Inspirational travel it’s what you need right now? Yes, pleeese! I can only speak for myself, but I will not travel any other way from this day forward. Over the past two decades, I’ve been witnessing a trend. Herds of people go to the same place disrupting local communities, and it’s not fun: in fact, it’s uber stressful; for everyone involved. Today, it seems we travel under the dark cloud of social media, with likes, followers, and tweets being top of mind. It appears very robotic.
A question, “Have you ever designed an inspirational trip sparked by the depth of your soul?” Did you travel intentionally for personal growth, relationship repair or to better understand yourself?
Nina Zapala, Founder Unpack Your Personality©️ Book Coming in 2022
Eat Pray Love: Inspirational Travel at it’s Best
Many of us are familiar with Elizabeth Gilbert’s book, Eat Pray Love. A book that couldn’t stay on the shelves turned into a movie still discussed today. Gilbert had an undying need to travel, not just for the sake of travel but for the soul of it.
Many say if you give power to thought, it will manifest, as it did many times in Eat Pray Love. Thank you, Elizabeth Gilbert, for a beautiful book. And yes, I know I’m late to the game, but my mind wasn’t open to the idea of transformational travel until a few years ago. 😜
Serendipity in Travel
I believe there’s fate in travel. It’s around every corner, delivered by a stranger, or found in a delayed argument. Serendipity has the power to deliver micro-moments of change. It can stir the soul and may even help you discover something about yourself that shakes up your world.
True story
For many years, I made my living from tourism as a marketing communication professional, and I can’t tell you how many times an accident was no accident. I meet a fantastic public relations professional in London during an industry show. She and I just seemed to hit it off?
Coincidence, I don’t think so.
We worked the show together, and afterward, we met for a cocktail. Of course, we started talking about our lives, and she said, ‘Quite frankly, I don’t believe you’re happy.” I looked at her like a deer in headlights. At that moment, I realized she was telling my truth. A truth I had been afraid to admit to myself for years. And at that very moment, a kind gentleman sent over two glasses of champagne. We toasted to the truth! Serendipity in action.
Inspirational Travel or Destiny
I can honestly say I was not on an Eat Pray Love journey, but somehow this adventure inspired me to take action and change my life. When a stranger speaks your truth, and it resonates deeply into your inner knowing, it’s time to make a change. And I believe there are no accidents.
A revelation, I’d been creating dreamy vacation pitches to earn my clients widespread news attention, but what I didn’t see was how travel could and does change people’s lives on a soul level when they travel intentionally.
The Seeds of #TravelHappier Are Planted
I was one of many public relations professionals who crafted Eat Pray Love vacation packages for clients. Gilbert’s book spawned a colossal travel trend, and these travel packages were selling like hotcakes. Who doesn’t want to BELIEVE you can transform in a weekend ⏤ wish it were true!
That’s Where the Story Begins
I started noticing the fear of the unknown, the stress and anxiety travel brings to vacationers. And this was before 9/11. After 9/11, an entirely new travel environment emerged. Enough said.
Being the Inquisitive Traveler, one of the 16 personalities I’ve developed based on Carl Jung’s and Myers-Briggs®’ personality type theory, I started asking people questions. I had done this for years as a marketing professional. Only this time, I was asking questions related to personality typing. Questions related to typology, self-exploration, and soul-enrichment.
Questions like:
- Does this trip resonate with your personality type? (So many times travelers were’nt familiar with their type — Yikes. How do you pick a trip if you don’t know the basics of who you are?)
- What do you hope to gain by your vacation? Renew? Reconnect? Reflect?
- Are you happy to be traveling or stressed? If happy, why? If stressed, why?
- Why inspired you to travel?
- Did you book a vacation to please another? I learned the vast majority of us, do this.
I found the answers to these questions; stereotypical, sad, and distressing. Answers like; my kids wanted to come here, or my spouse wanted to go to the beach; I prefer the mountains, or it’s easy sometimes to keep the peace and go along.
WTF! Whose vacation is it? Yours, theirs, or all of yours? It’s the latter, of course.
A Spiritual Retreat Merges With the Sign of the Times
Years ago, on a year-long spiritual retreat, I would study Myers-Briggs® and was amazed at its impact on business and relationships. I thought to myself, WOW, why not fuse practical psychology into the travel space? I worked with an excellent mentor, spiritual psychologist Dr. June Lee Nix, who loved the idea. And for the next year guided me on my journey. I’m forever grateful.
A tsunami of life changes and a desire for a new career direction arose years later. Today, I’m passionately working on unpacking personality typing using real-world travel experiences to inspire mico-moments of change. I’m developing is a cheat sheet, infusing the 16 personalities with a spiritual component while using travel in the classroom. I’ll show you how your behaviors engage and respond while on vacation – unveiling specific personality traits that may emerge while on holiday.
Sustain A Healthy Mind. Sustain a Healthy Planet
Today, travel has become a massive collective activity instead of an individual experience. Where’s the soul in that? We’re not taught to travel intentionally to engage our minds in the power of nature, accept cultural differences to learn new perspectives, or as simple as reconnecting with ourselves out in nature.
It’s as if the majority of us are traveling in a fog of Instagram instead of experiencing who we really are. We’ve been marketed to conform to someone’s idea of travel; luxury, overindulging and doing whatever it takes to get the perfect Instagram photo. WTF. There are so many things wrong with this idea of travel.
Here’s why.
In my humble opinion, travel is changing so rapidly with the impact of the Internet and social media. Honestly, the direction of it isn’t all that good. Overtourism has become a major environmental issue. Sustainability has been thrown out the window favoring monetization. These horrible trends need addressing before some of the most gorgeous places on the planet: Big Sur, California, Venice, Italy, Croatia, and other sites, are destroyed.
Thanks for letting me rant about overtourism. 😏
Inspirational Travel Because Its What Your Soul Needs
My question is, do you need a dose of inspirational travel to guide you towards personal growth? Are you in a questioning phase of your life, looking for answers? Can visiting different cultures help you see something new in you, maybe even shift an understanding for your betterment and your relationships with yourself and your loved ones?
Are you in the throws of an Eat Pray Love situation? We may not all have the ability to travel for a year, but what if unpacking your personality could spark a new perception about yourself, a fresh perspective that changes everything? Would you set time aside for intentional micro-moments of change on your next vacation?
My Passion For Unpacking Your Personality Is Driven To Help You Resee Yourself A New.
Can you accept and own your unique personality traits; the good, the bad, and the ugly? Why not give it a whirl on your next vacation. Just think how different the world would be if we all accepted who we are, and what if this acceptance allowed us to embrace another’s differences. Unpack your personality provides a gentle mind massage. It can reveal your true SELF and help you better understand another’s, why’s, and why nots.
What if you were born without a personality type? How would your soul express itself? If your personality type is so vital to your well-being, why are you not making it a priority in your life?
Nina Zapala, Founder, Unpack Your Personality©️ – Book Coming in 2022
Always Written With You In Mind
My dream is to inspire a new travel paradigm that motivates self-discovery, a healthier planet, and intentional getaways. I’m on a mission to help you unpack your unique travel personality, aka your authentic self.
A travel guide is informative guidebook that helps you familiarize yourself with a place. Your inner travel guide is also informative but it’s based on your personality. It’s about exploring aspects of your inner self for joy-filled, happier vacations ⏤ no matter where you travel or who you travel with!
– Nina Zapala
Tapping into your distinct travel guide is an ongoing journey. Every time you travel, you can focus your intentions on little steps to reveal aspects of the undiscovered self. If you’re a seeker and on a spiritual path, travel can become a time of great soul awakening. I’ve posted a Thanksgiving article with examples of how your inner travel guide shows up while you’re away – click here to read.
Stay Tuned — There’s More
I am now working on a free quiz and writing a book: Unpack Your Personality: Let Your Inner Guide Be Your Travel Guide©️. This guidebook takes a deep dive into unpacking your personality – your personal reality. Do you desire a new vacation paradigm to gently transform, awaken, and spark something new in you? Then stay tuned because it’s all coming in 2022.
Do you want to be one of the first travelers to learn more about your unique inner travel guide? Then click here to sign up for new blog posts, a free quiz, and travel tips specific to your travel personality.
If you’re inclined, follow along on: Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest
#UnpackYourPersonality for Micro-Moments of Self Growth!
