Every day we make decisions that could potentially change our lives; many people know this phenomenon as the butterfly effect. The butterfly effect can be explained as the idea that a small change (the flap of a butterfly’s wing) can potentially cause a large outcome (a tsunami in Japan). In the same way, small decisions we make in life could change the outcome, for better or for worse. Decisions like that are made so often that we cannot control them and the outcome is unpredictable. But that is not the type of decision I am going to be talking about in this post. The type I am talking about is the kinds of decision were you know it will change your life.
In the movie “The Matrix” released in 1999, Morpheus gives the main character Neo two pills, a red one and a blue one, one could change his life forever and the other will keep him in his current familiar setting. This is a classic example of decisions we face throughout our lives. It would seem as if we had two paths, one could change us forever or put us way out of our comfort zone, and the other to “keep on keeping on”, to not change and stay with what feels safe. I feel like I am coming up on one of those decisions in my life. After I have completed my college education in May I have many options, one of them is quite intriguing. KBR services had contacted me a while ago asking me if I was interested in doing contracted electromechanical work for them. The pay was unheard of, extremely high and tax free, but there is always a catch. KBR offered me a one year contract to work as an Electromechanical Technician in the war zone known as Iraq. Many thoughts are going through my head about this;
Financially-
I will never have the chance to make this lump sum of money every again and it would give me a great advantage in life. While I am there I will have zero expenses and will be earning nearly six times the income and it is all tax free.
Socially-
My current social life would come to a screeching halt. Not seeing friends and family for one year would probably be more difficult than I can imagine. Currently I am involved in a serious relationship that I do not think would disappear, but it would be damaged.
Physically-
I would be working twelve hour days for three weeks strait. I am sure the harsh environment and long hours will take its toll on my body. If the money I make is put to use properly it could save me a lot of work when I am older and my body is more fragile. Being in a war zone has its own health issues, for example, you could get blown up (not recommended by most doctors).
For the fourth week i am not working i can travle for free, go to places somewhat nearby like Germany, Italy, Greece and Egypt. There are many other things to take into account but those are the key ones. I have time to think about it but not much. I will keep everyone updated on my blog. It would be nice to see what others thought about the idea and if they had any interesting questions or comments.
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4 comments:
Holy crap that is a huge decision to make. I know a lot of my friends have gone to Iraq and they come back and they are totally different people all together. I guess what you have to think about is if the money that you would be making would be worth the risk of losing so much that you have now. Or even worth the damage that would be caused by you leaving for so long? Good Luck with your decision.
Well...money comes and goes and nothing ever goes as you plan. Money doesn't buy happiness, but it sure makes life easier. Because we only have one life and one opportunity at a time, I hope you don't make this decision soley on money. When you take into consideration that your life may be at stake, I hope you would have a driving reason to go. When you have a passion for something and you know that you are doing something that matters or your purpose in life, no matter what happens, people remember the differnce. If this is part of the reason you are concidering going, I commend you. I will pray that you are receptive and respond to the voice of God in you decision. I look forward to hearing to the outcome.
Hey Paul, remember me? We worked at CCL together for a while... Anyway, my suggestion (money aside as I'm sure you're aware of what it does and does not add to the equation...) is to consider how it will change your life when you get back. My guess is that even though relationships at home would struggle, if they are worth being part of your life, then they will recover. The biggest thing is to consider if this is a change and a chance you want to take simply for the life and world experience. Few will ever have such an opportunity to share their talents in such a way. Only you can make the decision but if you are at all inclined to go, then I suggest you do it. If you don't, you might just spend your life wondering what it would have brought you. If you do go, you'll know.
Does that even make sense anywhere but in my head? Hope so, anyway...Good Luck!
Blue pills are for suckers!!!! Take a chance and go for it!! On a more intelligent note, never listen to my advice as it is usually bad. Good luck figuring this on out, but if you go remember sun screen. Also, if you go maybe you can come see me in Qatar or Kyrgyzstan when I'm over there. I will have to look into how that would work once I'm there but if it is a year for you, I'm sure our dates will line up somewhere.
Trav
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