Navigate a delightful, new and inspirational way to vacation came to me as I put the finishing touches on the Playful Traveler, one of the 16 travel personalities, I’m developing.
It starts with a deep study into the world of personality typing. The Playful travel captivated me. Their style of travel embraces vacations; joyfully, and moment-by-moment. They don’t need exhaustive itineraries. Nor do they require detailed plans and activities from morning until night. This travel personality finds pleasure in the moments. Unpacking their innate personality helps them to notice things before others do, which is a huge gift for those who vacation with them.
I’m throwing out a new idea about how we prececieve vacations. My idea is to use travel to embrace micro-moments of change moving from complete consumption to more self-actualized trips.
Shifting the Travel Narrative from the Physical World to a New Inspirational Vacation Mindset.
Has this ever happened to you? You’re up in the air and you push up you blind to look out and all you see are gray clouds and rain. Do you automatically go to, “Dang, I was looking forward to days of unending sunshine? I didn’t spend all this money and take time off for a rain vacation. Your thoughts turn to the negative, in a matter of minutes. Do you habitually turn to negative thoughts? What if you were aware of this habit and in that micro-moment, you said to yourself, “It will be sunny when I land and if not, I’m going to have the best vacation ever? Could you focus on this one habit, and while on vacation and start to change it? Upon landing the sun is shining brightly. How did those negative thoughts serve you?
What changed? Yes, I realize we went from rain to sun, but behind every rainshower is an opportunity for sunshine. Are we so stuck in our repetitive habits that happier vacations elude us? I think you’ll agree that physical pleasures are borrowed happiness.
What if we shifted our thoughts and began to explore the idea of tapping into our soul-self our unique conscious self? Could we look at a rainstorm as a prelude to a rainbow? Or see a rainshower as a wonderful way to relax and enjoy the rhythm of the raindrops? We’ve been hoodwinked to think rain and vacations don’t mix. Who made this rule? It’s all about thoughts, thoughts that can be changed.
I’m of the belief that modern travelers needs to shift their mindset from the physical world and unpack their personalities to inspire new ways of being in the world.
What are your beliefs about vacations? Is YOUR vacation window cloudy and blurry? Is it time to clean your window and tap into your authentic self?
What if Slow Travel + Staycations Could Deliver all of the Benefits of a Vacation?
Just recently my brother and his wife came into town for a long weekend. It was an impromptu visit and I was thrilled they were making the effort to drive eight hours to see me, and my son. I had set intentions. First, visit New Orleans then Ocean Springs.
What happened instead?
It was too hot for my sister-in-law to travel so I invited a few friends over for happy hour. I wanted to introduce my brother and his wife to a cool couple I know; both are from South Carolina, both are wickedly funny. We had the best time. Sharing stories, belly laughing, eating for hours on end while drinking fabulous wine and sipping scotch.
Old Vacation Mindset
Was this the plan? No, it wasn’t but it turned out to be very memorable. My old vacation mindset would have had me in a panic. I would have been researching New Orleans, figuring out the best drive, where are all the restaurants, boutiques… It’s exhausting. My old vacation mindset was all about pushing and chasing moments. My new vacation mindset is about flow, transformation, and slow moments. I released and let-go when everyone said, no, to New Orleans, it’s too hot! It was the right choice after all.
We did eventually drive to Ocean Springs, Mississippi, a favorite small-town of mine. I’ve been there several times and I’m even getting to know the shop owners. We strolled the historic district, sitting in the stillness of the Indian summer heat, sticking our toes in the Gulf of Mexico, exploring art galleries and eating at the Oyster House. It was the perfect, slow-travel, getaway.
The visit was all about re-connecting, meeting new friends and enjoying one another’s company. Isn’t that what we aspire when we vacation? Isn’t that what we aspire when we vacation? I’ve learned it’s not about rushing, exhaustive planning, and blurry travel moments.
And for me, it was about letting go, and not arguing the point to death because I wanted it to be so. Isn’t that what we aspire when we vacation? The experience helped me to connect to an inner belief, that isn’t serving me today, look at it and then decide to change it. It’s about inner soul growth.
What are your thoughts?
How to Turn Your Travel Mindset Upside Down and Inside Out!
So how do you turn your travel mindset upside down and inside out? It’s all about incorporating a new inner direction to expand the adventures you encounter while on vacation. So many of us rely on advertising, social media, our friends and family. But ask yourself, are they happy? How well do they know you, and how well do you know them?
- Do you feel guilty that you’ve not taken a vacation?
- Are you thinking what’s wrong with me, why don’t I want to travel to Sudan to see the many UNESCO heritage sights?
- Will a staycation be boring?
- What will I talk about?
On a Cruise
A friend of mine just went on a cruise. She was very excited to get away and spend time with her partner. When I asked, “How was the cruise,” she said, “It was good, but there were too many people for me to fully relax and enjoy myself.” Note: she is a tried-and-true, introvert.
Do you think she would have been happier staying home, reading a good book? Probably. How about going out for intimate dinners with her partner? Would she have saved a boatload of money? Yes. Would a staycation have been more relaxing? Probably. Or she might have opted for a river cruise which is typically more intimate. A better setting for an introvert. This is what Unpacking Your Personality is all about guiding you to vacations that fit you.
A Few Tips to Get You Thinking About New and Inspirational Ways to Vacation
A few tips to rewrite the vacation narrative. Think about vacations from an inner, inspirational, self-directed way to relax and experience new adventures. A few ideas:
Set Intentions
- Think about what feeds your soul? Is it meeting new people, ready a good book? Hiking? Learning?
- Use micro goals? What do you want your mornings to look like? Afternoons? Evenings? Carve up the day and set meaningful playtimes, silly times, and try your hand at doing nothing. NO GUILT allowed.
- Share your intentions with your partner and loved ones, and see where their intentions link-up with yours. It doesn’t have to be 24/7 family, spouse or friend time. And if you’re dealing with an introvert, believe me, they’ll want ALONE TIME!
Indulge You
So you’ve saved a few bucks by not traveling. And PLEEASE, understand I’m not saying don’t ever travel, that is ridiculous and not a healthy option, either. Travel is an excellent way to expand the mind, body, and soul. What I’m getting at here is to inspire a new way to view vacations. So let’s indulge YOU:
- Why not splurge on a spa treatment
- Sign up for a pottery class
- Get that new haircut and color
- Buy that new sustainable bathing suit
- Pick up that book you’ve been dying to read and grab a great bottle of wine or your favorite non-alcoholic beverage and spend the day reading and sipping.
Enjoy Each Moment and Forget What Everyone Else Thinks
- When your neighbor asks where you’re going on vacation, tell them, “I’m going to enjoy a week of pleasurable moments.” They probably won’t understand. But don’t concern yourself with their opinions, remember your opinion is the only one that counts.
- Think about this; is a post on Instagram which vanishes in an instant more important than self-growth moments?
- Honor your mind, body, and soul, and nourish yourself fully without guilt or shame. Do you really need to travel to the far reaches of the earth to relax and enjoy yourself? Resetting YOUR RULES to live the life you want is always hard at first. But like they say, ‘practice makes perfect.’
Navigate a Delightful, New and Inspirational Way to Vacation
Fall is upon us ushering in a busy travel season. Maybe it’s time to set into motion Unpack Your Personality to navigate a delightful, new and inspirational way to travel. Why not give a staycation a try, and use the tips posted here as a starting point.
If you’re excited to travel this fall, I’ve posted a few trip ideas for both introverts and extroverts. Also if your traveling with the opposite type I’ve also posted a few travel tips to help you embrace your differences.
It’s always my intention to provide meaningful posts to help YOU, #travelhappier. Feel free to contact me if you want to share your photos. It would bring a smile to my face. And with your permission, I’d share your photos on Instagram and Pinterest.
Stay Tuned — There’s More
I am working on a free quiz and developing guidebooks to be used as a tool to unpack your personality. Please know when these guidebooks are ready they will be uber useful for travelers looking to gain more from a vacation than a sunburn and a few tchotchkes. This new vacation approach is for people who seek to gently transform, awaken and self-actualize by tapping into their inner travel guide — aka your authentic soul self, using travel as the backdrop.
My radio interview aired on Speaking of Travel part of the iHeart radio network with Marilyn Ball. Give it a listen here.
Do you want to be one of the first travelers to find out what your unique travel personality type is? Then click here to sign up for new blog posts on the topic, a free quiz and travel tips specific to your travel personality.
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All photos: Nina Zapala
