Home » A Year in Paris

Meet, Plan, Go! Has Arrived

[singlepic=1838,300,,,right]It’s hard to believe that what’s been months in the making is finally here – Meet, Plan, Go!

When we started talking about the concept of Meet, Plan, Go! we had no idea how many people would embrace the concept of career break and extended travel. And we have been pleasantly surprised by the response to this night of events with nearly 1,400 people registered and another 700+ on our wait lists! And of course we couldn’t have done it without our stellar team of hosts.

What we love about our hosts is that they all come from different backgrounds and have very different career break experiences to share. Like our Washington DC host, Sonia Zamborsky, said in Letting Go: Making Other Plans: “There is no ‘right’ way to travel, and there is no ‘right’ way to do a career break. All sorts of people are doing it their way, a million different ways."

And Jeff Jung, our Austin co-host, really encapsulated our diverse experiences in his post 'The Many Faces of Long-Term and Career Break Travel'. “What I want to convey is that the long-term traveler is not one type of person but a diverse group of people all passionate about the potential that long-term travel has to enrich one’s life in a way that no other activity can.”

He so smartly broke us down as:

The Enablers: Barbara and Elizabeth Pagano (Atlanta) | Tara Russell (San Francisco)
The “Back to Work” Breaker: Sonia Zamborsky (Washington DC)
The 20-Something Breakers: Lillie Marshall (Boston) | Michael Tieso and Teresa Gotay (Philadelphia)
The Soloists: Janice Waugh (Toronto) | Alisha Robertson (Dallas) | Lisa Lubin (Chicago)
The Traveling Duos: Betsy & Warren Talbot (Seattle) | Keith & Amy Sutter (Philadelphia)
The Family Breakers: Marc & Danielle Hoffmeister (Dallas) | Mike & Catrell Cooney (Orlando)
The Ex-Corporatists: Sherry Ott (New York City) | Jeff Jung (Austin)
The Multiple Breakers: Kirk Horsted (Minneapolis) | Michaela Potter (New York City)

And if you factor in all of our Panelists and Ambassadors, the experiences multiply tremendously.

If you are unable to make it to a Meet, Plan, Go! event or your city is sold out, you can still follow the conversation on Twitter! For months we have been using the hashtag #MeetPlanGo – but you can follow the specific city of your choice.

FOLLOW THE CONVERSATIONS ON TWITTER

Atlanta #MPGATL | Austin #MPGAUS | Boston #MPGBOS | Chicago #MPGCHI
Dallas #MPGDAL | Minneapolis #MPGMPLS | New York City #MPGNYC
Orlando #MPGORL | Philadelphia #MPGPHI | San Francisco #MPGSF |
Seattle #MPGSEA | Washington DC #MPGDC | Toronto #MPGTO

We will be sure to share photos, videos and stories from across North America in the days and weeks following the event.

[singlepic=1868,300,,,right]And if you haven’t already, be sure to sign up for our newsletter and join our Facebook Fan Page to stay up to date on future events and the launch of our Career Break Boot Camp in January 2011!

4 Responses to “Meet, Plan, Go! Has Arrived”

Andy Hayes | Sharing Travel Experiences Says:
2010-09-13 12:00
Those numbers are incredible! Congraulations!
Audrey Says:
2010-09-13 12:46
Congratulations! These numbers are awesome and shows that there is demand from people to travel and experience new things in life. Good luck tomorrow!
Sonia Says:
2010-09-13 14:32
I like how "back to work" is in quotes... like it's only a matter of time before I take another career break. (And it is!)
craig zabransky Says:
2010-09-21 19:12
So glad to be part of an event that helped put 'career break' into the American lexicon. Fantastic jobs to all.

stay adventurous, Craig

Other comments

9 Comments on "A Year in Paris"

Leah on Mon, 6th Jun 2011 8:12 am

I really enjoyed reading your post. I am thirty-two soon and have itchy feet that are ready to try out foreign soils.
It is a fear of leaving the security of the day to day grind of paying the bills and living a safe and non-challenging way of life that has put me on hold for some time.
I hope (as it has I) your post will inspire others to go and follow their bliss – Leah 🙂

Patricia GW on Mon, 6th Jun 2011 8:54 am

Travel and experiencing a new culture really has put it into perspective, and filled that void with purpose (and joy).

In three weeks I’ll be moving to Paris myself for one month. I have the same feeling – the incredible surreal realization that I’m going to be living there…. it’s thrilling!!

Abby on Mon, 6th Jun 2011 2:11 pm

Oh, Jenny! Escargot isn’t palatable — it’s delicious! I love your writing style; it’s so fun and energetic. Can you believe how far we’ve come? Everyone, Jenny and I were in the exact same industry and have known each other online and via work emails for years and years. But we’ve only met once, many, many years ago. And one of those jobs she was sleeping next to her BlackBerry for was one I’d just left. And now she’s 33 and living abroad, just like I was last year. Kindred spirits. Jenny, you’re a true inspiration — I can’t wait to see how your adventure unfolds!

Debbie Beardsley on Mon, 6th Jun 2011 3:22 pm

Your life in Paris sounds ideal. It is nice to read about people who follow their dreams instead of wishing they had! Enjoy the rest of your journey.

Terriaw on Tue, 7th Jun 2011 1:40 pm

Wow, fabulous and well said! I love your new outlook on like. After experiencing career burnout and feeling a little lost and purposeless lately, you have encouraged me. I look forward to seeing Paris someday!

Jenny on Tue, 7th Jun 2011 6:50 pm

merci for all the sweet comments! @abby we are soooo kindred spirits! well except when it comes to our differing feelings on escargot…;) and congrats patricia on the move! thrilling indeed!

shawna on Thu, 9th Jun 2011 1:32 am

you’ve reawakened my travel bug. must. return. to. france. (someday.) eat a croissant for me!

Weekly Travel Blog Links — LandingStanding on Mon, 13th Jun 2011 6:16 am

[…] how badly I want to go to Paris… If only we could afford living there for an extended period of time during our travels! Any […]

G. Michael Schneider on Sun, 19th Jun 2011 3:36 pm

I am a firm believer in living and working overseas, just as you described. However, many of us actually like our jobs and our homes and are simply looking to renew and refresh our lives, not change it. However, you can have the same type of cultural experience without having to reach into your own wallet and without having to quit your day job–by taking what I call a “working vacation.” My wife and I have done this 15 separate times, from Australia to Zimbabwe, Turket to Tibet, Mauritius to Mongolia. I describe how to do it in my blog otherguysdime.wordpress.com and via Twitter at @otherguysdime. Learn how to have fun without having to have burn any of your bridges behind you.