YOUR ULTIMATE TRAVEL MOTIVATION - “THE MOST IMPORTANT THING.”

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🌍✈️ Hey fellow travellers! I've got a thought-provoking question for all of you: What is the single most important reason that fuels your love for travel?

🔍 Deep Dive Into Your Travel 'Why'

Think beyond travel as just a hobby. Yes, we all love traveling, but what is that deeper, driving force that compels you to explore new horizons? Is it the thrill of adventure, the fascination of different cultures, or something else that's close to your heart?

Remember, it's not just about 'travel for travel's sake'. Dive deeper into your personal motivations.

🎯 The Essence of Clarity

Inspired by Shane Parrish's insights in "Clear Thinking“

“There is only one most important thing in every project, goal, and company. If you have two or more most important things, you’re not thinking clearly.”

You may think - I have two important things. Here's the answer to that:

" often, when we actually start pursuing an option, we find that we have to rank one criterion above another—even if only slightly." Shane Parrish – Clear Thinking

• Achievement: Traveling for specific goals or challenges (e.g., visiting all 193 UN countries, setting records).

• Adventure: Thrill-seeking and exploring adventurous destinations.

• Beauty: Seeking out beautiful places and landscapes.

• Culinary Exploration: Enjoying local cuisines and food experiences.

• Cultural Immersion: Engaging with different cultures and ways of life.

• Emotional Fulfilment: Traveling to maximize positive feelings and experiences.

• Expertise: Gaining in-depth knowledge about specific places or subjects.

• Hedonism: Pursuing physical pleasures and enjoyable activities.

• Hobbies: Pursuing activities like photography, dance, yoga, or sports.

• Long-term Immersion: Staying in a place for an extended period to fully experience it.

• Meaning and Understanding: Seeking a deeper comprehension of the world and life.

• Philosophical Inquiry: Exploring and testing theories about the world.

• Productivity: Maximizing experiences and activities in each destination.

• Professional Growth: Traveling for work or career-related reasons.

• Romance: Finding love or deepening relationships around the world.

• Other: Unique or personal reasons not listed above.

In travel,  The Goal or The Journey - Which is most important to you?

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Consider this without the constraints of the Fear of Other People's Opinions (FOPO). What resonates with you more deeply?

It's common to initially believe that both the Goal (for example, 193, or reaching a particular country) and the journey are equally important. Here is a reply on this: "Often, when we begin to actively pursue an option, we discover the necessity of prioritizing one aspect over the other, even if by a marginal degree." Shane Parrish – Clear Thinking

A follow-up question: Do you find yourself harbouring negative judgments towards individuals whose travel philosophy differs from your own?

Burnout, Goals and Happiness

1

I tried living without goals for a while and I did not enjoy my life during that time. My life focus then was meditation and I took the practice of being present very seriously. One day during a long walk with Zen Master Ama Swamy at his centre in southern India, I asked him about this. He said that having no goals can make life dull. That simple sentence changed my life because it was from a master of being present.

2

a. Sometimes I think that having a goal is a sufficient explanation for doing something - and this mainly applies when I ask others about their lives. For example, if I ask an athlete why they are training so much and they say that they want to win a medal at the Olympics, that is a sufficient answer for me. So, maybe the Saga guy had a sufficiently good goal.

b. Other times I know that it is not sufficient - and this mainly applies to me. In this case, I need to know the deeper (usually emotional) reason why I am doing something.

• The main reason is that that while training / doing activities that lead to the goal, if I am not happy/content, then that is a difficult way to live.

• And to believe that achieving the goal will make me happy is an illusion. The Zen saying that “Wherever I go, there I am” is so true here. Achieving a goal will only give me a temporary joy. Soon enough the standard version of me (unhappy me) will be back.

3

a. As a result of 1 and 2 I do now have goals.

1. My main goal is to travel to every country in the world. But I try as best I can to hold it lightly. There is a book that helped me with this: Peak Performance: Elevate Your Game, Avoid Burnout, and Thrive with the New Science of Success. Brad Stulberg and Steve Magness

2. I also focus much more on happiness. I do see this as a goal but it is an unusual one in that it does not have a medal at the end. I will never be able to say, here is my gold happiness medal. Still, I am focussed on it, by going 12 step groups, reading about emotions, doing lots of rain meditation, and I practice connecting with others by leading connect groups at work (following the Stanford connect course -  Connect: Building Exceptional Relationships with Family, Friends and Colleagues David Bradford Ph.D.)