Have you ever considered how you choose to live your life?  Do you navigate or does someone else?

We’ve all seen and perhaps experienced being a ‘tourist’: pre-planned tours, guides who take us to attractions and explain relevant facts. We ride on temperature controlled buses and are dropped off and picked up; we walk through city centers and follow a guide who holds a small flag or umbrella so we don’t lose sight of them, we listen with pre-recorded headsets as we walk through museums to see the most popular pieces. Food is easily accessible as are restrooms and shops; we enjoy the relative ease of having someone take care of the details – we let someone else navigate.

And sometimes we experience being a ‘traveler’. We’re on our own, navigating our way through new areas or foreign countries with different languages or expectations; perhaps we rent a car and drive on the opposite side of the road or find our way through a mountain pass, we eat foods we’ve never before tried, we acclimate to different temperatures, we get lost, frustrated or tired. We see and do things we never imagined.

A tourist experiences life while mostly remaining in their comfort zone, resigned to having others make decisions or steer the way; a traveler decides to step outside their comfort zone, take over the reins and ultimately experiences discomfort.  And that is when things begin to happen!

When we live as travelers we are curious, uninhibited, willing to leave our comfort zone and explore the next zone…the learning zone.  A traveler isn’t satisfied being guided through life, a traveler dives deeper, willing to experience what can’t necessarily be seen or anticipated from the safety of the surface.

Consider this: growth only happens in the learning zone, when we leave our comfort zone and step into the unknown to feel and experience fear, discomfort, even risk.  Our reward is knowledge, confidence and a zest for life – a life without allowing fear to be the navigator.

Are you a tourist or a traveler?

Thanks for reading!
~ Haven

Coming soon
“Taking it Personally”…Do you really know what that means?
The “J” Word…Why even allowing it into your mindstream is toxic!