC State University in the Triangle area), and scores of smaller colleges (St. Augs, Shaw, NCCU, Meredith, Campbell, Peace), so there are scores of recent grads every few months that also are hitting the job market; many of whom want to stay in the area.

Yes, our cost of living is probably lower than in CA. However, how much research did your friend do on the area before deciding to move here? Our job market is still very slow, there are hundreds of applicants for job openings, and this includes any position that requires a post-secondary degree; because of the number of strong colleges and universities, couple with the Research Triangle, Cary is a fairly educated town (over 60% of the residents have a minimum of a Bachelors Degree, almost 25% have advanced degrees).

I believe these factors have much more to do with the difficulty in your friends job search than his time off. It's a tough market. From personal experience, I was laid off my job (a professional position), in 2010. I have 2 bachelor's degrees, and was half-way through my master's program at the time. I spent 6 months looking for work, before I sucked it up and took a job at a local Starbucks. I worked there until I found my current job in February of 2012. Yep, several degrees, finished an advanced degree, strong working history, and I spent over a year schlepping coffee because of the tough job market in the Raleigh/Cary/Durham/Chapel Hill area. It's not your friend's trip. It's the economy, and the competition for jobs.

[joe from dayton]

Originally Posted by chit chatter

He told me that he expected potential employers to think he was a dymanic and interesting person who now was more enlightnend to the world because of his 18 month adventure.

He made over $600K in the sale of his home and had quite a bit of savings so the $50K his wife and him spent on the trip was not that difficult.

He chose Cary NC because the economy of the area is strong and the Raleigh area had a strong business base with lots of college educted professions but his costs are low with relatively cheap housing.

His parents died in their 60s so history said it was best to have this type of adventure when he was middle aged.

Most employers don't give a crap that he is dynamic and interesting. Being interesting doesn't make him job ready. Maybe he can get his foot back in the door by volunteering to help some local non-profits with their books.

[Goldblum57]

Originally Posted by bs13690

I'd think of it this way

"Here's a guy who just felt like taking 18 months off. What if he decided to do it again? Obviously, work is not a priority for this guy."

This was my first thought too.

[regular folk]

So if there is a large number of college graduates and highly skilled applicants in a metro area that makes it harder to find a job? Interesting logic. I would think that the opposite would be true. The Greater Raleigh Durham/Chapel Hill area has one of the highest percentages of college educated people in the United States and as a result many companies that need highly trained employees have moved to the Triangle. Success creates more success and more and more companies are moving in to make use of the highly skilled workforce.

So if my friend moved to a place like Nashville TN (about the same size but with significantly lower educational attainment in it's population) then he would have an easier time getting a job in his chosen career (Finance and Accounting)? I would think not because fewer people work in offices in Nashville because most jobs are manufacturing and services in Tennessee.

Originally Posted by ALStafford

He is an accountant/MBA/CPA who moved to an area that has one of the worst persistent unemployment situations in the US (9.8% in the state, 8% in the county he's chosen). It's just been since this summer that the rate dropped to single digits. Of course, these numbers do not reflect the long-term unemployed, I have three friends in construction that have been out of work since 2009, with nothing on the horizon. He also is competing against many locals who were laid off starting in 2008 (our unemployment rose as high as 12%). Additionally, we have, within 25 miles of Cary alone, 3 major universities (most folks, no matter where they're from, have heard of UNC and Duke, we also have NC State University in the Triangle area), and scores of smaller colleges (St. Augs, Shaw, NCCU, Meredith, Campbell, Peace), so there are scores of recent grads every few months that also are hitting the job market; many of whom want to stay in the area.

Yes, our cost of living is probably lower than in CA. However, how much research did your friend do on the area before deciding to move here? Our job market is still very slow, there are hundreds of applicants for job openings, and this includes any position that requires a post-secondary degree; because of the number of strong colleges and universities, couple with the Research Triangle, Cary is a fairly educated town (over 60% of the residents have a minimum of a Bachelors Degree, almost 25% have advanced degrees).

I believe these factors have much more to do with the difficulty in your friends job search than his time off. It's a tough market. From personal experience, I was laid off my job (a professional position), in 2010. I have 2 bachelor's degrees, and was half-way through my master's program at the time. I spent 6 months looking for work, before I sucked it up and took a job at a local Starbucks. I worked there until I found my current job in February of 2012. Yep, several degrees, finished an advanced degree, strong working history, and I spent over a year schlepping coffee because of the tough job market in the Raleigh/Cary/Durham/Chapel Hill area. It's not your friend's trip. It's the economy, and the competition for jobs.

[hopefulone]

Originally Posted by Mystique13

Because it's clearly unacceptable in this workplace culture to take time off and travel unless you're the elite

Yes because after all one must work and NEVER take time off to do anything. Work is all one must live for. There is no room for anything else.