Start Your Own Adventure, NOW!

Over the years I have listened to a handful of motivational speakers, trainers, and icons. My latest batch include David Goggins and Jocko Willink, both Navy SEAL veterans. At 61 years of age, starting any new program for working out, travel planning, overall daily routine changes etc. becomes more of a challenge. It’s easier and more comfortable not to change. But as someone once said, ‘There is no growth in your comfort zone’. From Goggins specifically, “You have to get comfortable, being uncomfortable.” The thing that stops the vast majority of us is Procrastination. I believe it was Jocko that said something like, ‘The easiest way to beat procrastination is to just move. Get up. Take that first step and procrastination dies. Every step afterward becomes easier’. It is the same with planning your own travel adventure.

The beginnings of our travel planning were during a date, where we sat on Shannon’s living room floor on a blanket and ‘Traveled’ to Italy. Food, music, videos and talk all about Italy. Shannon tossed out the idea of us taking a one-year hiatus from work, since neither of us could fathom retiring anytime soon at that phase. Me: “No way. Not possible. We aren’t rich. We don’t even have a plan.” I wanted to procrastinate, but the seed was already sewn. After Shannon’s urging, I consulted with a financial advisor, I began to see it was feasible. Shannon had already done the same. We had gotten up. We had taken that first step.

From there we began researching separately and together. Our date nights/weekends always included an information swap session and videos from our favorite YouTube travelers. We were travelling to new places in our minds through our research together. We were already learning and experiencing so many new things, and as the excitement grew, so did our quest for knowledge.

Our own plans have changed multiple times. Dates, destinations, length of stays in areas, activities… It is all part of the journey.
Start. Take that first step. You aren’t committed to anything financially by just planning.
Take the opportunity to ‘Travel’ to places you want to experience by watching videos and reading blogs. Rick Steves’ Travel shows are an easy way to begin.
Take short day trips or weekenders out of town/state/region to practice what you’re learning about travel and enjoy yourselves.
Be flexible, be flexible, and then... be very flexible.
But you must start, or it will never happen.