Living in the Now: Travel gratitude

by Brenda Yun on

Sam Chillingworth, a high school classmate, friend, and now featured writer in the inspiring book series Wake Up… Live the Life you Love, recently passed on a book he contributed to called Living in the Now. At the time, I had just returned from a two-month trip to the mainland and Peru, and (as I usually do when I return from a trip) was experiencing a bad case of travel hangover.

There’s nothing like reading a collection of inspiring essays about embracing life. Some of the tips I found were so helpful in putting life — and, more importantly, travel — in perspective that I thought it would be worthwhile to pass on some life and travel wisdom to ye faithful Gadling readers. Seeing that the new year is so quickly approaching, these tips should generate some good ideas for your 2010 resolution(s). On Sunday, I outlined how to travel in 4D, and yesterday we learned about the 80/20 travel rule. Here’s my third and final travel tip to get your new year started on the right foot:

It’s easy to forget just how lucky we are to have the freedom to travel — and to have the freedom to choose what we want to do from day to day. My friend Sam wrote in his essay about living in the now, “[Gratitude] has allowed me to travel to more than 15 different countries, experience adrenaline-filled adventures that would blow your mind, and brought me the forgiveness, happiness and love I’d once longed to receive.” Being thankful for life itself and the great possibilities that exist from one day to the next is the first step toward embracing all of the treasures along the journey of life. When you’re on the road, it’s easy to be present and totally engaged, and it’s even easy to be thankful for the gift of travel itself. The true challenge, I find, is the gratitude that should exist even after your trip is over.

After some very difficult personal struggles, Sam began to appreciate life by watching the sun set into the Pacific Ocean every evening: “I would be there no matter what I was doing, even if all I saw was the final moment.” When your travel sun sets, there’s another new one on the horizon — another beautiful journey that begins each day. Be grateful for every moment you have to experience it fully.

Part of my plan for the new year is to say thank you for the gift of freedom, travel, and life. We are all fortunate souls for having all three.

Living in the Now: Following the 80/20 Travel Rule

by Brenda Yun on

Sam Chillingworth, a high school classmate, friend, and now featured writer in the inspiring book series Wake Up… Live the Life you Love, recently passed on a book he contributed to called Living in the Now. At the time, I had just returned from a two-month trip to the mainland and Peru, and (as I usually do when I return from a trip) was experiencing a bad case of travel hangover.

There’s nothing like reading a collection of inspiring essays about embracing life. Some of the tips I found were so helpful in putting life — and, more importantly, travel — in perspective that I thought it would be worthwhile to pass on some life and travel wisdom to ye faithful Gadling readers. Seeing that the new year is so quickly approaching, these tips should generate some good ideas for your 2010 resolution(s). Yesterday, I outlined how to travel in 4D. Here’s my second travel tip — of three:

Brian Tracy, a world-renowned author and motivational speaker, offers some really sound advice in his essay on “Living Without Limits.” He writes, “When you allow yourself to begin to dream big dreams, creatively abandon the activities that are taking up too much of your time, and focus your inward energies on alleviating your main constraints, you start to feel an incredible sense of power and confidence.” This statement alone pretty much sums up the traveler’s experience.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve gotten lost amid the myriad of tasks I set out to accomplish in my daily life at home, and when I travel, the possibilities are even more endless. In life and in travel, you have to focus your energy on the things that will reap the most rewards. Tracy calls this the 80/20 rule. Whether at work, play, or travel, we need to identify the top 20% things that reap the greatest rewards and focus our energy on that. According to him, by narrowing your focus on what to do, you will be at least 80% happier.

This can be applied to traveling this way: instead of trying to pack your day with as many things as possible, choose only one (or at most a handful) thing that you feel will be the most rewarding. In other words, don’t spread your travel experiences too thin. Get the most out of one travel experience and then move on the the next one. Think of travel like a painting. You shouldn’t look at it and move on immediately. You should stand back, move up close, and contemplate — soak in every fine detail of what’s in front of you.

Applying Tracy’s 80/20 rule is, of course, much easier said than done. Travelers naturally experience sensory and cultural overload upon arrival abroad. With careful research and sound self-knowledge, though, you’ll feel much happier fully immersed in one travel experience at a time rather than many at once.

Living in the Now: Travel in 4D

by Brenda Yun on

Sam Chillingworth, a high school classmate, friend, and now featured writer in the inspiring book series Wake Up… Live the Life you Love, recently passed on a book he contributed to called Living in the Now. At the time, I had just returned from a two-month trip to the mainland and Peru, and (as I usually do when I return from a trip) was experiencing a bad case of travel hangover.

There’s nothing like reading a collection of inspiring essays about embracing life and some of the tips I found were so helpful in putting life — and, more importantly, travel — in perspective that I thought it would be worthwhile passing on some life and travel wisdom to ye faithful Gadling readers. Seeing that the new year is so quickly approaching, these tips should generate some good ideas for your 2010 resolution(s). Here’s the first one — of three:

Chuck A. Reynolds, an inspirational life coach, writes that living in the now is all about achieving life in 4D — those four D’s being Destination, Decisions, Discipline, and Determination. He says, “Waking up and living each day without clearly written goals is like riding in a bumper car with your foot on the pedal, but your hands tied behind your back instead of on the steering wheel.” I couldn’t agree more with this statement. The journey of life is too short to not be as deliberate and intent as possible.

The 4 D’s that Reynolds maps out in his essay relate to travel so directly.

  • Destination: When traveling, always consider your destination. Where are you going — and why?
  • Decisions: While you are abroad, be very deliberate about the choices you make — even the small ones, like where you want to have lunch or when you will move on to the next city.
  • Discipline: Stay focused on the road, and be respectful of the culture of the place you’re visiting.
  • Determination: Take advantage of as many experiences as you can while abroad. You don’t want to look back and regret not doing something.

Living in the now and the art of travel are so intimately tied that, for both the frequent and infrequent wanderer, it’s a great idea to put these 4D’s to the test — both in life and on the road. Happy travels!

Funny signs in “Signspotting III: Lost and Loster in Translation”

by Scott Carmichael on

Here on Gadling, we are suckers for weird signs. Especially when you travel, you come across signs that are just too damn funny. Writer Doug Lansky apparently feels the same way, because he just released the third episode of his “Signspotting” line of books.

We got a sneek peek at some of the signs included in “Lost and Loster in Translation”, and they really are absolutely hilarious. Though I do have to admit I’m a tad jealous that I didn’t think of collecting funny signs and writing my own book. I’m guessing that is the price I pay for being so lazy.

You’ll find Signspotting III: Lost and Loster in Translation on the book shelves of Amazon for just $7.99. Order quickly, because this would make a great stocking stuffer (hint, hint!).

Sarah Palin and Hawaii don’t mix? About comfort zones vs going rogue

by Jamie Rhein on

Here’s a tidbit about Sarah Palin that caught my attention. According to her dad, Palin left college in Hawaii because being around too many Asians made her feel uncomfortable. Interesting. Sarah Palin attributes her leaving the Aloha State after just one semester to too much sunshine for an 18 year-old—as in beaches and academics are not a great mix for an Alaskan gal. Read Palin’s book Going Rogue:An American Life and you’ll get Palin’s version.

Whether Palin found hitting the books in Hawaii too difficult– or the number of Asians there too disconcerting, either option brings up the topic of comfort zones travel and going rogue.

People like Andrew Zimmern of Bizarre Foods and Bizarre World thrive on traveling outside of their comfort zones. To them, outside of the comfort zone is a comfort zone. A place where most people feel comfortable might cause them an unsettled feeling. Put a person like Zimmern in the middle of a Wal-mart in the U.S. and he or she might feel creeped out.

Places like a Disney theme park, McDonald’s, Las Vegas and some cruise ships have popular appeal because they have found the magic formula that fits the needs of the masses. They are comfort food with a dash of something that feels like excitement. At these places you know what to expect and can feel safe in the crowd.

How many people don’t travel outside of what they know because of the feeling of the unknown and the discomfort of sticking out in a crowd?

If Sarah Palin’s father is accurate in his assessment that her discomfort with being in the midst of too many Asians sent her to college in Idaho, I’d say Palin’s attitude takes her out of the rogue category and plops her into the main stream. It’s not a matter of being prejudiced either. It has to do with a tolerance for what is different. For some people it’s hard to feel comfortable in ones skin in an environment that is unfamiliar. Feeling comfortable takes time, practice and travel.

As anyone who has traveled extensively in other countries has discovered, travel helps stretch the skin. The more one travels past ones comfort zone, the more ones skin expands. What once felt disquieting feels as comfortable as a well worn shoe. The process of going from discomfort to comfort is one of the joys of travel. It’s one of the elements that pushes world travelers towards new horizons– to a state of going rogue.