Before leaving for a trip of any length, whether it be a week-long jaunt to the countryside or a fully fledged round-the-world trip for 12 months or more, we all seem to adopt a certain frame of mind before we set out from home. For many people, committing to a longer journey, in particular one with no end point, can be a difficult undertaking. Leaving friends, family, job and material possessions behind for who knows how long is never going to be an easy step to take psychologically. Adopting a healthy travel philosophy is a great way to ease into your new life, even if it is a temporary one. The main things you’ll need to get your head around is determining why you are travelling, and how to get over the fear that so many people have of detaching themselves from an ‘average’ life and letting go of the things that I mentioned above.
Why Travel?
Everybody has a different reason for wanting to travel long-term. Some just want to go and party for a few months, some want to give themselves an opportunity to truly relax, some want to learn about the history and culture of the world’s people, some want to challenge themselves physically and mentally on an epic adventure, the list goes on. Ask yourself before you go too crazy quitting jobs and jettisoning possessions: What do I want to get out of a travel adventure? My personal method is to ‘learn on the go’ by travelling first and worrying about the reasons later, but I understand that many people would want to answer this question before they leave. Whatever your reasons, know that travelling with an open heart and mind will enable you to achieve whatever you are hoping to.
When you travel, carrying everything you own on your back, meeting new and fascinating people every day, experiencing wonderful things all the time, the possibilities for you to do whatever you wish and to be truly set free are seemingly endless. Not having a pre-existing relationship with the people you meet while travelling also helps, as you can live life the way you choose, free from the judgement of people you fear would ‘not expect it from you’ back home. So go for it. Get out there for whatever reason you like, go with an open mind, and I guarantee you’ll love yourself and the world for it.
Defeat The Fear
When you choose to leave it all behind and travel, there will be people in your life who will doubt you. They will ask probing questions like: What about your stuff? What about your job? What will you do when you get back? The questions and looks of confusion on people’s faces may not bother you at first, but the compound effect of repeatedly being seeded with doubt is often fear. Not your own fear to begin with, but other people’s fear. In most societies we are taught to get up, go to work, go home, go to sleep and repeat the next day until we retire. Granted, the idea of young people having a gap year is becoming increasingly popular all over the world, but usually there is an intention to return, and often a pre-existing plan for life once the person finishes travelling. The notion of leaving for an indeterminate period of time without much of a plan is understandably foreign for many people. This fear may end up being projected on to you and you may begin to feel apprehensive about your upcoming travels. You may want to rein it all in and travel for a shorter period of time, or have a concrete plan and itinerary for the whole trip, if only to satisfy the more conservative doubters in your life. Remember that once you leave, none of those voices will matter. You will feel as if you have stepped into a new life, a new world, and the sky’s the limit. Any fear of the unknown that you or others had before you left should quickly dissipate. There really is no need to fear anything at all.
Those of you who are only going away for a short period of time may not experience this fear or apprehension before leaving, nor will those of you lucky enough to be surrounded only by people who encourage rather than doubt you. Either way, always reassure yourself that any fear or doubts you have about beginning your adventure are fleeting, and will disappear from your mind with time.
