Did any of you watch the show How I Met Your Mother? It used to be one of my favorite shows.
Between the shenanigans of the friends living in New York City and Ted's constant search for love, they had some really good takeaways.
One of which is about starting a sentence, and then saying buuut -
To which the friends respond in union, "There's aaaaalways a 'but.'"
That line is more in reference to dating in that episode, though I think it is something we can all learn from.
How often have you said the sentence below?
"I want to travel, but - "
I know I have!
Traditionally, travel would have us doing the whole cycle of work-work-work-save, travel, repeat.
The thing is, for many of us, the whole work-work-work-save portion of the cycle is often
s t r e t c h e d o u t i n t o y e a r s,
and the travel portion is significantly short.
Maybe we'll get to take that awesome trip for a week, and then go back to the grind to save up for another 1-3 years to *maybe* travel again, in the meantime hating the monotony, bland, boring day-to-day routine that lacks adventure.
It’s okay to be frustrated with this style of travel.
It’s also okay to want to do something about it.
And yes, it’s okay to not want to wait years for this vague point in the future where “everything” magically works out.
(Hint: that’s never going to happen if you take action and don’t change something.)
I’ve been talking to friends and family about travel for years.
SO many of them say they want to travel, tell me where they want to go, and then they...do nothing about it!
They'll say exactly what they want to do - such as backpacking through Southeast Asia for a month - and then go back to their typical routine, never getting any closer to their dream trip.
Nothing changes, if nothing changes.
Change can be tough, but nothing is worse than regret, thinking I wish I did that.
You can’t wait for that vague point in the future.
The odds of any of us winning the lottery are slim to none.
The odds of a fairy godmother coming down and saying, “Hey, I'm giving you a round-the-world trip all inclusive of flights, hotels, and lavish resorts!” is obviously unrealistic.
You want to travel? You want to travel soon?
🙋 YESSSS 🙋
The question is: When are you going to do something about it?
The reason I am so passionate about this, why I get all riled up and occasionally type in ALL CAPS is because it pains me to see SO many people have all these really cool goals and dreams - goals and dreams they are entirely capable of - and then do NOTHING about them.
They know it will make them happier, yet they aren’t taking steps - hell, even step one - toward it.
The worst is when they complain about it 😐
Complaining doesn't get you anywhere. Taking action does.
Oh boy, I used to be a complainer. Growing up in Washington state, where it was overcast or rainy every single day, I would always complain about the cold and the rain. I hated it.
I could go on a rant about how inconvenient it is when you want to sit outside in the summer for lunch yet it's 45 degrees, rainy, and cold, so you can't.
Or that you have to change your outfit to match your North Face rain jacket.
Or that if you are walking outside and drop your coat/bag/whatever on the ground it gets all wet and dirty...ew.
I'm sure it was frustrating to hear those complains and rants come from my mouth almost every day, especially when weather is something out of your control. It makes no use to complain about these #firstworldproblems.
Then I did some traveling and realized there are much bigger things going on in the world, and it was useless to complain when I could just...do something about it.
Like move somewhere else.
Traveling teaches you so much about yourself - you handle situations smarter, you become more relaxed and problem solving is a snap.
I recognized that Seattle weather was out of my control and decided to move. I couldn't move right that day - it took a couple months, but then I moved somewhere that has blue skies and warm weather year-round. Complete opposite.
When I first got my job in Arizona, I lived 45 minutes away during rush hour. I won't lie, the commute sucked.
But when the timing was right, I moved closer to work and cut down the commute to just 5-10 minutes.
When co-workers were like, "You're soooo lucky you live sooo close to work, I'm always late because I live like 20 minutes away," they don't realize they have a choice.
When the timing is right, if the commute is really bad enough to complain about, then make the choice to make the change. Move closer. If you don't, then stop complaining.
The easy way out is to complain and continue being miserable.
People with this mindset will never travel because they're constantly complaining about various barriers, without looking for ways around them (or working while traveling).
The smart way out is to take action, make a change and do something that will make you happier. 😊
Sometimes you need a push.
Sometimes you need someone to help guide the way.
It's okay to seek a solution.