8/3/2019 Inspirational Woman Magazine - Bliss Feature Jan2012

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SABBATICALSCAPESby Angela M. Petitt

Instead of dreaming about what just abouteveryone wished they could do, I did it!! Iquit my corporate IT job in the throes ofthe recession in 2009 to travel the world!!

My "aha" moment came when I realizedthat I would rather take a chance on myselfto see the world instead of continuing on inthe ordinary daily grind. So, in spite of be-ing in the recession, this 41 year old singleAfrican American woman took a huge stepof faith and quit her job to live life to thefullest. When I made the decision, I reallyhad no clue what was next. But, a few daysafter my last day at work, I was on a planegoing to Italy!

Fast forward to more than two years and al-most 30 countries later, my sabbatical hasallowed me to learn new activities such asplaying golf, horseback riding, climbing theGreat Wall, getting a huge surprise bouquetof flowers from an admirer in Italy, zip linein Cabo, cave dive in Punta Cana, experi-ence bone chilling temperatures in Siberia,and narrowly escaping the earthquake inJapan. I have also traveled to Egypt, Israel,Greece, Colombia, Nicaragua, and many

other amazing adventures. I was even pre-sented with a Service and Leadership awardby my alma mater, recently featured in ES-SENCE magazine as a "Power Player",ana speaker for the national Meet Plan Go! Ca-reerBreakTravelconference that encouragesothers in their quest for a sabbatical.

In 2012, the dream continues as I am work-ing on my doctorate in organizational lead-ership and development and of course, moretravel & SabbaticalScapesH

With hopes of inspiring other people,have been blogging about my experienceshttp://www.sabbaticalscapes.com/.

One thing for sure - "with GodALL thinare possible!"

I would tell your readers to Do It!! Lifetoo short...don't be a spectator in your owlife. Be a participant.

Whether you want to do a getaway or ex-tended travel/sabbatical the way I am doingit, just know it can be done!!

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8/3/2019 Inspirational Woman Magazine - Bliss Feature Jan2012

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Things to Consider:

I Pray and be prayerful. Definitelyseek direction and insight from God.Developing our relationship with God givesus a better perspective in fulfilling our pur-pose and dreams.

2 1 love the quote "whether you thinkyou can or can't, you are right". Iknow several people who say from the start"Oh, I would love to go, but I can't. I havetoo many bills." You know what? They areright!! They never go and they still havethose same bills. Instead of developing aplan to make it happen responsibly, theyhave limited themselves to any venues andoptions already. So, replace the fear and lim-iting belief of "I can't" with "I can do this".Read the Bible in order to be equipped withthe faith to overcome fears we may have andto help move forward and step out.

3 Plan Look at your overall financialpicture. It has been said that givingup a latte a day for a year is $1446! Actually,that is a trip! I treated my Mom to a birth-

day cruising to St. Thomas, Bonaire, Gre-nada, Aruba, and Dominca for seven dayfor about that price. See our journey here-http://www.sabbaticalscapes.com/?cat=15.

4 Participate Step Out! Actionbrings about confidence. Participateby researching destinations online, read mblog, get involved in the conversations onsocial media, get around like minded travelpeople, and look at travel magazines - thereally give you a wanderlust for the beautyinspiration, culture, and experiences that arout there. Be creative in how you want ttravel. I took cruises to maximize my valuand tacked on a pre/post cruise land stay ata hotel.

5 If you are single/solo and don't wantto go alone, sign up for organized/group tours. Some cruise ships now havsolo cabins.

S You can do this!