Hello Hubski, I have a MAJOR life decision to make that will drastically alter the trajectory of my life. I figure that it would be a good idea to reach out the this community to get some advice and some new perspective on my issue from people who are completely impartial.
So basically, I just graduated from College this last May. I managed to secure a pretty nice job that I enjoy and find fulfilling and on top of that, I snagged a Research Assistant position with one of my favorite professors - a position that is competitive and relatively hard to come by to my knowledge. This all seems pretty good right? Well, the story gets a little more interesting...
At the end of August I have some plans (that I've had in the works for long before I got the aforementioned jobs) that I really want to follow through with. The first is an opportunity to travel to France to live with a host family through Workaway for a month with my brother. There, we would tutor their child in English, teach him guitar, help out with some odd jobs around the house, and work on an ongoing art project while being allowed to stay in their beautiful house in the French Pyranees and live as apart of their family. IMMEDIATELY after we return, our plan is to hop in the car with my best friend, and drive across the country to Seattle, where we plan on living for a while.
Some other relevant information:
1. I intensely don't want to continue living where I currently am. Since all of my friends graduated from school, I have no one around. No friends. No family. Nobody.
2. My job requires that I surrender my Friday and Saturday nights, because I have to work overnight. So my social life is entirely non-existent.
3. I want to go to Seattle because I have friends and family there already, and I am confident that I can work in the same field that I am currently in (only the pay will actually be much better).
4. Other people's plans (my brother especially) are contingent upon me going to Seattle/Europe.
5. A major life goal of mine is to travel the world as much as I possibly can.
The thing that is making me so indecisive is that I am nervous to leave my Research Assistant job because I don't know if I'll get another one (I have the intention of going to graduate school in the near future, and I want to have the relevant experience and credentials to get in). I have only been working there for 3 months, and it's likely that my professor/boss will write me a good letter of recommendation, I can't help but feel like I'm bailing on him too early. I can't shake the feeling like this critically important to my future success. Additionally, it just feels weird to quit two good jobs early in my career and take a risk like this.
But to reiterate, if I continue to live in this area, it is 100% certain that I will be depressed, lonely, and absolutely miserable. This isn't me being melodramatic, it's a simple fact. Whereas if I take a risk, travel to Europe and across America with my best friends on the planet, my future is more uncertain, but I know that I'll be happy.
Any advice?