Traveling can be among the most profound and transformative experiences of our lives. However, how can we determine if traveling is changing us, or is it simply a hangover from a vacation?
We can listen to scientists, naturally.
Many studies reveal how traveling makes us more open-minded, alters our outlook on life, and helps us become more effective.
The first and most important thing is that travel can transform your life by improving overall health and well-being.
A study discovered that those who regularly travel are at lower risk of suffering from heart disease, noting that those who did not have a vacation every year were found to be at a 30 percent higher risk of dying of heart attack.
The study also examined how traveling affects your brain. It was found that your brain’s exposure to different flavors, scents, languages, and sights through living abroad increases your creativity.
It can improve your mood.
When you leave the plane, you’re immediately happy, excited, and relaxed.
You’ve left all worries behind and take at the moment as you experience the wonder of your new world.
Eliminating stress from your life changes your mood. And to achieve that, it is necessary to take actions that relieve you from anxiety.
So why not go on your next vacation? Get on a plane and enjoy the moment.
Make your mood an optimistic one that can lighten your soul and bring joy to your life.
It recharges you
The typical North American works anywhere from 40-60 hours. They also skip out on vacations to bring in more cash.
Sometimes, the expense isn’t worthwhile. The vacation days are days of mental health.
Your brain needs to be able to relax from the constant work, and your body needs to take a break from working at the desk. Your eyes require to be taken off from looking at a computer monitor.
Take a trip to the beach to soak up vitamin D. Let the salt water wash over your skin, and let the sand engulf your body as you recharge. Set your mood, connect to yourself, and let your body replenish itself.
It provides you with an entirely new perspective.
My favorite thing about traveling is that it gives the visitor a fresh perspective.
It gives you a new perspective to see the world, who you are, and how you spend your time.
Traveling is an opportunity to meet new people from different cultures, discover new things, embark on adventures (good or bad), and may even change your perspective on your life.
Since you’re learning and getting information from different locations and people, traveling can make you a better, more overall person.
There’s a lot to do and see in the world. I invite you to venture out and experience a different person’s perspective, even if it’s traveling to another country or driving.
It deepens your understanding.
Travel can help make the undiscovered familiar challenge assumptions and stereotypes that frequently define our world perception.
My experiences living in Tanzania and working with street kids helped me understand the working culture in Tanzania (why consensus is the key in all decision-making processes such as) as well as the strength of the children subject to the daily shaming and violence.
This experience helped me gain a deeper knowledge of a culture and the reality that I’d experienced from a distance and occasionally in the news I read in my car on the way into work, or in a report about a safari I received from an acquaintance. This experience helped make Tanzanian and African cultures more relevant to me.
Interacting with and understanding others without being required to accept everything they do results in a more gentle and tolerant method of interaction with others in this world.
It improves self-awareness
Being more open with others is also a way to be more open to ourselves. A recent study found that living abroad and reflecting upon your personal beliefs as you interact with new environments and people daily can make you more self-aware and less anxious. While this study focused on living abroad and not traveling long-term, more intense travel will probably have the same effect.
Another concept related to self-awareness and being exposed to various perspectives is What psychologists refer to as “cognitive flexibility,” which is the capacity to change thoughts. Traveling helps keep our minds “flexible” as it forces us to reconsider our traditional ways of seeing and doing things. This results in the development of possibly the most valuable ability of all: imagination.
It helps you become more imaginative.
In the age of automation and a workplace that is set to change into a new reality in years to come, creativity will become the hallmark of the companies that continue to flourish. It will also be vital to solving difficult global issues, as well as continuing to innovate in sciences and business.
Adam Galinsky, a professor at Columbia University, has shown that managers who have been in many different locations — and therefore experienced a wide range of foreign cultures and languages are more innovative and bold in how they conduct their business.
It improves confidence
If a plethora of conflicting opinions and pockets of insularity are the norm in our time, there is a distinct distrust. Although Nordic countries like Finland maintain an incredibly high level of trust in all aspects, from government institutions to people of other backgrounds, including migrants, all over the world, confidence in other people has been declining for a long time.
Trust levels significantly correlate with happiness. The fact that Finland was ranked first on the World Happiness Index in 2018 while the US was ranked at 18thTrust is worthwhile to invest in.
It makes you feel more grounded.
There’s a reason to celebrate travel.
Many moments in travel make us feel like we’re in a bind. A new airport and being unable to comprehend the signs and have to struggle to navigate your way around is uncomfortable or trying to utilize your (still very basic) communication skills when dealing with the Parisian taxi driver that doesn’t be sure how to pronounce “Champs-Elysees_”_. It also requires us to face our discomfort and rise above it.
Travel is so effective because it allows us to see people’s humanity and find an improved version of ourselves.