Travel is the best teacher. It can open your eyes to new cultures, new landscapes and new ways of life. With every new place you visit, you gain a greater understanding of the world around you and what it means to be human.
So pack your bags and get ready for an adventure, because travel is guaranteed to teach you something new. These digital nomads give insights into what travel teaches you as they share their most important life lessons learned.
Ready? Let’s go!
Life Lessons Learned From Traveling the World
We're more similar than we think
All people are the same, everywhere. The overwhelming majority of people on this planet just want to live a simple, happy life. They want to have enough money to take care of their family and some friends to enjoy time with, and they don't want their life to consist of only work. They don't hate other people, they don't want enemies or wars and they are good, open-minded, and kind. If we all realized that we want the same things, a great deal of the world's problems would be solved quickly.
Human nature at its core is good
It can be easy sometimes to let fear stand in your way, especially when it comes to something as big as travelling the world - and you hear so many stories about the dangers and the risks. But what I've learned is that almost everyone you meet is a good person, and good people will always try to help you. It might be things like offering advice, giving you a lift down the road, or translating on your behalf. These gestures of kindness make a big difference each day and, most importantly, remind you of the world's humanity.
Keep an attitude of gratitude
Travel taught me more gratitude! Gratitude for what I have already experienced in my life. For the beautiful and exciting experiences, but also for the terrible things I have seen while traveling. Since [starting to] travel I take things much less for granted and I appreciate
life more than ever!
View the world through the lens of opportunity
Even on our 3,329th day traveling around the world full-time, we continue to learn from the road. Travel has taught us to adapt to our surroundings and see every scenario (even the snafus) as an opportunity for adventure. It has taught us to live simply and connect more deeply with nature. It's shown us how much kindness there is in the world and how much we have in common with people from every walk of life, when you approach them with a smile and open mind.
Life is yours for the taking
The one thing travel teaches you above all else is that you and you alone are in charge of your life and that there is nothing the world can throw at you that you can't face head on and overcome. Travel itself becomes a part of your identity and shows you that you can achieve anything you set your mind to without the burden of societal expectation. It teaches self confidence, self determination, self worth, independence and freedom. It gives you a wider perspective on the world to form your own way of thinking and the belief in yourself to forge your own path. In short, travel shows you how to be a superhero.
Travel without set plans
Plan your travel so that it is largely free of plans. I am always surprised when travelers try to cram in top sightings in a city, or
see as many places in a region as possible. Do the opposite, keep your travel as free of itineraries as possible. Just roaming around without strict agendas is a lovely, low-stress way to travel. There is no value in 'seeing everything' or knocking out bucket lists.
Expect the unexpected
The biggest lessons I’ve learned from travelling the world is to have a mindset for the unexpected. Something is always bound to not go according to plan when you’re travelling and your mindset for how you deal with setbacks, obstacles and disagreeable events will affect the way you enjoy and remember your travels.
Get in touch with your core self
Travel has given me the gift of understanding myself on the deepest level. What my likes and dislikes are. Challenging me to be self sufficient and extremely independent and reliant on myself. It's opened my eyes up to things I would have never known about or found out I enjoyed if I had stayed in the safety bubble of my hometown. Many of us grow up being told we need to figure out what we want to do for the rest of our lives before high school ends, because after high school, we go to college or university to secure our future. I say take a year off and go travel! How can you know what you love, if you haven't explored all the options of what's out there. Travel gives you those options.
Experiences trump things
The biggest lesson I’ve learnt about traveling the world is that experiences, meeting interesting people and taking in beautiful scenery beats owning material possessions hands down! Having backpacked for nearly a year at a fairly young age also teaches a developing brain to be open minded, how to be much more tolerate of others and social skills too!
Develop a sense of wonder
Travelling is such a rewarding experience. It opens you mind to other cultures and customs and fills you with a sense of wonder beyond what you would normally encounter. It has taught us that no matter how you see the world there are always others that see it differently and what may seem unusual to us is perfectly normal in different societies, so never judge others on their beliefs. Wherever we have travelled we have always found that people are kind and welcoming.
Go with the flow
My biggest lesson from travelling full-time is that while being prepared is a great thing... being too prepared can be a hindrance. It's easy to get caught up in trying to have everything with you for all of those 'just in case' moments, but the reality is that you can't anticipate all eventualities. Being too prepared means that you'll end up carrying too much stuff, which will not only weigh you down, but become very inconvenient over time.
Appreciate the feeling of "home"
The biggest lesson I've learned while travelling is that having a home
to return to is the best. I love travelling and I get away as often as
I can for as long as I can, but having a safe base to return to after
my trips makes each experience even better.
You can design your lifestyle
One of the biggest lessons I've learned from traveling is that there are endless options of how you want to live your life. When I was traveling solo around the world, I had the pleasure of meeting thousands of different people in hostels, bars, restaurants, etc - and it was fascinating for me to hear everyone's unique story. Growing up in the USA, we're told that we have to get a normal job, work 9-5, get married, have kids, and so on. But the truth is that when you begin to travel, it opens up your mind to the infinite possibilities of what your life could look like. There are so many different jobs and industries to be apart of, and I think travel taught me that following your passion is the single most important thing you can do with your life.
Appreciate humanity
One of the biggest lessons we've learned from traveling the world is to recognize and appreciate our shared humanity and what connects all of us as people, while also acknowledging and celebrating our diversity and what makes us different. Often people look first to differences, especially in this divisive age, but traveling the world surfaces that when you look at the core, what really matters most, people on all corners of the world really have so much more in common with each other (e.g., wanting a better or secure life for their children). But then, there are all the cultural, religious, physical, culinary and other differences layered on top which is what makes this world so diverse, rich, and beautiful.
People are inherently kind
The biggest lesson we’ve learned is that the vast majority of people are kind. No matter where you are in the world, there are people that will help and welcome you. Travel is not without its dangers, but it can also be safe too, thanks to the inherent kindness of people.
You are a product of your environment
After visiting more than 30 countries, the biggest lesson I've learnt is that everything you know might be wrong. That might sound depressing or dramatic, but it's actually very liberating - meeting and becoming friends
with people from other cultures and countries makes you realise that a large chunk of what you believe or how you act is just a product of the culture that you were raised in. For me, travelling has led to greater acceptance of others and greater self examination of my own opinions and beliefs.
Mindset is everything
The biggest lesson that I’ve learned through travel and living in different places is that your mindset is the most important thing to focus on for a successful time abroad.
I realised that you can be in the most beautiful place in the world but if you feel homesick, anxious, stressed or overwhelmed you won’t be able to enjoy wherever you are.
Therefore, to have the best and most fulfilling experiences while living abroad and travelling, I’ve learned to build a strong foundation for myself to which I can fall back on whenever I find obstacles or challenges during my journey. For example by focusing on being positive, open-minded, flexible and curious to whatever comes my way.
Learn to be an observer
I have learned to appreciate nature more. I observe changing colours of the sky like never before. I get that positive feeling by watching a sunset or a sunrise. I started developing some kind of fondness for small towns. People in small cities or towns are much nicer. They are easier to please and are happier people.
Apart from all the countless things I learned during travel, I even learned to treasure the feeling of being home on returning from a trip.
The importance of sharing
On a long bus ride in the Karakoram mountains of Pakistan, a teenage girl
invited me to her home in a rural village on a mountain slope. Her family welcomed me into their hut, a complete stranger, no questions asked. They cooked for me over a fire stove, and at night they prepared a floor mat
for me to bed down in the same room as her father. The next day I made my way, with the impression that the less people have materially, the more they seem to be willing to share.
We're more similar than we think
Traveling teaches you that at their core, humans everywhere truly are the same. Living in different countries shows you that people everywhere have the same joys, pains, issues, and passions. Being a long-term traveler really brings parts and people of the world which once seemed daunting, so close much closer to seem like different parts of the same whole… but with their own fascinating cultural intricacies that are so fulfilling to learn about.
Experiences trump possessions
The biggest lesson I've learned from traveling the world is to enjoy experiences over materialistic things. The experiences you get from traveling, the amazing things you see and witness, the people you meet or run into and possibly make friends with, the languages or cultures you learn, the communication style you use, all are things you cannot buy. When
we die, we simply cannot take our things with us but what we take with us are our unique life experiences and adventures.
People are inherently good
The biggest lesson we’ve learned from travelling the world is that it really isn’t as scary or dangerous as media makes it out to be. Whether it’s South America, the Middle East or downtown Sydney, the
vast majority of people are good and as long as you take care, you’ll almost always have no problems.
Carry minimal possessions and keep an open mind
The biggest lesson I learned through my travels is that the only thing you need to be successful is a computer, an internet connection, and an open mind. I learned that life is full of wonder. People always get caught up in their day-to-day lives and forget to stop and appreciate all that they have around them. Once you get out of your comfort zone, you start to see things differently than before. You also notice how happy other people are who
don't have all the things you do, but still seem so much happier than you because they're living in the moment.
A Final Word
I’ve been fortunate enough to meet some of the most inspiring, interesting and brilliant people on my travels and have learned a number of important life lessons.
I hope these insights have given you an idea of what travel teaches you and inspired you to go on an adventure of your own.
The best part is that these insights are all things you can do yourself by simply picking up your bags and heading out into the world—no passport required. They can be applied no matter where you are!
What have you learned from your own travels? We’d love to hear about it in the comments below!
