Vacation Thinking vs. NOMAD Thinking — Changing the way you think about travel as an aspiring nomad
Vacation Thinking Vs. Nomad Thinking: Changing The Way You Think About Travel As An Aspiring Nomad
If you’re reading this then you obviously want travel to be more of an integral part of your life than it might have been up until now. And up until now, you might have spent a lot of your time wanting and planning for your next “vacation” away from your default life.
Well, here’s the thing, I haven’t thought of any of my travel or trips in the past couple of years as a “vacation. I’m just transplanting my life to a new location every once in a while. Anywhere from a week to a couple of months. Now granted, I should probably actually take a vacation away from work for a week, no matter where I’m at. But we can discuss my inability to unplug from work another time…
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My Shift From Vacation Thinking To Nomad Thinking
This mind shift happened naturally once I backed away from my location-dependent clients to change my ability to be location-independent. You can read more about that scary AF day here. Also after I consciously cut some brick and mortar strings—selling my house and the majority of my belongings. If you take the steps to become more nomadic it will likely happen naturally for you too.
Why this is important is that vacation thinking can lead to some serious negative side effects.
Ever come home from a vacation uncomfortably in debt, 5-10lbs heavier than when you left?
Or you complain about needing a vacation because you’re so exhausted from your vacation!?
WTF Yo!? I’m guessing that’s exactly the opposite of what you were trying to accomplish!
Long-Term Slow Travel Has Its Benefits
One of the main benefits of long-term, nomadic slow travel is that it’s really just living your normal life with a regular change in scenery. Work goes on, budgets go on, life goes on, just in a different place. The highs and lows that come with the typical “vacation” are flattened out.
No more need to let yourself binge eat, or slack off of exercise, or spend like crazy anymore. That’s actually really counter-productive and unsustainable to living like a Nomad.
READ NEXT: 12+ Tips For Learning How To Slow Travel & Live Like a Digital Nomad
Hostel Guide 101 – Answers To The Questions You’re Asking!
Vacations Often Come With A Scarcity Of Time And Resources
The vacation thinking we’re trying to eradicate comes with the daunting idea of planning travel and more importantly planning travel with a scarcity of time and resources. Packing a ton of things into a few days with other vacationers or tourists doing the same.
Nomad thinking and travel are more about just living in a place and exploring it. More importantly for me, at a leisurely pace and integrated with the aspects of your normal life! It’s what a lot of people call “slow travel.”
There you go. It’s another small tweak in the long line of tweaks to becoming a Nomad or more location-independent. Continue to stack them on top of each other while changing the way you think about travel.
Get rid of vacation thinking…
and start thinking about travel as something that is a part of your life instead of something you occasionally fit into your life.
Need more articles to help you in your quest? Here’s a rundown of a few!
Cheers!
— Jason
About Jason Robinson
Jason is the author of “The Beginner Traveler’s Guide To Going Nomad,” as well as the voice behind the words and the eye behind the lens for The Nomad Experiment. “Planning to travel at some point” wasn’t actually getting the job done, so nearing 40 he decided to make it a priority, nomatter how scary that was. A few years later—through the pandemic and a type 1 diabetes diagnosis at age 42—now living a life of nomadic travel, he’s speaking out to encourage others of any age, or with any serious medical diagnosis, to live an unconventional life.
Travel Planning Tips
Figure out where you are going & how are you getting there…
I suggest using at least 2 to 3 different travel search sites. Start with Skyscanner or Orbitz or Booking …or whatever aggregator site you prefer. Then when you see what airlines to use, check their respective sites for better deals or rewards flights.
Figure out where you’re going to stay…
If you’re interested in hostels, search Hostelworld or Hostelling International. For longer-term or more private digs, look at Airbnb, VRBO, or you can look for hotel rooms in the links from the search engines listed above.
Get comprehensive travel insurance, or in the least, travel medical insurance if internationally…
Especially with Covid not going anywhere, get covered. Start with an insurance aggregator like Insure My Trip, or with SafetyWing, World Nomads, or another. Then decide what is important to you; trip cancellation, baggage coverage, medical, or all of the above. And get a yearly evacuation plan, since you’ll have to get home after your emergency!
Need more resources? Click here!
This site participates in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program and other affiliate programs and may earn from qualifying purchases. You’re never charged more, but it helps out little by little! Check out “Privacy” in the top menu if you need to know more!
