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Because when you leave behind the familiar, you can't help but be changed by the foreign.
Because comfort zones become constricting zones over time.
Because the world was meant to be experienced, not imagined ...
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As expected, I received a flood of responses to Monday's question on paying the bills. In addition to hundreds of site comments (I posted at least half that came through, but it's tough to keep up from the road), we also had hundreds of additional suggestions come in through Facebook and Google+.
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I recently posed an open question to a few social networks and received hundreds of interesting responses. I'll republish the best of them for everyone to see at some point, but first I thought I'd ask YOU.
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From time to time, I write about the general subject of thinking for yourself—also known as why you don't need to take anyone's advice about much of anything. Whenever I do, I always receive lots of concerned emails from people who make their living by telling other people what to do, explaining why “surely” I don't mean to imply that their clients should stop giving them money to help them make their decisions.
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You appreciate the big cities. Tokyo, Hong Kong, London—all of these you visit often and love well. But sometimes, your adventures take you further afield. You fly to a big city, then to a smaller city, and eventually on to an airstrip that could be anywhere. Stepping off the rickety commuter-jet stairs into the void, you're tempted to shout in expectation of an echo.
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I've spent much of the past four months interviewing unconventional entrepreneurs for my next book, and throughout the process I learned what kind of questions solicit the best answers. For example, I often asked people whether their venture was "worth it," which might sound simplistic. Of course it's worth it! I've learned, though, that this question often leads to a good story, so that's why I ask. I also learned to ask if there was a specific moment when they knew for sure they would make it. These "moment they knew" stories can be fun and inspiring.
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When you begin to share your important work with the world, a funny thing happens: some of the people closest to you don't understand it. They damn you with faint praise, or they point out something trivial that could be improved. Sometimes they never say anything at all, which of course is the worst thing.
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Earlier this year, we launched the Travel Hacking Cartel, the world's leading service for aspiring adventurers. The service was recently featured in a major story on NPR, Forbes, and the Yahoo home page—all on the same day! It was exciting, but also stressful, since I was working from Madagascar and had no idea that so much coverage would hit.
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Tomorrow I'll be headed to Madagascar, the final stop of my latest trip before I begin the long process of returning home. But at the moment, I've been spending the past three hours sitting on the floor of the bathroom during a brief stopover in Johannesburg. Why the bathroom? Because it's freezing here in Johannesburg—we're now in the middle of the southern hemisphere winter—and the only heater in my room is located by the sink.
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Chances are, you probably won't be visiting Angola anytime soon ... but it's always good to be prepared. Here's a starting point ...
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It’s always a sunny day when you arrive in Frankfurt. You might think this is impossible, but Frankfurt is like Seattle: apparently it rains all the time, but never on your first day. (It helps to arrive in the summer months.) I’ve been here on a dozen stopovers, nearly half of them last year when…
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Happy Independence Day to those in the U.S., and greetings to everyone else around the world. I'm writing to you from Frankfurt, en route to Angola and beyond shortly. In the last travel planning post, I discussed a few of my upcoming trips. I've made a flurry of bookings since then and am now underway, so for those who care, here's how it works.
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A lot of people mentioned that they liked the "hell yeah" test for making decisions mentioned here and condensed as follows:
We all have to make decisions about opportunities. When you think about any opportunity, if it’s not a “hell yeah,” don’t do it.I’ve modified this a bit in my own life to be: if it’s a “hell yeah,” why not do it?
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I recently received a notice from American Airlines, letting me know I had achieved million-miler status. I've been working on this for about two years, but the real goal is two million miles—then I get lifetime Platinum status.
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I went to participate in an event held at a bookstore in a big city. I saw on the store's calendar that a Very Famous Author (we'll call him Mr. X) had been there the day before.
“Wow,” I said to the staff. “'I'm intimidated to follow Mr. X. What was he like?”
The two exchanged a glance, and apparently decided I was trustworthy enough to not report them to their manger. “To be honest,” one of them said, “Mr. X was an asshole. He came in, didn't say hi to anyone, and threw his keys on the counter, demanding that someone valet his rental car.”
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