March 27, 2015 - Written by: Lauren Williams

On getting what I always wanted…

I have the best job in the world. So I’m told by everyone I meet and so I tell everyone I meet. I mean, I get paid to travel the world and write about it. My time is my own, I can write to my heart’s content, or not, whenever or wherever I choose. I have the flexibility to get on a plane to meet a friend in Chamonix for the weekend, to go to India for a month or to just turn my phone off and go camping on the Cornish coast if it takes my fancy on a Wednesday.

But the thing with the dream job is that it never is as glamorous as it seems. ‘Oh, you’re a travel writer!? I bet you’ve been to some really cool places!’ Well yes, yes I have. I’ve also racked up unimaginable phone bills researching an article via 3G whilst in a tour van, hungover, storming across Europe. I’ve given up sleep on countless occasions to meet deadlines, only for them to be pushed back weeks. I’ve been arrested in Asia and had no help from my in-country employer. And don’t even get me started on the real cost of a ‘free’ press trip.

It’s impossible to make a commitment to anyone or anything.

‘Oh, you want me to say yes to something that’s going on next month? Uh… I’m not even sure if I can commit to having breakfast at my own kitchen table at the weekend. Soz’.

‘You’re getting married? Amazing! You’ll need to send me a Save the Date at least 18 months in advance if I’m going to make it’.

I’ve missed birthdays and anniversaries, even had to forfeit a holiday to Budapest with one of my favourite ladies in the world because my passport was being held hostage at an embassy.

Now, this isn’t one of those ‘the grass is greener’ rants, I love what I do and I wouldn’t change it for the world – cause, well, I kinda have it, but sometimes reality hits when you’re crying through exhaustion after only getting two hours sleep for six days in a row.

I’ve been talking about going freelance forever, but never quite had the guts to make the move. I quit my so-called career almost a year ago in search of hills in the Dolomites. I moved to Scotland to do much of the same and then came back to Cornwall, via Denmark, Morocco, India, only to find myself with so much freelance work I ~~was~~ am too scared to look at my to do list (jks, any of my clients or editors reading this – it’ll get done). I found myself where I wanted to be without really thinking about it, but just kind of doing it.

‘Holy shit, I’m self employed…’ I thought to myself in a state of elation and panic. ‘Wtf do I do now?’

Panic, mostly.

But negatives aside, getting what you want and knowing it’s what you want is pretty damn awesome. Getting here was a lesson in ambition – I wanted it, so I did it. I got here. I feel like I’m struggling, floundering maybe at the newness of it all, but it’s going to be worth every second. There’s that quote always going around on Pinterest, ‘I never said it was going to be easy, I said it was going to be worth it’. Yeah that, that’s it. It’s hard, getting what you want always is – but it’s worth the struggle and the heartache in the long run.

Whoever said I couldn’t go freelance? Almost everyone, including myself. It’s financially terrifying, mentally exhausting and physically sluggish. But I wouldn’t change one thing, I mean, I really am getting on that plane to Chamonix next weekend…

If you enjoyed this post, why not check out ‘On Being a Female Traveller in India’?