Off-Topic Thursday: Why Travel?

One of the blogs I read regularly is written by Jeff Goins. If you have any interest at all in writing, marketing, creative business ideas, or making a difference in the world, I suggest you read it, too.



Several months ago, Jeff wrote a post called Why I Believe in the Discipline of Travel. In it, he shares several of his reasons for travelling and why it’s important to him. I couldn’t agree more with them. I encourage you to click through and read his entire post, as he fleshes out many of these reasons in valuable ways.

Kennedy Space Center
At the Kennedy Space Center, less than 1 mile
from the launchpad with Space Shuttle Discovery.


 

As a travel agent, one of the discoveries that I’ve made is that often people don’t think they have much of a reason to travel; they’ve just never really considered it. Oh, sure, they may go on vacation every year—the traditional trip to see family, the annual vacation to their favorite place (Disneyland, Yosemite, New York City, etc.), but that’s it. Traveling only because “It’s what we do this time of year,” or “It’s tradition.” 


They rarely try new places, or even venture out of their comfort zone in the familiar places. Think about your last “traditional” we-always-do-this trip. Did you even eat at a different restaurant or turn down a different street?



Having favorite places is good, I sure do, but there’s something to be said for “travel”—going someplace different, doing something new, having unique and meaningful experiences.



Here is what Jeff says about why travel is important to him. These are a lot of the reasons it’s important to me, too.

It does something to the soul that no other activity can touch. It stretches your mind and perspective in new and extraordinary ways. I travel for several reasons, but the main one is this:
I travel to remember I’m not complete.

That’s his primary reason to travel. To be reminded that there is more to life than what we see every day, there is more to the world than what we get fed by our regular experience, and there is more to us than we may ever discover at home. Here are some other reasons he gives:

* Traveling disrupts my comfort.
* It makes me rely on God.
* It causes me to give up unhealthy obsessions.
* Travel reminds me of the instability of life.
* To grow.
* To get an education in global cultures.
* To learn from others.
* To be humbled.
* To see things you’d never see at home.
* To appreciate where you come from.
* To fall in love.
* To finally be understood.
* To be inspired (and inspire).
* To learn to laugh at yourself.
* To resurrect dreams.
* To find a new way of doing an old thing.

Does your travel do any of those for you? Do you want it to? Which ones touch your heart?



It easy just to go with what we know. Not to stretch. To not save up for and prioritize that once-in-a-lifetime trip. To not consider new destinations because they seem to foreign, or exotic, or cosmopolitan, or whatever. To think that travel has to be all about us, the travellers.

Parasailing
Parasailing for the first time.


 

And that breaks my heart. There is so much out there to see and do. So many ways to make a difference, and to be changed. Your favorite place ever may be on that next trip you’re not seriously considering, but that’s secretly on your “bucket list.” So many places to make memories and celebrate milestones that will be talked about for decades to come.



Do you think I’m overstating the case? Then obviously you’ve never tried it.


As a travel agent, I want to help you have these experiences and see these places. But this post was not written to get you to book your travel with me. Of course, I would like that, but that’s not the point. It’s actually the other way around.



I became a travel agent because travel is important to me, and I know how important it can be for others. I know how valuable it is. And I want to help others, people just like you, have those experiences for yourselves. This wasn’t written to promote my business because I want you to travel. It was written because I want people like you to travel, and I want you to broaden your vision, and your horizons. I became a travel agent to enable more people to do just that.



If you’ve read this post and want to venture out into the world on your own, go for it! If you want assistance to make sure you get the most value and see & do things you may never have thought about or heard of on your own, and you want me to have the honor of being the person who helps you, let me know! It doesn’t have to be far away or terribly expensive (but if it is, don’t automatically write it off, plan & prepare).



My fervent desire, though, is that you have read this post and want to go somewhere new, and do something new. That you’re not content to just go where you’ve always gone, do what you’ve always done, see what you’ve always seen, and never truly get the benefits and blessings that travel can bring into your life and the life of your family.

Dolphin Kiss
Kisses from dolphins.
These photos are just 3 of dozens I could share!

 

Question: Where do you want to go, and what do you want to see and do? Talk about it in the comments below, or on our Facebook page. Or, for this one, my travel Facebook page.



Randy CraneRandy Crane is passionate about helping Christians, especially those with a Disney affinity, to discover and connect to their GOD-GIVEN PURPOSE AND VALUE, to build their lives to achieve TRUE SUCCESS AND MEANING, and to POSITIVELY IMPACT their world. For more than two decades, Randy has been leading individuals and teams into a greater joy and child-like appreciation of the world around them, equipping them to reach beyond what they have previously experienced and build a God-given identity and purpose. Ready to experience that for yourself? Tell us where to send SIX free videos all created to help answer the 3 questions you need to experience PEACE, FREEDOM, and PURPOSE!

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