Doing your first winter season? Here is an opportunity to get the most out of your time.
Do you dream of going on a season, and maybe an opportunity to start on a fresh? Then you are at the right page. In this blog, you will get introduced to three former instructors’ own experiences, with going on a season without knowing anyone beforehand.
Not knowing anyone beforehand, is great opportunity to get to know new people, but also to get to know yourself better and make space for personal development. Another absolute benefit, is that you can spend your time doing exactly what you feel like.
As many as 90% of Snowminds instructors, actually apply by themselves and sign up without knowing anyone beforehand. Should you still feel that it’s an overwhelming thing to do, then be assured, “we’ve got you”. When you become an instructor with Snowminds you travel as a team with your future colleagues. We understand that it can be an overwhelming thought, but we can also sincerely tell you, how extremely awesome and developing it is, to start on a fresh and make lots of new friends.
Kick off before departure
Before departure, Snowminds arrange a kickoff day, where you get to meet all the winter season’s upcoming instructors, who are going to the same country as you. Here you have the opportunity to get to know the others and while listening to presentations and participating in activities during the day, you will get the opportunity to ask any questions you might have, to previous experienced instructors. This day will prepare you for your best winter season.
The majority of our instructors go on season with an open and curious mindset, and many others are fortunately in the same boat and, so it is easy to connect with other likeminded people.
We are going to start off with Sofie, who went on season to Alpendorf in Austria. Let’s kick off the personal stories, which we have all been waiting for.
Sofie, 23 years old, Alpendorf, Austria 18/19:
“When I was leaving for my winter season, there were a lot of things I was excited about. First of all, the education, but also for all the experiences there were yet to come. But there were also things that made me insecure and made me worry. It was uncertain things like, who would I sit next to in the bus, who would I share a room with, and whether I was going to find any friends at all.
However, all my insecurities and things that made me nervous were soon put away, already when I was on the bus and on my way. Because what I forgot to consider, was that many of the others were in the exact same situation as I was. There were so many of the others who were traveling alone, so it was actually really easy to find someone that I was comfortable with and someone I could talk to. I am so infinitely happy that I overcame my insecurities and just did it. The whole journey has been the best experience of my life.
My best advice to others who are considering going on a season, but are in doubt whether they want to travel alone or not, is to just do it. It is such a common thing to say, but by traveling with Snowminds, there is so much security and everything is literally planned for you. And most important of all is that you don’t travel alone, even though you might sign up without knowing anyone yet. Because there will be a lot of other young people who all have the same interest as you – to go on a season. “
Photos from Sofies season in Alpendorf, Austria 18/19
Cecilie 24 years old, Schladming, Austria 18/19:
“In the beginning, the idea of going on a season without knowing anyone beforehand, a very overwhelming thought for me. Personally I often seek for experiences to share with people I know, where I feel safe and for experiences, where I more or less know what to expect. So when we back then approached departure day, that naturally led to a lot of “what-if” thoughts. But I also just had to admit with myself that “you do not know what you do not know” but you will find out, and then you have to decide whether you like it or not when you are in it.
A phrase that really encouraged me to go, was from some of my closest friends, who told me “that sometimes you just have to stop worrying too much, and just do it , and then you will either love it or hate it. What you will for sure regret the most is if you don’t even try ”And today I can only agree with them. I jumped into it, met people and new friends and had the wildest experiences that I will never regret – and of course it was nerve-wracking at times, but never something I didn’t really like.
I am also just so grateful that I chose to travel “alone”, because I have been able to form my winter season into exactly what I wanted it to be like. But also because I have been involved in so many unfamiliar situations, where I have independently had to make choices according to my gut feeling or from what I knew. My entire season has developed me both personally, but also in relation to my language skills as an example, and it was not only me who could clearly see that development. I came home from my season with new experiences, courage and energy, which everyone around me could see too.”
Photos from Cecilies season in Schladming, Austria 18/19
Dan, 23 years old, Niseko, Japan 17/18:
“I traveled “alone” to Japan to spend the winter season as a ski instructor during my gap year. I write alone in quotation marks because, yeah, I was not alone at all. I made the decision to go on season without knowing anyone, and am so glad I had the courage to throw myself into it!
During the season, I found that the majority of everyone I met felt exactly the same as me. Most people leave “alone”, and this means that many are completely open minded to meeting new people and creating an everyday life together. A ski resort and all the time you spend together with your team, is the perfect mix to get to know one another. For example, activities that bring everyone together really fast, consist of everything from having really good days on the mountain to cooking together in the evening. You get so close with the people you are away with and it doesn’t take long before you instantly feel safe with those amazing people you have around you!
A good piece of advice of mine is to have the courage to throw yourself into it and be open to meeting new people. It can be an overwhelming thing, but remember that the majority of those you are going to spend the season with, might feel the same way.
Photos from Dan´s season in Niseko, Japan, 17/18
The best advice
As you can read from above, there are several, who may have the same considerations as you, but the bottom line for them all, is that the best advice is to just do it. As Cecilie mentions “you do not know what you do not know” and you will most often regret only the things you never gave a chance.
Should you still have doubts about whether traveling alone is something for you, you are always welcome to give us a call, drop us a message on Facebook or Instagram or write to us by email at [email protected].
Ps. Remember that you will meet your future colleagues already before you leave for departure when we invite you to the kick off event.
Do you dream of going on a season yourself at one of many destinations. Then be sure to check out our selection of Snowminds courses! Remember to register well in advance, because there are limited spots per. season.