Ryan Lum
The art of travel is difficult to master. In my short time being back home in the Bay Area, I’ve had a lot of time to reflect. Watching films of people traveling across the world on motorcycles, packing up and taking spontaneous trips abroad and seeing photos on Facebook of friend’s travels have all inspired me to pursue this expensive hobby.
When I tell people I’m moving to France, people are shocked. I don’t blame them. I believe the American dream is to find a career and work at it. That has been the dream for many years. Stability and security is the number one priority. You make money now and make huge strides in your career so that you can enjoy an early retirement and coast. This is most American’s idea of the ideal lifestyle; however, there are some who beg to differ.
I remember picking up the book, The 4-Hour Work Week, and reading about how Tim Ferriss outsources a lot of his work so that he can take mini retirements throughout his life. To be honest, I stopped reading after hearing that.
I could not agree more that you have your whole lifetime to make your own decisions, build your career and make money. Age and death is not something you can escape…nor should you. There comes a time in everyone’s life where your health isn’t so great. Arthritis, short-term memory and high blood pressure are only some of the things you may encounter as you get older. Traveling and spontaneity is something that might be more difficult to enjoy when you have a significant other, a career, kids and a dog.
So with that I felt compelled to write this post for several reasons.
5 Reasons Why You Should Travel NOW
- You have the rest of your lifetime to make money if that is your goal; however, when will you have the health you have now, the freedom and the opportunity? Traveling and discovering new cultures and sharing stories with people all over the world undoubtably makes a huge difference in the person you are today.
- Regardless of your profession, the experience and the knowledge gained from travel can be applied to any career. There is one part of any job that remains constant. Every job involves interacting with people or understanding human behavior. Exploring new cultures will only help you in the long run.
- I’m not saying you should put yourself into debt; however, if money is an issue…you can get interest free credit cards for 6 months so you can enjoy travel while you still have your health and freedom to do so. How often will you have the chance to take 5-6 months off to travel the World? It’s truly a once in a lifetime opportunity that in my opinion is worth the cost.
- It goes without saying, you’ll gain a worldly perspective. Right now I’m watching the tv series, ‘Long Way Round’ with Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman where they travel around the world on motorcycles. It’s amazing to see that there are some parts of the World that almost seem as if they are living in a different era. Even though there are people who are living in poverty, they are still kind and helpful to these two travelers. It definitely shows the kindness and love that all people around the world share.
- And of course my favorite quote by Mark Twain…
“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” – Mark Twain
