chapter 30: lessons from life on a remote island

came to learn how to be a professional diver, left with new perspectives about life and work

Aug 07, 2024

Two months ago, I arrived in Honduras and settled into life on the small Caribbean island of Utila with the goal of completing my divemaster certification to become a professional scuba diver.

Today, I’ve accomplished that goal and am proud to say I am both a PADI Divemaster and Master Scuba Diver after completing additional specialty trainings that I didn’t even originally anticipate!

I've just arrived in Europe for the next leg of my travel sabbatical and am excited for a drastic change of pace: going from living on a remote island populated by only 4,000 people, to now spending the next two weeks hopping around metropolitan capital cities and attending concerts with 90,000 people in just one venue.

But before jumping into this next adventure, I took some time to reflect and process the Honduras chapter of my life, in which I not only learned how to be a professional diver, but also gained a lot of clarity on what I value in life beyond diving.

Although these are my personal reflections and not representative of everyone’s experience, I’ll share these takeaways I have from going out of my comfort zone and spending two months of my career break pursuing a scuba side quest on a tiny Caribbean island so anyone who’s curious can learn and live vicariously:

mixing passion and profession is a delicate balance

As I previously wrote, for me it was no easy task to complete the rigorous month-long PADI divemaster training program. I thought about quitting multiple times when I felt unprepared and ill-fitted for such a physically demanding, exhausting job.

I’m passionate about diving, interacting with marine life, and protecting the underwater world that I love. But, the process of turning my passion into a profession ended up making me realize that I treasure how special it feels to dive recreationally and don’t want to taint that magic by making it an income-driven obligation at this point in my life. Any job will at times cause frustration, and I don’t want to end up resenting something I love.

Though I’m unsure if I will ever actually use my divemaster certification to work in the diving industry, I have grown so much and find it rewarding nevertheless to now be able to do something I love with a professional level of confidence and knowledge.

inspiration is just as important as facilitation

Although this experience showed me that I likely wouldn’t enjoy the physically demanding lifestyle of a professional diver who facilitates scuba certifications, there’s still an important role that I can play in my everyday life: being the inspiration — or as my newly certified diver friend called me, the scuba diving evangelist.

I was so proud of six of my friends – shoutout to Ethan, Komal, Priyanka, Sebastian, Shannon, and Ashley! – who took my recommendation to come visit me this summer and get scuba certified and/or have their first ever diving experiences. Some had never dived before and previously struggled to even snorkel, others were comfortable with freediving but knew nothing about scuba, and others just needed a bit of encouragement to finally turn one of their bucket list experiences into a reality.

Even if I didn’t play the role of the instructor, I did the important work of igniting the spark of inspiration to get scuba certified, and did everything in my power to help plan their trips so I could be by their side to talk through any worries and ultimately celebrate their entry into the world of scuba diving.

If you can inspire others with your actions, you can change lives and therefore change the world. Just the act of being your own passionate, enthusiastic self can be as powerful as serving the role of an instructor or facilitator.

do what feels right for you, even if that means going alone

After doing a lot of personalized research, I originally wanted to do my divemaster training on Roatan, a Caribbean island known worldwide for its high quality diving. However, a friend I met on a previous dive trip told me she had just signed up to do her divemaster training this summer in Utila: a smaller, cheaper island only an hour ferry away from Roatan. Thinking it couldn’t possibly be that different on the neighboring island, I was swayed by the thought of how much more fun and less scary it might be to move somewhere brand new for two months with a friend rather than doing it alone.

However, I deeply wish I had stuck with my original intention. By prioritizing following someone I knew to a program she had selected according to her personal best interests, I sacrificed what I now know would have been a better, higher-quality experience on Roatan that would have more closely aligned with my own expectations.

Moving forward, to avoid any similar sense of regret, I will trust my own intuition and venture alone if necessary instead of following someone else’s lead and suffering the consequences.

small environments breed conformity — and large, diverse communities have so much value in contrast

Living on an island where my daily interactions were confined to a few dozen transient short-term travelers meant limited options for making friends during my two-month stay. Much like in a small high school environment, in Utila it seemed like everyone played along with common sentiments and followed the crowd in order to fit in — even if they privately expressed different opinions.

In a small community, if you have an uncommon viewpoint or express any sort of disagreement publicly, you can very quickly be ousted from the homogenous central social circle. Sadly, I learned this firsthand, and inhabitants of small island communities throughout the Caribbean confirm that this is a common concern in small, isolated places.

Normally, I treat forming new friendships like dating — not everyone is going to be the right fit, and sometimes you need to move on if you don’t feel aligned. It’s harder to do so on a small island where you simply run out of new people to meet.

My time living in Utila made me realize that my former idealistic dream of rejecting traditional work and running away to an island to live a simple life was a case of rose colored lenses and oversimplified optimism. I now firmly understand how much I value living in large cities with diversity of opinion, lifestyle, background, career, and worldview. Yes, there’s a cost of living difference, but a robust social scene pays dividends in both happiness and opportunities that make it worth the cost to live in a diverse, populous city.

don’t book non-changeable return tickets for long term stays

This might be a no-brainer for most people, but I learned this the hard way. I usually try to travel on as small of a budget as possible, so I book the absolute cheapest flights that often don’t include an option to reschedule or change.

When traveling longterm, particularly with the intention to spend weeks or months in a place I’ve never been before, I will never again lock in for a fixed end date. Time is more valuable than money, so I will from now on always give myself the flexibility of ending a trip early or changing plans if it’s simply not worthwhile to spend more time there.

never forget you have the ability to improve your life

When I grew increasingly unhappy with tiny island life in Utila, I realized I didn’t have to feel stuck. I couldn’t change the fact that I made a poor decision to come to a place that didn’t end up being a great fit for me, but what I could change is how I responded to the subpar situation I found myself in. I could forgo the rent I had paid until the end of the month and spend my last weeks on Roatan, the island next door, for a change of scenery and a redemption arc for following my original intentions.

You can be grateful for what you have while still knowing something better is out there. When circumstances are not great, don’t be complacent – always remember you have the ability to improve your life and create your own happiness.

This applies to all aspects of life beyond travel — don’t waste time in a place, job, or relationship that you know deep down is unsatisfying. At any time, you are in the driver seat of your own life and you have the ability to change your situation if you’re unhappy.

strangers can be kinder to you than friends

During my time on Utila, my friend that influenced me to move there ended up growing very distant and we stopped sharing meals together even though we lived in the same apartment. Meanwhile, once I moved to the neighboring island, absolute strangers welcomed me to join them for dinners and social outings and even went above and beyond in their kindness to also pay for my meals not once, but three times. When solo traveling, I never rely on the kindness of strangers, but I certainly do appreciate and remember those positive conversations and actions much more than I ever remember any negative interactions.

I've learned to focus on the people who do appreciate you, and move on to not dwell on those who don't treat you kindly.

learning to enjoy doing nothing is a skill

During a career break, it can be difficult to shift from normal work mode of prioritizing achievement, external validation, and progression to instead prioritizing ease, self-care, and relaxation — but, that is my desired mindset change for this year-long sabbatical. It’s been four months since I’ve stopped working, and it’s taken me about this long to become at peace with doing nothing and being “unproductive” when my body and mind crave rest.

My former self would feel guilty for the opportunity cost of reading a book or taking a nap in a hammock instead of exploring every inch of a new place or working on some side hustle — but now, I have allowed myself to settle into a new outlook on time where maximizing every minute with achievement and progression is less important than maximizing my contentment, in whatever way feels right in the moment.

experiences that seem bad in the moment can be good in the long run

Michael Jordan once said, "Learning is a gift, even when pain is your teacher" and I couldn't agree more. From the most challenging experiences, usually come the most insightful personal growth opportunities. Any bad experience makes the good feel even greater by contrast, and can heighten your appreciation for things you previously took for granted.

Ultimately — living on a small island may have been a one and done experience for me, but I’m still glad I tried it because otherwise I would always dream about what it might be like. Now, I understand the realities and downsides of what might otherwise seem like an idyllic life, and am more confident that after my career break, I would like to return to a job that enables me to live in a diverse city where I can find community that respects and values my unique views on life and work.

Novelty and variety are the spice of life, and living on a small island where every day felt repetitive and every person’s mindset seemed the same made me realize how much I value living a spicy life 🌶️

I’m aiming to publish a future write up with tips and wholistic reflections on taking a career break to travel. If you have any burning questions about taking a sabbatical and traveling the world, reply to this email or leave a comment so I can answer it in this upcoming piece!

my goal is to inspire you to travel more as a tool for personal development – and, to live life in a way that feels right to you.

if anyone you know loves to travel and is perhaps thinking about exploring an alternate life path/taking a sabbatical… send this their way!

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if you enjoy my writing in this newsletter, you’d love my book: You Are Where You Go: A Traveler’s Coming of Age Journey Through 70 Countries and 7 Continents During College