Adventure careers: think outside the cubicle!

Does the idea of dressing in business-casual clothes and sitting in a gray, partitioned-off cubicle make you want to scream? Maybe you crave something that offers a bit more adventure. If so, you're in luck.

What does adventure mean? "What one person might consider adventurous, another may not," says Linda , a career counselor at Harvard University and an adventurer herself. competed on the TV show Survivor: Africa. "There isn't one definition for it. There are thousands of fields out there."

Whether you're an introvert who wants to dig for dinosaurs, an extrovert who dreams of teaching others to skydive, or just a person who doesn't want a plain vanilla, 9-to-5 gig, you can make it happen.

Career World caught up with four people who looked for adventure in their careers--and found it.

TRAVEL WRITER

When people hear what Sara "Sam" does for a living, jaws drop.

"I say I'm a travel writer, and universally the response is, 'You must have the best job in the world,'" says the 29-year-old with a laugh, talking by phone from her office at Lonely Planet in Oakland, Calif.

's writing has taken her all over Asia, the South Pacific, Hawaii, Canada, and parts of the continental United States, all places she never imagined--back when she was a teenager attending a math and science high school in a Chicago suburb--that she'd be paid to visit.

The travel bug bit her when she was an exchange student in Japan. It took over her life after she earned a liberal arts degree from the University of Chicago, completed a two-year teaching stint in Japan, and spent almost a year traveling in Asia.

had used Lonely Planet guidebooks during her travels and thought she could write guidebooks too. She sent the company a cover letter and resume, highlighting her fluency in Japanese and youthful attitude to distinguish her from most of the company's travel writers, who tended to be older and spoke only English, she says.

won over the Lonely Planet editors by writing a sample chapter about a town in Laos. She officially became a travel writer six months later, when Lonely Planet hired her to write a book about Japan. spent the next five years traveling around the world, writing book after book.

"I felt like I was a graduate student of life, like I was being paid to learn about whatever I wanted to learn about," says. "Whether it was kayaking or [aboriginal] peoples in northern Japan or walking on the Great Wall of China, it was like a three-dimensional classroom--but there were no tests, no exams, and only one book report at the end. I was hooked. When you travel, you're stunned by the amount of beauty [and] treasure that's out there to be seen, tasted, trekked, climbed, whatever."

As much as she loves it, though, warns that travel writing isn't nonstop glamour and excitement. It's exhausting--and sometimes dangerous. She's endured sexual harassment and difficult border crossings. had to learn to pace herself, to rely on her gut instinct, and to ask strangers for help when she needed it. "You have to decide how [worthwhile] it is to you to put up with the grief," she says.

OCEANOGRAPHER

Not every day yields a major scientific discovery for oceanographer Dwight , but enough days do. He's the director of research for the Institute for Exploration in Mystic, Conn. leads underwater expeditions to map and explore the seafloor and to document discoveries. His team uses advanced technologies, including sophisticated sonar, robotic vehicles, and submersibles.

"It can be frustrating and boring to collect a single sample from the seafloor. But once that sample is recovered and analyzed, it could be a unique discovery that teaches us about Earth or human history," says the 37-year-old, who has a doctorate in oceanography from the University of Rhode Island.

On another trip, and his team discovered four shipwrecks off the coast of Bulgaria. One of those ships was 2,400 years old--the oldest ever found in the Black Sea--and contained fish bones that offered valuable insight into ancient trade. also found a 1,500-year-old ship off the coast of Turkey in 100 feet of water. It was almost perfectly preserved, and the wooden mast was still standing.

"The thrill of it all outweighs the drawbacks," says , who has had a lifelong passion for the natural environment. Through high school, college, and postgraduate studies, he worked diligently in math and the sciences to reach his goal of making intriguing scientific discoveries. That potential of discovery, of adding to science and history, is what keeps him diving in submarines and being at sea even in harsh weather.

ADVENTURE TRIP GUIDE

Although adventures inherently pose some risk, pursuing them does not have to mean risking your life, says Lari Shea, owner and manager of Ricochet Ridge Ranch and the Redwood Coast Riding Vacations in Mendocino, Calif.

She's been chased by a lion in Africa, attacked by three elephants and a spitting cobra, stranded during a blizzard in the mountains of Patagonia, and nearly drowned while crossing a river, but she's not usually in any danger: "Safety comes first" is her policy.

"A smart adventurer lives a long, very happy life," Shea says. "My idea of excitement does not involve fear that I might die doing it. I get thrilled and love the adventure of riding fast on a fit horse over trails that offer fantastic views. But if the footing is likely to hurt my horse or me, I slow down. And that doesn't ruin the adventure--it's just part of it."

Shea has been operating her riding vacation business since 1985. She leads guests on horseback for miles over deserted beaches, across extensive cattle ranches, and through magnificent redwood forests. During each trek, participants learn about horsemanship, riding techniques, and equine sports conditioning methods.

"I love to ride horses, be outdoors, and teach people well so they too can experience this grandeur," says Shea, who holds a degree in anthropology from the University of California at Berkeley and is a licensed emergency medical technician. "Every day is different, with changes in the weather, ocean, clients, and even how the horses feel."

The 58-year-old cites only two minor drawbacks to her career: the part where she's stuck in front of a computer for several hours taking care of administrative details and the comparatively low pay. But it's all worth it when she's out with the horses and making other people's vacation dreams come true, Shea says.

PHOTO JOURNALIST

It's hot in Iraq. Ethan learned that firsthand last summer when the newspaper he works for, the Raleigh (N.C.) News & Observer, sent him to Iraq for three and a half weeks to document the experiences of the North Carolina Army National Guard personnel deployed there. , a photo journalist, documents news through the lens of his camera. Once he takes a photo, it becomes a part of history.

"There's a lot more going on [in Iraq] than you see normally when you look at the newspapers," says. "It's scary being over there, but it's also an adventure not many people get to do. And, as a journalist, you get to see everything. You get the big picture, not just the little pictures. You get to experience [people's] lives. It's a gift, really, for someone to let you come into their life and tell their story."

He appreciates that gift every day, even during difficult assignments, such as those in war-torn Iraq and Kosovo, and on the home front, where he often must take pictures against people's wishes--such as at a funeral of a community leader or a car-crash site. "It's a necessary part of the job," the 33-year-old says. "As a journalist, you're writing the first draft of history."

Of course, history also includes fun and exciting assignments, like those that attracted him to the field as a teenager.

"I remember seeing the photographers on the sidelines of football games, and I thought, 'Wow, how cool would that be?'" says.

Taking photos began as a hobby and evolved into a career for , who has a degree in political science from Macalester College in St. Paul, Minn.

"Working for a newspaper isn't really work. I am not watching a clock, trying to figure out when I can go home," says. "There still are times when I can't believe I am being paid for this."

MAKE IN HAPPEN

Linda , assistant director fo career services at Harvard University and a competitor on Survivor: Africa gives her advice on finding a career that's also an adventure.

KNOW YOURSELF. encourages adventure-minded students to employ self-examination, planning, and research. She has them focus on their interests and skills, especially those they'd like to develop, and on what makes them happiest. For instance, she says, "You might be great at computers, but you might hate it."

then has students think about work values by asking such questions as "Do you want to be inside or outside?" and "Do you want to work independently or with a team?" By having students look inside themselves and gather information about a variety of career options, she helps them set a course for adventure.

MAKE A DREAM A REALITY. Dreams can come true, with a little planning. "Think about what fields or jobs seem too good to be true," says , whose own adventures include trekking through the Andes and riding with a mobile health clinic in Africa.

"The message is figuring out the adventure for yourself," she says. "Let loose and see what's out there." encourages young people to take risks. "They might be pleasantly surprised," she says. "I didn't think I'd get on Survivor, but I thought, if I do get on, great--that's another interesting life experience."