Travelling can be one of the greatest experiences of your lifetime. Travel has taken me to places that have amazed and inspired me and places I maybe do not want to visit again. But for a long time, there were things that held me back from taking the step to go and travel. While I do not regret any of the choices I have made, they have got me to where I am. If I was given a choice again, I might choose differently.
So if you want to travel and you are not travelling the big question is “What is holding you back?” Many things can hold you back from travelling, such as circumstances to choices. But you cannot overcome what is holding you back without first identifying what it is.
Today I want to explore what some of the things are that can hold you back from travelling. There is a good chance that some of them might seem a little obvious, but that is the point. It is often the most obvious things that we miss until it is pointed out. In addition to identifying some things that might be holding you back I will try and give some ways to overcome the challenge.
Money / Cost
One of the most common reasons people state for not travelling is not enough money or the cost of travel. To be honest, this was one of the reasons that held me back from travelling in the start. But it was not because I did not have the money, but more so that I did not want to spend the money.
The thing is that once I broke that barrier and travelled for the first time, I could see so much value in the experience. I spent more than you might think that first trip, with airfares, hotels, tours, food and such. But the experiences that I gained from that trip were amazing.
When it comes to money it very much comes down to just how much you want to travel. If you are currently working with some form of disposable income after your bills there is a good chance you could afford to travel. It comes down to what your priorities are.
Some Ideas To Help Save For Travel
If money is an issue, there are ways that you can work towards a goal to travel. The best place to start is knowing what the trip you would like to take is going to cost. If you go and find out the price you now have a real number to work towards. Once you know what you are working towards maybe some of these ideas might help you get there.
- Set up a saving account where you put money each week. Even if right now you can only afford a little bit, it gives you a start. $10 a week is $520 a year, $20 a week is $1040 a year.
- Give up a habit. Daily coffee? Do you smoke? Do you drink? Do you Gamble? Do you eat out to often? There are many habits that cost money, which you could redirect to saving to travel. In some cases cutting a habit in half might be just the kick start you need to save for travel.
- Look for opportunities to work a little overtime if it is available.
- Look at ways you might be able to sell some things that you no longer need.
- Start a business that provides a service or product you make.
I am sure there are plenty of other options if you get creative with your thinking. But I hope this has given you a little nudge, that money does not have to be an excuse not to travel.
Work / Job
At times your work or job may seem like it is a solid wall between you and travelling. The situation may be different for everyone, and it is a position that I found myself in. I was working so much that I just did not take the time out to have time off let alone travel anywhere.
In many ways, work can seem like it is something that would hold you back from travelling. However, in reality, it should be the biggest enabler of travel. If you don’t work how do you find the money to afford to travel? In Australia, everyone working full time is entitled to four weeks annual leave. I imagine other countries have similar arrangements with varying amounts of time. Everyone is different how they chose to spend this time, but why not decide to travel.
I can understand that some people see their career as more important. I suppose in some ways if this is the case they may not be reading this post anyway. But I counter that travel should in some ways be beneficial to your career, depending on your line of work of course.
Travelling, especially to other countries can open up great potential. There are times where travelling across the world could give you ideas on how to improve your job at home. Where you might see a similar situation to what you do now differently, that will inspire you to change.
But if there is one benefit to your career that comes from travelling it is the rest. Taking the time to rejuvenate yourself through stepping away from the daily grind can be a good thing. It is the whole reason behind why annual leave is a part of working.
Something Bad Might Happen
The idea of something bad might happen, can be a complicated excuse to counter. It is impossible to say well, no it won’t. But consider there is a chance that something and might happen when you get up and go to work tomorrow. Something bad might happen on the weekend when you go shopping.
It is nearly impossible to predict when or if something bad might happen. The question becomes would you prefer to be pushing through the daily grind when something bad happens. Or would you prefer to be undertaking an amazing experience?
But it is also worth considering what do you think something bad is? Is it something bad if you were to lose your luggage? Is it getting mugged and losing your wallet? Is it ending up in a life or death situation?
When considering what something bad might be, ask yourself a question “How could I recover from this?” If you can find the answer to the question, the situation might not be as bad as you thought.
What Is Holding You Back From Travelling?
So there are three of the more common things that seem to hold people back from travelling. Do any of these ring true for you? Or have you got something else that is holding you back from travelling? If you do, it would be great if you could leave a comment below and let me know what your thing is.
