$$$$$$:
Let’s be real , it’s the money. The income is definitely more, but there are many forgotten benefits that can lead to more money in your pocket. So let’s break them down.
- Income:Self explanatory. You make more, depending on the assignment, you can make close to double the take home pay with traveling therapy. Click below to see my recent post on the dirty math of traveling healthcare.
- Tax Benefits: Much of your income is tax free with traveling healthcare due to the stipends you receive. This leads to less money being taken out of your weekly income check. It also can potentially lower what tax bracket you or you and your spouse fall into. This leads to more cash savings, or it potentially allows you to pursue other income streams such as real estate, second jobs, or passion projects without as much of a tax hit.
- Housing/Rent: Although I know this could also fall into The Con list (which it does), it also can be found here if used correctly. Yes, with traveling, you are constantly looking for short term housing which can be difficult. However, because of the flexibility in location that traveling allows, you can find assignments that are often near family or close friends.
- Now, I am not saying to take advantage of these relationships. But, often times, many family members or close friends would love to have the opportunity to see you and often times they will have an extra room for reduced rent or dare I say free.
- Maybe you have an Aunt in California, a sister in Indiana, or a friend in Georgia. This can be great opportunities to visit these people while also save some money in the process. Traveling allows flexibility.
Traveling the United States:
I can’t even begin to list the amazing sights, experiences, and events that I’ve been able to enjoy over the last year. I have hiked parts of the Appalachian trail in both SC and Maine, went whale watching in the Atlantic Ocean, walked the freedom trail in Boston, and explored countless cities and national parks throughout the United States.
And because I’ve lived near these locations, it severely decreases the price it costs to visit these places like it would if you were going on a vacation. No hotel rooms, rent-a-cars or eating out if I so chose.
No Winters
Also, if you are a Northerner like me, you can use traveling healthcare to never have to experience a cold winter again!!!
I can’t stress how amazing it was to be a cold snob during my winter spent in South Carolina. I remember walking outside on a January afternoon to eat lunch and turning back in because it felt a little brisk…it was 65 degrees out…I suck.
Slow Traveling:
I thought about listing this in the paragraph above but this is so important that it deserves it’s own.
Raise your hand if either of these are you when on vacation
Vacationer 1: You run around like a crazy person trying to visit every tourist stop, see every sight, and experience every part of the city you visit to the point that you need another vacation from your current vacation. With the reality being your flight gets in late on Sunday, you are exhausted, overly full, possibly jet-lagged and you have work that Monday…
Vacationer 2: You use your vacation to just relax. You find a beach, a warm cozy fireplace, or a nice spot by the pool. And you CHILL. You unwind, get a sun burn (I mean some color), and maybe get some reading in. You get to work on Monday relaxed and every asks you “Did you see this sight?”, “Eat at this restaurant?”, or “Attend this event?” while you were there. You say no and question to yourself whether you truly utilized your vacation. Thinking in the back of your head that you may need to visit that location again.
*I slowly put my hand down
That’s all of us, and even if you argue and say you perfectly balance your vacations.
- You are lying.
- I ask you this, have they ever long enough?
Traveling healthcare allows for slow travel. You get to fully immerse yourself in a different region, state, and city. You get to experience the location as a local. You can casually visit all of the tourist attractions while learning about the hidden gems that the people who live their love.
You don’t need to quickly snap a picture of Fenway Park before you sprint to the North End for a freshly made cannoli at Mike’s Pastries.
No, you can take in a Red Sox game and have a beer at the amazing restaurants nearby and then the next weekend explore the North End of Boston, eat at an authentic Italian restaurant, have a glass of red wine, before grabbing a dessert to eat on the ocean. If you love it, you could do the exact same thing the very next weekend!
Slow traveling makes vacationing less stressful and you will get more from every location you visit. I know I have.
The Flexibility
I absolutely love this part of traveling healthcare. The way your contract works, is that when one contract ends, it is up to you when you want to begin your next one.
This Fall I had some significant family events that I needed to be home for. I was able to take 5 weeks of work off, no questions asked. 5 WEEKS! This allowed me to spend time with my family during a hard time without the constraints of work and the constant emails from your boss.
It also then allowed me to find a “traveling” assignment close by for the next 15 weeks so I could further spend time with my family. I’ll get into this more in a later post, but as long as you are a certain distance away from your tax home, you can still qualify for all the tax free stipends and benefits traveling allows.
Career Development
Again, many view this as a con, so you will find it in that list as well, but I view it to be more of a pro and here’s why. I get the opportunity to work with different therapists from across the United States who are all trained from different schools of thought and who practice in very different ways. I get the benefit to pick all of their brains and continue to develop my own skills as a physical therapist. I can pick and choose things I like while also getting to see the things I don’t like.
Along this same thought traveling healthcare allows you the ability to explore the many different settings your job has. For me, if I didn’t know what setting I wanted to work in out of school, instead of guessing and taking a job because it is available.
I could work a 13 week assignment in a skilled nursing facility, in a nursing home, in a hospital, in a private practice, in a sports medicine clinic, or in home health. And if I don’t like it, it’s only for 13 weeks and I never have to work in that setting again. Now, you know what you like based on your own experiences not just what you think you like coming out of school.
Side Note: If I hate a setting, I now don’t need to have the awkward conversation of quitting a full time job after a couple months of work like I’ve seen some of my colleagues have to do.
The People
Growing up in Western Wisconsin , I didn’t leave with having the most culture to say the least. Traveling therapy has been a great path to expose me to different cultures and allowed me to meet people from all over the world.
We all tend to get a little comfortable in the environment we grew up in/ Traveling therapy allows us to expand out of our comfort zone, add to our experiences, and possibly challenge some of our own beliefs.
The Friendships
I have been able to meet some amazing people throughout this experience both inside and outside of work. Although you only work somewhere for 13 weeks, you create some pretty close relationships. I now have friends all over the United States which only will give you more reason to keep traveling in the future.
Long Term Potential
Who knows, maybe if you love the location, love the setting, and love the people you will then have the opportunity to work at this location full time. I mean, you did just have a 13 week long interview at this point.
Out of my 4 completed assignments to this point, I have been offered to sign on full time in 3 of them without asking. One actually offered me a job as the manager of the entire clinic.
Conclusion
There are countless pros to working a traveling healthcare job as I have listed above and I’m sure I missed countless others. It’s a lucrative career choice that allows you to experience different work, locations, and people across the United States.
It’s not for everyone, but it also doesn’t have to be a career you do forever. Why not pay off some debt and see the world in the process.
What are some of the reasons you travel or want to travel?
As always, feel free to comment below with any questions or if you have specific questions contact me here!
