What traveling teaches you

Travel is simply the best possible learning experience I can imagine .... Traveling and (thereby) discovering the world has not only greatly enriched and delighted me as a human being, it has also shaped me into who I am as a person. In my eyes, this alternative ´school for life´ provides a wealth of priceless experiences, (self) knowledge and memories!! Naturally, this is not only true for me .... That´s why below you´ll find all sorts of examples of what travel can teach YOU. I would say: get inspired! :-)

 

Comfort zone

Travel forces you to get out of your comfort zone. And as you probably know: the magic of life is to be found outside  that comfort zone .... In reality only 2 things are needed - within you - to take such a step: a wish or desire, plus a little courage. That goes a long way! And one of the best parts is: by expanding your own comfort zone, you actually reduce  your fear.

 

Stretching

Traveling stretches your mind (and your heart!). Most of what you´ll encounter on a trip is different from what you´re used to, sometimes so radically different that it can cause a bit of a shock to your system. Not only are you confronted with a different environment, different temperatures and different food, but also with different views, different beliefs, different ways of living, different customs, different systems, etc. And that is exactly what makes traveling so interesting and enriching! It forces you to challenge and/or revise your own ingrained (thought) frameworks and habits. Maybe something else actually suits you better!

 

Self-knowledge

You get to know yourself (and the other person ;-)) really well while traveling. When all that is known and familiar falls away, what is left? Who are you then? How do you react to (unpredictable) events and circumstances? What are your patterns, your preferences, etc.? And what is really  important to you in life? This also leads you to:

 

Self-confidence

To trust yourself. This is an essential, indispensable life skill. By traveling you develop much more self-confidence: you can do this!! You learn to make your own decisions and to follow your intuition more. If you dare to trust yourself, you are steps ahead in life!

 

 

Gratitude

Gratitude. Lots of gratitude. When you travel you learn to appreciate (even) more what you have here. Not only the wealth, but especially the freedom we enjoy in this part of the world is exceptional. Many people in many countries are struggling to survive. They don´t have the luxury of engaging in travel and self-development. Yet I´ve come across some of the happiest people abroad. This is something we can learn from, especially in our Dutch 'complaint culture' ....

 

The NOW

Living in the moment. When traveling you´re often so absorbed in everything that´s happening around you, that your thoughts have less of a chance to disturb your inner peace and well-being. As such, you´re spending much less time ´in your head´, allowing you to enjoy yourself more. This is an important reason why many people feel better when they travel.

 

Clarity

Travel provides clarity and a new perspective. In order to make an important decision it´s often necessary to create some distance from everyday reality, especially if you´re stuck. And what better way to do that than to go traveling? :-) I can honestly say that I made some of the best decisions for my life and work abroad!

 

Qualities

Travel stimulates all kinds of positive qualities, such as your creativity, flexibility, tolerance and independence, for example. And how about your social and communication skills? Those improve by leaps and bounds because of all the nice people you meet along the way - especially if you travel alone! When I'm in a foreign place and I want to know something or I need information, I usually ask the locals. After all, they often know best. Doing that is also much more fun and rewarding than diving into your own phone again ;-)

 

Goodness

You get to experience firsthand that people are essentially good. Even though the current state of the world might make you doubt that sometimes .... I cannot describe in words how many beautiful, kind, helpful people I have met over the years, all over the world. Local people as well as fellow travelers. Moreover, helpers have always appeared on my path just when I needed them .... Magic!! :-)

 

Respect

You develop more respect for life here on earth and a sense of awe for the majesty of nature. Because you will have discovered how spectacular the beauty of our planet actually is! This makes you want to approach it in a more conscious manner, whatever shape or form that might take.

 

 

Safety

Places are often a lot safer to travel to/through than the authorities or the media would have you believe. News is predominantly negative. Things are easily blown out of proportion or otherwise skewed when a government sees it as its job to keep citizens safe. In reality, nine times out of ten, it's not all that bad on location. It´s always wise to think of your own safety of course, I do too. But don't just blindly follow every travel advisory or negative report. Instead, do your own research.

 

Connection

There are all kinds of people walking this earth who love travel and adventure just as much as you do! Who understand that for you traveling is not a luxury or an ´escape´, but a necessity of life. In ordinary life, it may seem like you are the only one with this passion, the only one with the desire to live your life in a different way than most people do. But as you travel, you constantly meet like-minded people - and it´s wonderful to be able to connect with them!

 

There are many more beautiful things to mention here .... but that would make this a very long blog! :-) What stands out for you when you read this? And what do you hope to gain from traveling?

 

Published on: July 11th, 2023 - © Luminessenz