Photo by Grant Ritchie on Unsplash
When do you feel like you’re living your best life? If traveling is your answer, you’re hardly alone.
There aren’t many situations that feel more exciting and freeing than switching on your out of office reply and making the mental switch to travel mode. Besides the obvious no-work part, have you ever stopped to think about why travel makes you feel so good? And more importantly, how can you feel that way every day? Try out these five travel habits to live your best life at home.
1. Make space for spontaneity
Even the most type-A, plan-every-last-detail travelers know that the best times are often unplanned. That hidden gem you just stumbled upon. The sweet stranger who becomes your long-distance best friend. There’s nothing sweeter than a serendipitous moment, so why not leave more intentional white space in your daily calendar to make room for magic?
2. Practice shoshin (aka beginner’s mind)
Shoshin is a word from Zen Buddhism that means “beginner’s mind.” Without realizing it, this is how you see the world when you travel to a new place! It means observing with an open mind, eagerness and without preconceptions. (Ok, you might travel with preconceptions but that’s something to let go of too.) How can you look at your work, your routines and your habits with a beginner’s mind?
3. Document your days
Keeping a travel journal is a powerful mindfulness practice that can help you discover and remember the lessons, the joys and the memorable moments of your trip. It may seem boring to document your days at home, but simply making note of your top highs and lows of the day can bring a lot of perspective and gratitude when you look back upon your everyday life.
4. Disconnect to reconnect
By now we all know how important it is to give ourselves digital downtime. Travel is at its richest when you’re enjoying it fully in the moment, not posting selfies or reading restaurant reviews. Same goes in the day-to-day. You don’t have to disconnect completely. Just be intentional about when, where and for how long you’re going to hop online.
5. Make time for self-care
Travel can be a powerful form of self-care, even when there are no spas or flower-laden soaking tubs in sight. Take a cue from your favorite vacation activities to bring a little me-time to your life at home. Get outside in nature at least once a day. Or create a slow morning or evening routine that feels like an amazing hotel stay complete with clean sheets, a tidy space, beautiful scents, and fresh flowers.
What makes you feel like you’re living your best life when traveling, and what can you do to sprinkle it in your everyday?
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