Have you always wanted to travel and be free?
What drew you back?
Was it yourself, or other people telling you that you’re a dreamer?
Maybe it is the combination of two of those above. Your fear of unknown and uncertainty with a combination of fear and uncertainty of others in a conversation about this topic.
But the fact is, that to be successful in your life, you´re gonna have to stop listen to others.
And the same applies on traveling.
As long-term travelers, I and my husband are constantly in a defense when it comes to communication with some people including family.
They try to suggest we should finally settle and live according to their narrow norms of life.
But we already know that we made our own norms in a life and what matters in a life is only what you want, what makes YOU happy, not what other people want!
So no matter what other say to you, sort out your dreams and start chasing them.
If it is traveling, we bring you these Top 4 Travel Myths Busted to encourage you not to fear of it and just do it!
1. “You Have To Be Rich To Travel”
By “traveling” we don’t mean a 2 weeks getaway once a year of course. We mean traveling in your terms and as long as you wish.
Many people don’t travel and discourage others from travels because they are adamant they need to be millionaires to do it.
Then if they meet real travelers, they are jealous of them because they think these travelers are rich to be able traveling and do not need to work as hard as them.
Do you think it’s true? Of course not!
But travelers are certainly richer in mind than any other people who judge them.
Before we started to travel, I was working in a 9-5 job as an event producer assistant.
I came to my job every day, sit behind the desk and since I was nifty, I managed to complete all my tasks earlier. Then I got nothing to do and was bored to death. But I really needed to stay there until the finish of my shift. I didn’t understand the system in which clever people has to be pushed to do less than they can. Just because of other people who don’t have such capabilities. And thus life became routine and frustrating.
Does it sound like a worthfully spend time to you?
And some people will still try to urge you that this is that right way of life.
But let me tell you something. Since I started to travel with my husband in 2012, I became a new person. I have seen many places, learn many things, meet new people and improve the second language. I have worked and tried many employments, learned great new skills and experienced things I have never thought even existed before.
If you want to travel, you certainly must work. But you will learn how to manage your money in a new different way. You will learn what is important in life and what you really don’t need when it comes to spending a money.
The fact that you don’t need to pay a mortgage for your undue house, the new model of car, new appliances, TV, and other financially demanding necessities means, that you will be able to save money for travels.
You can learn how to get cheaper flight tickets, how to get cheaper accommodation, and if you give up from some of your high standards of living, traveling is really easy and affordable for everyone.
Still better to spend money on it then on a new car…
2. “Travel Is Not Safe – The World Is Dangerous And Bad”
This is a very common argument which is in the most cases spread by the people who have never been anywhere else except their home country.
It is very tempting to surrender to the terrifying news in medias about all bad things going on in the world. If you watch them too often, you might start to get a thought that your home is the only safest place and it’s a risk to go everywhere else.
But to the disappointment of such people, they are robbing themselves of the unique intercultural experience and enriching their minds of the new views. No matter where you travel to, there is always special culture and special traditions to experience.
Even if you travel to the developing countries, as long as you keep up with some precautions and are careful, you are safe to go. Often in the less safe and remote areas are the kindest and very welcoming people. If you will study about the place prior you visit it, you will find out what to see and what to avoid for sure. There is absolutely no need to be scared of traveling for this reason.
In fact, it was never easier and safer to travel than nowadays. If you would want to travel a few hundred years ago, you could be killed in an instant by plague or any other diseases. Transportation was dangerous and many people died on the ship during storms.
But today? Today you fly to the other side of the globe in few hours. Flying is one of the safest ways to travel according to statistics and is becoming safer every year. Furthermore, we have practically invented a medication and vaccination to almost any kind of deadly disease.
Life is very unpredictable. Bad things can happen anywhere, even in the place you consider to be the safest. So let’s ditch up your fear and move on.
3. “You Don’t Have Any Stability. You Live From Hand To Mouth”
Let me just explain why this is the worst argument ever.
Do you think that to own the house on a mortgage is a stability? What happens if you are fired and aren’t able to pay up the mortgage? People can suddenly fall into very dramatic financial situations.
So why on earth someone can think that to have a stable job, house, car, insurance and overall “settled life” is some kind of a security?
As a responsible traveler, you can travel abroad, save some money and have an insurance and retirement savings at the same time. If you are a digital nomad you probably have to pay taxes as well as anyone else doing “settled business”.
No one is saying you can´t have any “stability” while traveling, it is just too hard to understand it is really possible for normal people.
Honestly, I would rather put all our money into experiences than into material things which are so bonding and which enslaves your life. The more you have, the more it enslaves you.
So next time someone will tell you that you “live from hand to mouth” try to explain to them it is quite opposite…
4. “You Can’t Have Kids While Traveling” or “You Can’t Travel After You Have Kids”
If you are a loner abroad, then you are probably free of this. But as soon as you travel as a couple, there is always someone who comes with this argument, trying to let us know it is about time to get “down to the earth”.
I was struggling how to explain people it is quite normal to have kids and travel with them. That you don’t really need to lose your dreams in order to lead a healthy family life with kids.
The common argument was that kids need a proper school attendance and it is something which is not possible while traveling.
But actually, I know many couples who are traveling full time with kids without any problem. Instead of traditional school, many of them have a home education just as kids in remote areas in Australia for example.
Do you think that homeschooling is not good enough?
According to the study of Northern Michigan University their conclusion was:
(Homeschooling) If done appropriately, these students can have an even greater advantage over public schooled students. Since test scores tend to be higher for homeschoolers than their public school counterparts, homeschooling is a very effective option for many parents.
You can read more of this study here.
So on the contrary, kids traveling with parents can be even more aware of the world around them and learn great skills in a real time.
And when it comes to feeding a nomadic family, in our digital age there aren’t any limitations for it.
Here is the list to name just a few families on the road:
Did you meet with some other travel myths? What is your usual argument on them?
That’s a very interesting post! Mr Grumbert is not a long term traveller as you two, but he faces a lot of the same prejudices when talking to other people. As a business traveller, he spends a lot of time abroad and consequently wants to make the most of his quality time with Mrs Grumbert, including business class flights and nice hotels. Lots of people judge and/ or are jealous. Thanks for sharing your experience.