Why a Passion for Learning is Your Best Gap Year Souvenir

There’s that pair of comfy traveler pants – wild patterns with cinched waists and ankles. Or the prints of beautiful artwork made by a local you conversed briefly with. There’s the magnet for mom, the T-shirt for baby bro, and the precious charm bracelet you mentally commit to never losing. While all of these mementos have value and – hopefully won’t end up in the bottom of a dusty box in the attic as their fate – there’s one incredibly powerful souvenir that your Gap Year will leave you with: A rekindling of a love for learning. Here’s why.

Learning Won’t be Confined to Exams & Papers

At some point in our educations, learning became less about wonderment and more about proving memorization in the form of formal exams, homework, papers – you name it. Remember as kids when we would marvel at water systems at the museum? When we would make rainbows out of light refractions? When storybooks took us to enchanted lands? We were learning – a ton – and not to prove to someone that we know what we’re doing. We were learning for the sake of learning, and that gets lost somewhere over time. We start to learn to prove to college admissions counselors we’re their next admit, we learn to get allowance and pocket money from mom and dad, we learn to pass grades and progress with our classmates. Your Gap Year gives you time to throw those expectations out the window and learn for the hell-of-it. Because you want to. Because you’re curious. Because you’re exploring new passions. AWESOME.

Speaking of Passions – Let’s Identify Them

“Passion” is a buzzword amongst millennials, particularly on their journey to finding a career they find meaningful. If you’re passionate about your job – they say – you’ll never have to work a day in your life. But what does that even mean? What can that look like in your life? What are you even PASSIONATE about – besides breakfast tacos? Use your Gap Year to find out. There’s no agenda, no set itinerary, no checklists to tick off. Tune into the topics, discussions, or activities that pique your interest. Follow that curiosity. Does a conversation on world religions make your eyes heavy? Maybe it’s not your calling. But does a conversation on animal rights or food security make your ears perk up? ← That’s a good sign. Find a book on the subject, find an expert on the subject to chat with, find some related Wikipedia holes to fall into – and dig deeper.

You’ll Discover Multiple Ways to Learn

Not to knock traditional schooling – some students really thrive in environments that are structured, with exams, and the like, to tangibly mark their progress. Other students find experiential learning is more impactful, and will forego the college-route in search of more hands-on learning experiences. Others still will take a meandering route of volunteering, internships, a commitment to reading, etc. In short, there’s no one-size-fits-all when it comes to learning. Your Gap Year will help you intimately learn what works for YOU. Try one, try ‘em all, make up your own combo. The beauty of this is that you can observe, absorb, reflect – for yourself and no one else.

Intellectual Curiosity is satisfying

We want you to encourage you to come home with a love for learning. Truth be told, individuals that are gungho to learn EVERYTHING about EVERYTHING end up being some of the most interesting people you can cross paths with. Being intellectually curious will help you succeed not only in your academic life, but also in your personal and professional lives. It means your brain is super absorbent – open to new perspectives, challenging narratives, confusing facts, astounding news stories – and is primed to digest all of the info its processing.

A Commitment to Learning Makes You a Stronger Global Leader

Think of the role models: presidents, prime ministers, priests, and influencers who are kind of stuck in a rut. They are clinging to old ways, refusing to adapt to evolving societal norms and developing cultural values. While traditions are beautiful and certainly have worth, it is those leaders who remain adaptable (willing to learn something new) that tend to succeed in their missions in today’s world. Could this be you? In the end, souvenirs can be fun, can be kitschy, can have meaning, can be beautiful. But the one we hope you carry with you closely, in your future post-Gap Year years, is a passion and a desire for learning itself. Photo Credit: Ian Schneider