What your life looks like in a year is your choice.

Life happens and your course will change.

But you can’t sit around letting the fears and what-ifs stop you.

So, stop dreaming and take action.

Stop getting caught up in the goals and plans. Just go!

Stop comparing your life to others, wishing and waiting for more.

You will be scared at times.

You will be challenged time and time again.

You will face things you never thought you could.

All of these things will change you and cause you to look at life in new ways.

Your adventures (and mis-adventures) will make your life better.

They will make you love more deeply, see more clearly, and live more freely!

So, pick a path and see where it takes you.

P.S. – What adventure are you going to choose? Leave a comment below and let me know!

P.P.S. – If you’re ready for more adventure and freedom, join me for Zero to Adventurista. Last day to sign up is April 28th!

The post An Ode To Adventure appeared first on The Life Adventurista.

Does this sound familiar?

You’ve thought about your goals and dreams endlessly. You’ve envisioned your ideal life. Sometimes that dream life feels so close you can touch it, yet you’re never quite there. You take one step forward, then two steps back. You’re stuck in a kind of purgatory, trying to make peace with the idea that maybe this is all there is, yet constantly finding yourself wanting so much more. It’s like you’re trying to swim against the current – it wears you out and breaks you down.

This is why goal setting alone isn’t enough.

Visioning, goal setting, making lists, and strategic planning are all necessary and vital aspects to creating the life you want. However, no matter how much planning or visioning you do, without addressing some key barriers, you will continue to find yourself stuck in the same place.

So what’s holding you back? For many, the barriers are the same.

Fear of change.

Fear of failure.

Fear of success.

Financial fears.

Fear of what other people think of you.

Fear of being vulnerable.

Fear of loss.

The list goes on. All of your fears are barriers, keeping you from living the life you want. The life you were meant to live.

The good news is, those barriers can be broken, and you already have the courage within you to go after what you want.

The key: baby steps.

Before Eric and I moved out of DC and started traveling, I was petrified. I feared what life would be like once I left the comfort zone I had built up in DC. I was scared that we would lose everything. I feared our businesses and relationship would fail. And I seriously worried what other people would think when I broke the news that we were moving out of the U.S. to pursue our wild and crazy dreams.

We started talking about our ideas and plans a year and a half before we told a single soul. At that time it seemed like the craziest idea we had ever had. I had doubts, but I wanted it so badly that I couldn’t imagine life any other way.

So we slowly started planning. We created a budget, started saving, and talked to people we knew who were already living overseas.

Then we told our moms. That’s when it started to feel real.

We made more plans and broke the news to friends.

I told my boss and we started figuring out the transition. (Telling her was the hardest part!)

Then I freaked out and convinced Eric we needed to stay in DC longer, so we added on four more months to our planned departure date.

I slowly began to clean out my closet, worked on my business in my spare time, and crossed off all the things on my list that I wanted to do in DC before we moved.

See, it wasn’t just an easy straight-forward path from idea to actually moving overseas. There were many freak-outs and moments where I questioned if I had lost my sanity.

But what kept me going was that vision I had in my head. That vision of my traveling with my forever partner and working while exploring and experiencing the world fully.

I didn’t realize it at the time, but with each one of the steps that I took, I was chiseling away those barriers. Those fears that had held me back for so long were no longer stopping me. Then all the sudden, before I knew it, we had packed up our apartment and turned in our keys.

Right before leaving our DC apartment for the last time. It was such a mix of sadness and happiness.

There were moments where I was unsure I would have the courage to leave DC. Then there I was, in the car driving away, waving goodbye to the monuments.

There was a time I didn’t think we would be able to buy that one way ticket to Istanbul. Then there we were, on that plane, and on our way.

On the plane from Houston, Texas to Istanbul, Turkey!

Two years ago, I never imagined I would have my own business.

Sitting here, writing this now, I can look back and see all the hundreds of baby steps it has taken me to get to this point.

Spending the day working in a cafe before exploring Ireland.

Yes, there are still barriers ahead of me. Just because I have gotten to this point, doesn’t mean it’s easy from here on out.  At times, those same old fears come back and manifest themselves in new ways. But what I’ve learned is that courage works just like training for a race.

Last year I decided to run a ten mile race. When I started training, I could barely run one mile without feeling like my lungs would explode. Three months later, I ran ten miles and felt like I could run even even further.

At the DC Cherry Blossom Race after running 10 miles!

In the same way we build up our lung capacity and our muscle strength, we cultivate courage. Every time you take a baby step towards your fear, you flex your courage muscle. Before you know it, your courage muscle is stronger than that fear, and it will carry you further than you ever imagined.

Breaking down your barriers (whatever they are) is not easy. It’s scary work. Just remember what’s on the other side – the life you are reaching for.

So take that first step and see where it leads you.

If you’re ready to bust through those barriers and live the life you want, I’d love to have you join Zero to Adventurista, a 5-week virtual adventure for women who are ready to stop sitting on the sidelines. Whether you want to travel the world, make that move to your dream city, switch careers, or start a business, Zero to Adventurista will get you unstuck and offer you the support, encouragement, and motivation you need to turn those dreams into a reality. Last day to sign up is April 28th!

The post How Your Fears Are Keeping You From Living the Life You Want & Why Baby Steps Are the Solution appeared first on The Life Adventurista.

Tell me about what you do and what inspired you to start your business.

How do your two programs Decision to Departure and Arrive and Thrive work?

You’ve traveled A LOT and done some pretty amazing things. What were your favorite travel experiences?

How do you define adventure?

Where can we find you?

Thanks, Allegra!

P.S. – Craving more adventure? Ready to take those ideas and dreams and turn them into plans? Sign up for Zero to Adventurista, a 5-week Virtual Group Adventure for women who are ready to stop sitting on the sidelines and start living life to the fullest. Starts April 29th! Go here to learn more and sign up.

Want more?

Get Love Notes from the Road, A FREE Monthly note full of life & biz tips to help live out your most adventurous dreams.

(Plus, be the first to get The Adventurista’s Guide to Taking Action on May 22nd!)

The post Inspiring Adventurista: Allegra Stein appeared first on The Life Adventurista.

“But I don’t know what I want.”

This is one of the things I’ve been hearing a lot lately. So if you are ready for a big transformation but don’t know exactly what you want out of life, here are six ideas to help you kick start that change:

1.) Do a bit of soul searching and ask yourself what you truly want for yourself. Questions to ask: Look into your future:  Where and how do you want to live? How do you want to be making money? What are you known for? Who do you surround yourself with and what types of relationships do you have?

2.) Try new things. Take a class, go to that writer’s workshop you’ve been thinking about for a while, take a cooking class, or learn a new skill. You never know what you’ll discover about yourself or where it will lead you.

3.) Survey your friends and family. Ask those closest to you to share what they think your greatest strengths are. Often times we can’t see what others see. It might spark something new in you.

4.) Look for a new job. I know in today’s economy, jobs are a precious commodity. However, a job that is unbearably miserable has negative ramifications across your life. So make a commitment to yourself to network and apply for new jobs that won’t suck your soul.

5.) Get a new hobby or turn your hobby into something more.  Have a hobby that lights you up? Start selling to your friends, create a simple website, and let the world know you are open for business.

6.) Plan a mini-adventure. Sometimes we just need to escape and give ourselves a break from reality. Plan a weekend getaway, a hike, or be a tourist in your own town. Often, it is these times, when my mind is clears, that I find the answers I’ve been looking for.

If you have an idea and need a little bit of clarity/help brainstorming, sign up for my 20 minute Getaway. You’ll leave with clarity, motivation, and at least one thing you need to do in order to move forward.

P.S. – Craving more adventure? Ready to take those ideas and dreams and turn them into plans? Sign up for Zero to Adventurista, a 5-week Virtual Group Adventure for women who are ready to stop sitting on the sidelines and start living life to the fullest. Starts April 29th! Go here to learn more and sign up.

Want more?

Get Love Notes from the Road, A FREE Monthly note full of life & biz tips to help live out your most adventurous dreams.

(Plus, be the first to get The Adventurista’s Guide to Taking Action on May 22nd!)

The post What To Do When You Don’t Know What To Do. appeared first on The Life Adventurista.

Some of my favorite moments from our Santorini trip.

It all started around the second week of February. We had just landed in Crete a few weeks earlier after an amazing week in Santorini. I was feeling energized and happy about life and business. Then all the sudden, I wasn’t. I started waking up in the middle of the night, in full-on panic mode. My heart racing and anxiety gripping my entire body. I knew something was off, but I couldn’t quite place my finger on it. Here I was, in Crete, a place I had dreamed of visiting for 10 years, living the exact life I had planned with my forever-partner by my side. Yet, I suddenly felt like my world was crashing in around me.

And then the nightmares set it.

I dreamed I was being shot at with a bow and arrow. In my dream, I saw a man with a bow-and-arrow, I knew he would shoot me, but I wasn’t scared and I didn’t run. The arrow hit me right in the middle of my forehead. I woke up, my palms sweating and my heart racing.

The following day, I was in one of those post-nightmare dazes. I felt like I was craving something new. Part of me wanted to dive into the ocean and swim far away, part of me wanted to burn it all down and start over again.

The next night I dreamed I was in a field of grass that caught fire. I started stomping the grass to try and put out the fire, the fire kept growing, getting bigger, and soon took over the entire field.

In college, I took a class on Neuropsychology and Dreaming ( I was a neuro nerd!) so I’ve always been fascinated with the various theories of dreaming and what exactly goes on in your brain while you sleep. As part of the class, we kept a dream journal, which I kept up for awhile even after the class was over, but then dropped as the hectic post-college life set in. After several nights of nightmares and intense emotions throughout the day, I decided to start journaling again.

So as I was relaying my dreams to Eric at 2 a.m. that morning, it hit me…

I was out of alignment. The Life Adventurista and my greater “why” didn’t match up anymore.  See, The Life Adventurista isn’t just about location independence, it’s not about constant travel and working from the road. Yes, that can be part of it. But It’s so much more. The Life Adventurista is a culmination of all my life experiences, my beliefs, my passions, and my personal life philosophies.

It’s about:

• facing your fears
• cultivating courage
• breaking through the barriers that are preventing you from living the life you want
• designing your work around your life, instead of the other way around
• doing what you love and getting paid what you are worth
• using your voice
• making a difference in the world
• community engagement
• women’s empowerment
• business
• love
• travel
• culture and experience
• inner balance and peace

I want to help more women do the work they love, get paid what they are worth, and create big change. I believe when you are doing the work you are most passionate about the world is better off because you are happier and more fulfilled. And I believe that anyone can build a business based off their passions with a hard work, support, and community. When more women are not only, happier in life and work, but also getting paid what they are worth, they are able to better support the causes they care about and make their voices heard loud and far.

The Life Adventurista is about following your dreams, breaking through barriers, and doing good!

I had this epiphany right after my dream about burning fields. It was then that I knew exactly what I had to do.

I had to light a fire to what I had already started in order to make more room for my vision.

One of the many beautiful sunsets from the apartment we rented in Chania, which always provided inspiration.

After my realization, I gave myself some breathing room. I didn’t take on any new projects, cutback on some of my obligations for a few weeks, and went into my creative cave in order to figure out exactly where I wanted to go with this.

So here’s what you can expect around here from now on:

• I’m limiting the number of new one-on-one clients I take each month. As part of my passion for building community I’m focusing a lot more on group and community work.
• Starting on April 29th, I’m offering Zero to Adventurista, a 5-week Virtual Group Adventure to help women who are craving big changes in their life! It’s a small group program and community to help you live every day to the fullest, bust through barriers that are holding you back, and reach for your dreams. It’s all based of my experience from the last few years of my life. If you are interested in joining, go here to find out more and register.

I’m also working on creating a digital guide plus awesome community with my bestie Bethiny to help more women find their own path to inner balance and peace. It will be out sometime this summer so stay tuned. You can sign up here to stay updated!

There’s also a lot more brewing behind the scenes that I can’t wait to share with you soon!

The lesson: Following your dreams is never easy.

There will be lots of bumps in the road along the way. Sometimes it can feel like you are on a roller coaster ride going 150 mph.

You will want to give up and runaway.  You will cry, laugh, and scream. But even in the darkest of moments, it is worth it.

Keep going.  Keep chasing those dreams. You will be a better for it.

I’m not running (or swimming) away. I see my dreams right before my eyes. I am reaching out and grabbing them.

I want the same for you.

So what do you do when you feel lost and in despair? Here are 10 ideas that I use, and continue to use when I’m feeling down and lost.

1.) Get in tune with your inner most wants and desires. Listen to your intuition. Mediate, journal, or do some yoga. Just do whatever you need to!

2.) Ask yourself where you are out of alignment. Are you doing things that don’t match up with your greater vision? Have you said “yes” to too many things that take you away from what you really want to be doing? Are you spending time doing things that really truly light you up and move you closer to where you want to be? If not, what can you change?

3.) Are you taking care of yourself? Are you giving yourself enough time to renew and de-stress? If your health is off or you are one big stress ball, you won’t be any good to yourself or anyone else!

4.) Pinpoint your stressors and then figure out how to eliminate them.

5.) Getaway. Whether this means taking a digital sabbatical or getting out in to nature. This is when I have my greatest breakthroughs. When you give yourself time and space to disconnect from the day-to-day over-stimulation we all experience, you will get reconnected with your needs and experience creative breakthroughs.

6.) Get active. I once brainstormed an entire business idea and model on a 7 mile run. So get up from that desk, get out of bed and get active. Do some yoga, dance, go for a run, hike, or do whatever else you love. I promise you it will get your brain moving.

7.) Make a list of all the things you want in life. No matter how big or small. Write it down.

8.) Try this creative free-writing prompt exercise: You stumble upon a book called “The Story of You.”  It’s a book all about your life. What does the book say about the life you have life up until this point and beyond? Look into the future, what would you want the someone reading this book, to read?

9.) Phone a friend! Connection and community make a world of difference. So call a friend, reach out to the people in your life, or join a new group.

10.) Start a dream journal. Record your dreams for a week or a month. How do they make you feel? Are there any themes? What is the relation to what’s happening in your life right now? How do you interpret them?

What is your life vision for yourself in the next 12 months and what are you going to do to reach those goals? I would love to hear from you! Leave a comment below or email me at shannon@lifeadventurista.com

The post Set Your Dreams On Fire appeared first on The Life Adventurista.

First up, Ashley Gwilliam. I met Ashley last year when I was just starting to build The Life Adventurista and needed some help finding my voice. Ashley just transformed her copywriting business into a new venture called Free Your Being, which I love! Obviously we have a lot in common and are both on a quest for more freedom.  So keep reading and get inspired to find your own voice, create a Being Brand, and start living a life full of freedom, whatever that means for you.

Tell us about Free Your Being.

Free Your Being is an online resource, permission slip and content branding boutique for purpose-driven entrepreneurs who hold a vision of bettering the world through their products and services.

The site also caters to unconventional individuals of all stripes who are passionate about experiencing greater freedom –– whether that means living a location-independent lifestyle, spending more time with loved ones or creatively expressing oneself in everyday life is dependent upon the individual.

Free Your Being offers articles and video interviews on being-based branding, human nature and unconventional living.

Why did you create Free Your Being?

I created Free Your Being because I couldn’t NOT create it! I was at a point in my life, personally and professionally, where I felt like I was no longer honoring myself.

Professionally, I had been working as a full-time, freelance copywriter for the past year. And I reached a point where I no longer felt I was serving my clients as best I could. Don’t get me wrong, I’m an excellent writer by trade (attended journalism school, studied online marketing with the gurus etc). But writing isn’t what I do best.

Ideating, counseling and drawing connections IS. After much self-reflection, I realized my well-being depended upon relying on these strengths more in my business. At the same time, I saw a lot of confusion in the entreprenurial community around creating a personality-based business online.

As in…
I know my personality should influence my business, but how does that work in practice?
It seems like everything’s already been said, how do I find MY voice?
What if my “personality” isn’t big enough?
What if my “story” isn’t dramatic enough?

It became glaringly obvious that I was a person who could help answer these questions. On a personal note, I was tired of “hiding.” I wanted to embark on a quest to become more of who I really am, and less of who I think I should be. I intuitively knew doing this would not only serve me, but it would serve my clients.

What is a Being Brand?

A Being Brand is one that connects with your prospects on an emotional level because it’s an extension of who you are. It’s a focused combination of your core viewpoints, your experiences and your unique preferences; all rolled into a consistent brand voice that connects magnetic for your ideal customers.

It doesn’t just say, “Here’s what we do…” It says, “Here’s who we (be), here’s what we do and here’s WHY we do it.”

Not only will this help your customers make more informed decisions about whether or not they want to work with you, it will help you make better decisions in general. The services you offer, the visual elements on your Website, the things you talk about –– all are easily filtered through the Being Brand.

Where do you live and what do you love about where you live?

Right now, I live in Austin, TX.

I love that it’s about 70 degrees in the middle of winter right now.
I love the overlapping artistic, entreprenurial and educational communities.
And I absolutely love that I have easy access to all the creature comforts I’ve grown accustomed to. Kombucha, green juice, yoga classes (Yep, I’m a total hippy).

I’m loving your 365 Days experiment and really enjoyed following your video challenge in January. It was so inspiring and got me thinking about doing more videos. What inspired you to start your self-imposed experiment?

I created 365 Days to Freedom –– a self-imposed experiment centered around the idea that freedom is a choice that must be made moment by moment, day by day. Each month of 2013, I’m engaging in a pre-determined activity that will challenge me to come out of my shell.

The site is my vessel for sharing my personal journey of “freeing my being,” while simultaneously helping my clients build powerful Being Brands.

What advice would you give someone new to the business world who is struggling to find their voice?

1. Unsubscribe from most newsletters, especially ones that strongly overlap with your services.
2. Commit to a daily meditation practice, or moment of silence (it doesn’t have to be long).
3. Commit to a regular timed-writing practice. The basic rule? Keep your hands moving. No stopping and no judgement allowed. It doesn’t have to make sense. And no one has to ever see it.
4. Get clear on your WHY and how it relates to your business.
5. Make time for doing the things you enjoy outside of your work.

Where can we find you?

You can find my virtual home at www.freeyourbeing.com. You can also find me on Twitter as @ashleygwilliam.

The post Inspiring Adventurista: Ashley Gwilliam appeared first on The Life Adventurista.

Yesterday was the Chinese New Year, which marked the Year of the Water Snake. As the snake sheds her skin she symbolizes great transformation, new beginnings, and re-birth.

This is the perfect time to think about…

The “old skin” you want to shed.
The changes you want to create in your life.
Who you want to become.

This year…..

Go within and seek answers.
Follow your intuition.
Shed the toxic things and people in your life.
Let your authentic self shine through.
Take a leap of faith to start living the life you want.
Let go of all that is holding you back in your life.
Change those negative scripts that keep you from living life to the fullest into positive ones.
Put your health first.
Learn a new skill.
Start something.
Work hard to achieve your goals.

Start now, move forward at a steady pace, seek out new opportunities, adapt, be optimistic and patient. Transformation takes time but if you do the work, it will happen.

So what areas of your life do you want to transform? For me this year is all bout transforming my fears and letting go of anxiety, and expanding my comfort zone. (Which funnily enough involves snakes.)

Write down what this year of transformation means for you and make a list of goals that will help you make those changes. Then make a commitment to yourself that you will create time each week to pursue your goals.

Gong Xi Fa Cai (translation: congratulations, may you be prosperous).

P.S. – If you are ready to create big change in your life and start living more adventurously, but need support, check out my Zero to Adventurista one-on-one sessions.

Image from Edmund Tse via Creative Commons license.

The post Your Year of Transformation appeared first on The Life Adventurista.

I can’t believe it’s already February 5th. The excitement of the New Year is now a distant memory and the realities of life have set in. During this time of year, it can be hard to stick to goals, and many resolutions were already ditched weeks ago. If you started this year off with big plans and goals full of life changes, it can be easy to lose sight of what you want, in favor of blaming everyday life busyness and that never ending to-do list.

The truth is, setting out to achieve those big goals and plans will never get easier. There will always be obstacles, whether that’s time, money, or resources. So if you’ve found yourself making excuses for not taking the action that is required to create those life changes you so deeply want, here are five things you can do to stay motivated as the year continues.

1. Tell a friend. I find I am more likely to stick to my goals and plans when I tell a friend what I’m up to. Better yet, build a support network with a few friends so you can motivate each other throughout the year.
2. Break your big goal into smaller, achievable action items. Whether your goal is to get in shape/lose weight, find a new job, move, travel, or start a business, think about how you can break that larger goal into smaller benchmarks. Then celebrate each time you reach one of your benchmark goals.
3. Remember your “why”. When you are tired, burned out, or feel overwhelmed, go back to your “why”.  Remind yourself of just what those goals and tasks are going to led you to. Create a screen saver of a picture or word on your computer that can serve as a reminder to get you motivated when you least feel like it.
4. Make the time. Life doesn’t slow down, so stop telling yourself you’ll get to it when you have more time. Create time for those things that will make your life better. Last year, when Eric and I were working to start our businesses and figuring out how to move abroad, we set aside time each week to work on research, contacting people, building websites, writing, and everything else that goes along with starting businesses and moving. There were some weeks where we could only devote 1-2 hours and others where we could devote the entire weekend to our side projects, but it all added up and made a big difference. So find the time each week, and put it in your calendar if you have to!
5. Treat yourself. When you feel overwhelmed and have absolutely no motivation, it’s time to indulge in some self care. Take a break from thinking about those big plans and let yourself relax and clear your mind.

It’s never too late to make the choice to actively work towards creating the life you want. Don’t look back at your life in 20 years and wish you had lived more adventurously when you had the chance. Start today so next year you ARE living the life you want.

If you are craving more adventure and freedom in your life but feel stuck and unsure how to move forward, sign up for a Zero to Adventurista Strategy Session.

The post Getting Motivated When You Have No Motivation appeared first on The Life Adventurista.

This guy is retracing the steps of human ancestors in a 21,000 mile walk from Ethiopia to Chile. So Inspiring!

If you have a blog or plan on starting a blog anytime soon, this post from Gala Darling on how to get organized and take your blog to the next level will help you. She’s running a whole series on blogging right now, which is filled with really useful info.

Another awesome post full of blogging advice and resources from Sarah at Yes and Yes: 7 (More) Posts To Read If You Take Your Blog Seriously.”

Planning an international trip soon or moving abroad? Here’s a list of resources for staying in touch with friends and family from Travels of Adam. 

I’m just now learning that there’s people out there housesitting full-time as a means to travel around the world. Totally want to figure this out. Think of all the money you could save by traveling this way! Here’s a great post from Will Work 4 Travel with a roundup of different sites to get you started.

I got connected to this lovely lady thanks to Twitter and love what she’s all about. Check Out Halley from Life of Something New and her post on spending fasts. If your trying to save $$ in order to fulfill your Adventurista dreams, you won’t want to miss her post. (It even comes with awesome printables to help you!)

If your applying for jobs right now, make sure to read this article, “3 Things That Will Get Your Resume Thrown In The Trash.”

Tired of applying for jobs or working in your current job? Read “7 Signs You’re Ready to Be Your Own Boss”.

Looking for your next great Adventure? Check out The New York Times’, “The 46 Place to Go in 2013″.

5 tips from Inc. for making sure your idea leaves the idea phase and makes it all the way to a business. 

And just for fun, watch this cute video of twin babies dancing to Gangnam Style followed by this Pep Talk from Kid President. If these two videos don’t leave feeling good, I don’t know what will!

Want more?

Get Love Notes from the Road, A FREE Monthly note full of life & biz tips to help live out your most adventurous dreams.

(Plus, be the first to get The Adventurista’s Guide to Taking Action on May 22nd!)

The post Adventures in Online Surfing appeared first on The Life Adventurista.

Photo from denise.weerke via flickr.

For a long time after I graduated from collage I found myself always wanting more.  After graduation, I found jobs I loved, climbed the career ladder in DC, and did work I was passionate about. But no matter what, I constantly found myself falling pray to my wanderlust dreams. I wanted to find a way to do the work I loved, see the world, and live wherever I wanted. I thought the answer was finding a job that took me overseas or had lots of travel involved. I went on countless interviews for jobs that fit the bill. I even interviewed with one place that would have brought me overseas. They put me through 11 interviews, told me I was their top choice in every single one, only to pass me by because someone on the board had a cousin who had a friend who had applied. It’s always about who you know, especially in Washington, DC.  I love DC, loved the job I ended up getting, and felt fulfilled by the work I was doing. But no matter how happy I was, I always ended up cloaked in a a deep wanderlust depression that I just couldn’t shake.

When Eric ended up on a photography/videography job in 2011 that brought him to Australia for a bit while I stayed in DC to work, I knew it was time to figure out how to change our lives in a way that matched our dreams. Initially we thought we would just teach English in SE Asia, while Eric pursued more travel photography work, and I figured out what I wanted to do. Our ideas and dreams quickly grew and expanded into a full on lifestyle change of traveling, running our businesses, and teaching English. I used to think you had to wait to find the perfect opportunity, then I realized you can create your own perfect opportunity.

Whether you’ve thought about breaking out of that 9-5 to start your own business, or you just dream of living in a place that’s independent from your job, there are countless ways to create more freedom in your life.

Here’s 21 ideas to inspire you to live outside the box:

1. Travel and teach English. You can teach private classes for more flexibility and sometimes more money (depending on your location) or teach at a school for more reliability. Usually schools want you to stay for at least a year, but you could always live in one place for a year and then move on. (This was our original plan.)
2. Figure out a way to make money off a skill that you have. Can you build websites? Are you an amazing graphic designer? Copywriter? What other skills do you have that someone would pay for?
3. Sell your jewelry, art, refurbished furniture, or other homemade products on Etsy. Create a following and build a network – start selling on your own website and seek out other places that can carry your products.
4. Start a mobile cafe that you can take with you across the U.S.
5. Market yourself as an expert in a field you are passionate/know a lot about – dog training, parenting, cooking, health/fitness, social media, yoga, branding, organizing… The sky is the limit. Position yourself as an expert, know your target market, be true to yourself and people will pay you for what you have to offer, hire you to speak at events, and seek out your knowledge.
6. Become a travel agent. You may think this is a dying field, but busy people who don’t want to plan their own travel still use travel agents.
7. Love organic farming or want something totally different? Sign up for WWOOF and WWOOF your way around the world.
8. Save up enough money for a year of travel. Figure out how travel on a small budget and trust that you will figure it out.
9. Are you great with kids? Become an au pair for a few years in the country of your choosing or travel during your time off.
10. Have an idea that needs some funding? Why not put it on Kickstarter or Indiegogo?
11. Photography your thing? Narrow in on your niche, find a way to set yourself apart from the rest of the crowd and get your name out there. Check out The Expeditioners as an example.
12. Fluent in another language? Become a translator. I met several translators in Istanbul and I also know people who do medical translating throughout Central America.
13. Become and Open Water Scuba Instructor.
14. Start a virtual assistant biz. Perfect for those that love the little details, getting people organized, and managing projects.
15. Talk to your boss about different possibilities of telecommuting or working from another place. You may find your boss is more open than you think.
16. Have a specialized skill and like to teach? Start an online class.
17. Freelancing.
18. If you really don’t want to start your own business, but you want to find a way to travel and work from other places, find a job that allows you to telecommute. More and more jobs provide telecommuting options these days.
19. Outdoor enthusiast? Become a ski instructor or lifeguard. Work in different places each season. Travel during your off time.
20. Work in the medical field? Become a traveling nurse/doctor/EMT or take a job in another country.
21. Do you already have a brick-and-mortar business that you feel tied to and want to keep? How can you find a way to keep your business and create more freedom? A little bit of creativity and innovation goes a long way.

This is just a small list of possibilities. Thanks to technology and the internet, anything can happen when you have passion and drive. It does take time, commitment, innovation, hard work, and patience. But when it comes down to living the life you want, it’s always worth it.

What ideas do you have? I’d love to hear them. Leave me a comment or send me an email at shannon@lifeadventurista.com.

If you have an idea and need a little bit of clarity/help brainstorming, sign up for my free 20 Minute Getaway. You’ll leave our session feeling rejuvenated. Plus have more clarity and motivation to start moving forward.

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