HOW DO I TRAVEL SO MUCH? The Secret Sauce.

The Secret Sauce has a lot of ingredients. I often get asked what I'm hiding. I've been asked if I'm a drug dealer, if I have a hidden trust fund, or even if I'm some sort of con artist...haha. The truth is, I just have different priorities.

Exploring Chi'Bocol Hostel (Jungle in Guatemala)

Recently, I got back from a trip to Guatemala, and an acquaintance reached out over DMs, asking to do a Yoga Class together.

Afterwards, we grabbed some coffee, and she asked me a ton of questions about travel: how I do it, how I can afford it, where I choose to go, etc.

Travel is amazing! It feels like a flex sometimes, when really it's just another way of living. It also makes sense that people, especially those in the Midwest, are curious about it. Here, Travel is novel, often reserved for those annual Florida visits.

So when I show up on your feed in a new country every month, I'd be curious how the hell I'm doing it, too.

It's a lot less glamorous than you think, and there is more than one way to do it!

I previously funded my travels with my 9-to-5: a very low-paid social worker job that gave me just enough to get through and cover bills. Now I freelance and do various gigs.

But career girlie or freelance freak, it doesn't matter. It's more about the mindset.

The best way to illustrate this mindset is to tell you the story of a patient I met while working in the Emergency Department several years ago.

She was a little old lady who came in with a fashionable blue outfit and a minor ankle sprain. She seemed so full of life and funny, her personality outspoken and enthusiastic. I had asked her what landed her in here; had she taken a fall at home?

She said 'no', she was hiking in Burma originally, and had hurt herself there, forcing her to come back. Only recently, she re-injured the ankle. "But as soon as I am up and well, I'm headed back!" She assured me.

I said that it was wonderful that she had been traveling.

She excitedly told me she'd been to over a hundred countries.,

I was in shock, "How do you travel so much? What do you do for a living?"

She shook her hand about, gesturing like the question was nonsense.

"I just do it. If your car had a flat tire and you had to get to work, you'd figure out a way to do it. Broke or not, you'd either fix the tire or catch a ride, maybe call a friend, or hitch a ride on the bus. That's how I do it. It's my top priority."

She went on to say 'Sure, some people have other priorities, climbing the career ladder, children, new clothes, new gadgets, new homes, but for her, it was always travel'.

This idea changed the way I think about travel. My trips have never been vacations, even when I first got my license, one of my best friends and I would use the 14 hours between shifts to drive down to Tennessee or up to Michigan, sleep in my car trunk, see something cool, eat Saltines and peanut butter, and drive back.

So that being said, one does need money for travel! Here are the ways I currently support myself, pay my bills and grow my passion for creativity:

1) I write! I write, edit, and beta-read for aspiring authors (I’m one myself)

2) I thrift and sell vintage clothing online, like here on FB! People want curated wardrobes, but the time it takes to find that one piece or know how to style it…that’s where I come in.

3) Photography & Marketing for Small Businesses (I’ve enjoyed photography for years, but only recently have I started utilizing it as a way to make money). Would love to book a photoshoot with you!!

FUN FACT: I designed the interior of the coffee shop pictured (furniture selection/plants/set up)

4) Social Media Management (social media is the new “news”, the new way to get your name into a household)

5) Doordashing! Nothing like listening to an audiobook and driving around town. < not my favorite, but it helps!

6) Making travel itineraries and selling personalized Google Maps for people who are first-time travelers or want some insight on a new destination

All in all, people don't usually know what you don't tell them, so I thought I'd put this out there! Creativity usually isn't limited to one area, but a slew of areas in our lives. In my effort to create more than I consume, I strive to have my art, my creativity, and my enthusiasm overlap! I encourage you to do the same.