Having a child, planting a tree and writing a book? Someone forgot all about the traveling. Traveling alone is one of the best experiences you should try at least once in your lifetime and here are four reasons why.
Advantages of traveling alone
1. You know yourself
You are going to spend a lot of time with yourself, if you cannot stand you, now tell me who is going to do it. This is a great opportunity to listen to yourself and really know what you like and what you do not like.
You will discover mind blowing things about yourself so don’t waste this new possible skill trying to use all of your time in doing “anything” because you are alone, still, there will be obvious circumstances in which you can take advantage of the dead times that traveling alone can cause and traveling with company too can cause them. Invest in yourself and try some reading, writing, studying, etc.
But do not make the mistake of not taking advantage of these situations to make a stop and take a look at what is inside of you:
- How you felt before starting the trip.
- How you feel during the trip.
- How you think you will feel when you get home.
If the answers to these questions lead to an improvement in your mood and a smile. You’re on the right track.
And since you are in that moment, go for a win and try to answer some of these questions:
- Do I feel comfortable with my current job?
- Do I want to change my life?
- When will I do it?
- Defines objectives and goals.
You only do this at the end of the year and then in February you have forgotten half of them, big mistake, the best time to define a turning point in your life is while being on a trip alone. Why? Well first you have more time to reflect and second the sense of great freedom during the trip makes your head go beyond the expected and reach places that would be difficult to reach otherwise.
Image courtesy of Roberto La Forgia at Flickr.com
2. You know a lot of people and improve your social skills
When you travel with a partner you are more closed, socially speaking, you already have someone in whom you can lean on if things go wrong, laugh together when the situation requires it or enjoy the landscape.
In the situation we create a circle in which we sometimes accept more people, and sometimes we do not, we have control.
When you are traveling alone, you are much more open, socially speaking also, you know more people. This happens because first because you look for it, and secondly, because people also interact more with you, in this situation there is no circle, you do not have a safety net you need to be more sociable and in this way many doors will open.
When you are alone people approach you anywhere to ask you things like how you are, where you are from, what you are doing there, what you think about their country, etc. A minimum of 2-3 people a day will probably do that but on trips where you are accompanied by a person, the average is usually of 2-3 people a month.
If the group you are in, grows, the closeness with the natives decreases. This is inversely proportional and has nothing to do with your degree of extroversion, locals don’t care if you’re shy or not, they are curious, and when you’re alone they lose their fear to ask.
3. You can do whatever you want whenever you want it
You don’t have to be held accountable for anything you do, you don’t have to ask a partner to decide with you on what to do, what to see, what to eat, when to stop to find a bathroom, who will read the map, or who asks question for directions, you decide everything, this is so much more enjoyable you don’t waste time in discussions, do not suppress your wishes or likes because of the other person and vice versa.
4. You have an Improv ability
My favorite one.
You can skip your plans to do whatever you want anytime you wanted every time you have a chance. You can change your route completely and end up in another country or in a different hotel, or someone else’s house, you can get a job on whatever you feel like doing, the list is endless, believe me.
For example, if you want to know what a road trip is and why you should have one, then do it but always remember that when you choose a path you lose another. You never know what you are going to win or lose. So just follow your instincts and enjoy your choice to a max, whatever that can be.