travel – SarawakYES!

School holidays ‘to-do’ list

For the students among you, after months of classes and exams, the year-end break has finally arrived.

Many of us tend to spend the school holidays catching up on TV shows and movies, play games, hang out with friends or simply laze around at home.

However, there are actually productive things to do during those weeks.

In fact, with so much free time at hand, you can pick up a new hobby or skill, or even prepare yourself for further studies by visiting education fairs.

Here are a few of the many other ways to spend your school holidays:

Gain new knowledge

There are things in this world that you may not even be aware of because you’ve been concentrating so much on your studies, and therefore the school holidays is a great time to expand your horizon.

You can go to your old school to read books and magazines, as well as talking to people who are knowledgeable in your subject of interest.

And thanks to the World Wide Web, you can explore articles, documentaries and numerous other educational materials online.

Although it can be tricky navigating through countless online information, it would help if you focus on a few topics that you’re most interested in learning more about.

Travel

When it comes to travel, you should seriously consider your ‘backyard’ as your next destination, especially when it’s a road less travelled.

If flying overseas is out of the question, Malaysia alone has so many to offer in terms of things to see and do, which, lest we forget, other people fly halfway around the world to experience.

The same goes for travelling within our home Sarawak, which is internationally known for its culture, adventure and nature tourism.

As we’ve mentioned before, you can gain invaluable experience by travelling regardless of the destination; from improving creativity and communication to broadening life values and perspectives.

Work part-time

The school holidays can be an opportune time for you to learn financial independence and gain work experience, which will be beneficial when you apply for a full-time position in the future.

Having a part time job also tests your ability to manage time, in terms of adapting and adhering to a work schedule.

Additionally, you’ll be able to build your network through colleagues you’ll encounter at your workplace.

Improve your health

If you haven’t been taking good care of yourself throughout your studies, the school holidays would be the best time to start practising a healthier lifestyle.

Eat healthily, exercise regularly and make sure you get enough sleep; then ensure that you carry on this lifestyle by the time you go back to school or enter into college.

This is a weekly column by SarawakYES! – an initiative driven by Faradale Media-M Sdn Bhd and supported by Angkatan Zaman Mansang (AZAM) Sarawak – to provide advice and stories on the topics of education and careers to support Sarawakians seeking to achieve their dreams. Join us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.

This article first appeared on The Borneo Post, visit this link: http://bit.ly/2Bywagd

Gaining invaluable experience through travel

This week, we’ll look into one of the most common human activities: travelling. Since time immemorial, human beings have been going from one destination to another whether by land, sea or air for various reasons, be it school, work, business or pleasure.

Travelling to distant locations has always been a popular activity during the holidays, whether within the country or beyond. And in today’s modern, dynamic, technologically-driven world, it is perceived as an important means of rest and recuperation – a method for us to break away from our daily routine.

In fact, various studies have shown that exposure to different environments, people and experiences improves our overall health by keeping us fit, boosting our cognitive skills and immune system, and lowering our stress levels and risk of fatal illnesses, among many other health benefits.

Travelling can also increase our creativity, especially through new, exciting experiences that push us out of our comfort zone, thereby forcing us to expand our minds, adapt to situations and eventually build our self-confidence.

Many who have gone far and wide would tell you that travelling makes them better individuals. For example, if you are travelling solo, you can work on your communication skills by talking to strangers, and perhaps creating new connections in the process.

Meeting different people with different cultures, lifestyles and beliefs allows you to broaden your life values and perspectives by becoming more empathetic, tolerant and considerate towards people. As American author Mark Twain wrote in his travel book ‘The Innocents Abroad’, “Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness.”

So how can you make your travel worthwhile? Try going to new places and set out on making new experiences whenever you go somewhere for your holidays so that you won’t get bored with doing the same thing in the same place.

If you can’t afford to go abroad, go for places you have never been in your home country or even your home state. You’ll come to realise that there is more to them in terms of their people, culture and heritage than what has been portrayed in the media.

And when planning for your trip, keep your schedule flexible in order to fully enjoy yourself instead of stressing out on keeping track of time.

Regardless of location, though, ensure that you keep an open mind, observe to your heart’s content and live in the moment for travelling makes you healthier, happier and more perceptive. Ultimately, learning through travel experiences enriches your life and yourself as one of the over seven billion people on this planet.

This is a weekly column by SarawakYES! – an initiative driven by Faradale Media-M Sdn Bhd and supported by Angkatan Zaman Mansang (Azam) Sarawak – to provide advice and stories on the topics of education and careers to support Sarawakians seeking to achieve their dreams. Join us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.

This article first appeared on The Borneo Post, visit this link: http://bit.ly/2hxvdfn