School! and not for an MBA. What a piece of crap degree that is! Become a sociologist or an archeologist or anthropologist! then you can travel for work and not hang out in an office (shudder).

(And I'm entering the late 30's later this week which sucks ass)

Oh Boy! It sucks to be you, if you have the option of doing nothing. There is only one person who can tell you what will make you happy and that is you. If you chose to travel, how would you support yourself? 1100 dollars might just get you a ticket…. but if you do have an answer for that, traveling is always a good option, specially if you would like to explore being a travel writer further.

If you chose to go back to school… always go for what you love, it will make you a better person and least likely to end up in therapy popping pills. My best friend is a photojournalist and even though is still a bit difficult to survive in one job (she has a couple) she loves to see her pictures in the front page of the paper she works for, and would never go back to work in an office.

Becoming rich doesn’t seem to be your purpose I life, but if I’m wrong then doing nothing is not really an option unless you want to make a few deals with the Colombians, then again that might get you a free trip to being forced to do nothing.

No matter what anybody saids this is the kind of stuff that you’ve probably known all along but need to quiet the mind and search a little deeper. But don’t shortchange yourself, always go for love and passion.

Oh Boy! It sucks to be you, if you have the option of doing nothing. There is only one person who can tell you what will make you happy and that is you. If you chose to travel, how would you support yourself? 1100 dollars might just get you a ticket…. but if you do have an answer for that, traveling is always a good option, specially if you would like to explore being a travel writer further.

If you chose to go back to school… always go for what you love, it will make you a better person and least likely to end up in therapy popping pills. My best friend is a photojournalist and even though is still a bit difficult to survive in one job (she has a couple) she loves to see her pictures in the front page of the paper she works for, and would never go back to work in an office.

Becoming rich doesn’t seem to be your purpose I life, but if I’m wrong then doing nothing is not really an option unless you want to make a few deals with the Colombians, then again that might get you a free trip to being forced to do nothing.

No matter what anybody saids this is the kind of stuff that you’ve probably known all along but need to quiet the mind and search a little deeper. But don’t shortchange yourself, always go for love and passion.

I think you should become a lawyer. It suits you just fine.

An mba is for people who need to have somebody tell them what formula they use for what problem. You don't follow directions at even the most basic level so I would not recommend that.

A Ph.D. is for someone with a passion. You got a passion? It will cost you maybe 30 grand IF you can get an assistantship and then you will have to work your ass off to get all the money back. The only way I see you getting a fud is to combine it with your photo-journalism abilities. An anthropology degree that focuses on documenting change through photos or film?? You go for a fud you can make up the area of interest. You got three years to convince 5 people its viable. You could do that. Just beware of the nat.geographic type approach..guys who never thought to look at the world at the level of a pc. ie.....you got to get down and live with people to understand them....just can not fly in and do a shoot, and then fly out to a hotel to take a hot shower. and that's is how 90 percent of those clowns handle it.

You do that and you can add in your import/export business on the side. Do the leg work now to get some buyers and capital. Could finance your degree if you used some of your pc buddies as contacts to start. You could do the selling and rely on somebody to do the buying. ...with a few trips thrown in.

As a past volunteer (sic) you understand a bit of village life. You could attempt to create a market for quality craft rather that crap. Samoan products for instance have good potential if the right stuff is marketed.

If you are thinking school you do not have a lot of time left. Mid 30's is pushing it in my opinion.....I've been there and most of my compatriots (ex pc types) were late 20 to mid 30s. gets hard after that...why...just does ....push to own and be something begins to weigh in...guys found themselves married with kids....needed that job. being a pc long into your 30's is a bit of a push....and that is what a grad student is basically. It brands you for life.

You have a year maybe and it will decide it all for itself. Do nothing and life will flow on by dragging you along with it.

Go get that law degree. You'll meet a bunch of people you will have so much in common with! And then you will have an institutional excuse for jiving the world. (lol)

fai malosi!

kalapu

travel. take pictures. write. skip school. if you can buy property,rent it out while you travel, write and take pictures. don't worry about making money, you don't really need it and you will still be able to take care of yourself and your kittens.

May I be so bold as to suggest a 5th option?

Audition for a reality show.

Oooh! I like Brian's suggestion!

Hey, I know what you should do. First, go to bloody India and have some more fun. Try and start writing your book whilst travelling there. After coming back to the States, I would go for a combination: find a good salary job and combine this with studying photojournalism. In the mean time, try and have your book published. After finishing your studies, you'll have some options: either the book scored, or it didn't. Either you can find work as a photographer, or you can't. At least you'll have a decent income from your job. Depending on the outcome of the above options, you can decide either to become a writer, or a photographer, or you keep your job, or you combine the whole thing. And if that doesn't satisfy you, you can always bugger of again to Bangladesh or some other hellhole! Good luck!

yeah, just get a high paying job! wna'ts wrong with you? You can get one at any corner in this economy!

You could relocate to Outter Mongolia, become a legendary Throat Singer and start a kitten farm.
Or, this would be my choice, teach English in North Vietnam, chronicle your experiences with pen and film and write a book. A fair maiden along the way wouldn't hurt either.
Via con Dios.

If you would have asked this question 2 or 3 months ago, I would have suggested that you run for Governor of California.

But since that job's been filled, how about you go to India, and then when you come back, start the campaign to recall Ahhnold.

You know I don't even have a TV...

"Love what you do; do what you Love."

The money will come,
and be enough,
unless
you're always gazing
at what your neighbors
have.

Wow. So many people with answers. Anybody here want to help me choose a healthcare provider and a mutual fund for my 401(k)?

Yeah, that's what you'd have to look forward to if you went back into the corporate world. Right now, they treat you like endentured servants because they know everyone is looking for a job. So I can see the advantage in going to school and getting more life experience now until the pendulum swings and you might be interested in re-entering the corporate world on your own terms. Just something to think about. Because you don't have enough..right?

I say travel for awhile. Maybe the next 6months. Get it out of your system. Then maybe consider graduate school. But only get yourself in debt for something that you're truly passionate about. Or worst yet, get a job. Either way, you really should do something with photography. You really are quite talented in that area.

I think you need to narrow the list. There are too many choices you seem to want to make. Maybe you could combine a couple of plans, like enroll in a school in CA, then see if there is way you could study in India for a while. Or South America. (Find your specialty.)

I think if you want to pursue travel writing, you should pick a part of the world to focus on, go to that region, absorb the known literature and figure out a way to spin it new. Along with that, why not consider something in the travel industry itself? Doubtful it would be through an American company but it would be worth a look. You might be able to lock into certain areas for a while, then go somewhere else. Each place you could learn about, write about, maybe establish business connections etc.

In the meantime, you could begin to compile data for a book project. Research that field (childrens' books, cooking whatever) and try to make a good effort at learning the field as well as trends. Many books have been written before and while writing books for ourselves might be nice, getting it published would be even better.

Once you get it fleshed out, try to find an agent. You will need a pro to "pitch" to. I'm sure you already know about that process, so I guess what I meant was, keep it real and have a plan of action.

I also like the idea of investing in a property and renting it out. It can be a pain depending on the exact property, tenants, but it is worth looking into. I wish I was in a position to do that myself but not having a job for a few months kind of put that on hold.

Avoid the office unless it is your own. It will suck the life out of the hardiest 30- somethings. Good luck if you're already in India.