The Compass Blog

From Kodiak Island to Charleston – you were with us all the way! CoolWorks was traveling all over the place this October and met and chatted with hundreds of seasonal employers excited to see your applications!

That first step that led me to a discovery and a love for exploration and travel had a domino effect. You take that first step, and the ripples of what you can do, and what you think of doing, expand around and out the more you go, see, taste, laugh...

It’s no wonder so many of us choose not to choose at all. We stay where it’s comfortable and safe – and boring. That’s why I try to remind myself to make decisions based on conquering my fears instead of avoiding them.

I fiercely fight for the right to bear maps. Big maps, fun maps, thinking maps, crinkly maps. Finding a map “outside the screen” can be a challenge, but we scored nicely as I wheeled the rental car into the Hillsboro, OR Visitor’s Center. I’m delighted that my daughter has grown...

Take solace in the fact that in a decade, regardless of all the victories and defeats you’ll experience in life, and irrespective of all the wonderful and tragic events you’ll witness in this world, you’ll be able to return to this place and be welcomed. You will have changed. The...

We are all travelers on this journey of life. May we feel the blessings of tribal magic, and may our home fires burn bright.

Nestled into the dunes of a nature preserve on a remote stretch of beach on the coast of North Carolina stands a solitary mailbox. The “Kindred Spirit” mailbox has lived on a remote stretch called Bird Island for more than 35 years.

When you are 8, heading to Camp might be a leap of faith (or a push of faith, thanks to your well-meaning parents). When you are 10 and 11 and 12, it becomes easier to wave goodbye from the camp bus window because you’re a “seasoned” camper, returning to the...

Whether you’re in a new place working a seasonal job or at home where you’ve lived your whole life, there are places near you that you’ve never set foot on before. Pick up a map, study it, envision the possibilities that lay before you, and then go claim them.

Leaping is always scary. Each time, we open ourselves up to failure or embarrassment or rejection, and we probably endure some scratches, bruises, and burns – but great things lie right on the other side of those flaming fear hoops.

Summer is upon us; it’s time to get outside and enjoy all nature has to offer, and there’s just no better way to do that than spending a couple days and nights outside and disconnected from all the trappings of the work week.

Go out into the world and see and be. This can be as easy as taking a walk into your own yard, or city, or trail system, or as big as a grand adventure to a land you haven’t met face to face yet. It doesn’t take expensive equipment or...