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My friends Mike and Alex are about to set off on an amazing adventure. They’ve sold their house, liquidated the majority of their possessions, and have converted a van into a home. Soon they’ll hit the road, and visit every National Park in the US (even Hawaii, though they won’t drive there). Recently, I shared their plans with a friend of mine, who remarked, “Man, don’t you wish you could do that?”
I thought about it for a moment, then confidently answered, “No, I don’t.”
Don’t misunderstand me, I think their plan is awesome. I think it will be an incredible experience, and I support their goal 100%. But it’s their goal, not mine. Clarissa and I have had long talks about the life we want to build, and even considered a life on the road at one point. As we unpacked our hopes and dreams, our goals and limitations, we eventually realized that while the romance of #VanLife is quite alluring, the reality is that we like having a home to which we can return. Knowing this, we not only plan accordingly, but we dream accordingly.
I hope you never read my posts or watch my videos and think, “I want his life.” Instead, I hope that you find little bits of inspiration to help shape your life into what you want it to be. None of us are exactly the same; we have our own hopes, dreams, fears, goals, and limits. We don’t all want the same stuff, and nor should we. It’s easy to look at social media and reach for the life others are living, but there’s no guarantee that someone else’s life is going to make you happy.
What are your hopes and dreams? Work on those. Whether you want to live in a van, build an off-grid cabin in the woods, or make your home in a swank downtown loft, you’re going to be a lot happier pursuing what you want, not what anyone else thinks you should. Some people are eager to be something they’re not, others are desperate to not be something that they are. I recommend accepting who and what you are, and striving to be the best version of yourself that you can be.
To do that, make sure that you’re working toward your own goals; you can’t be happy trying to build the life that your parents, friends, bosses, or teachers want for you. I believe that to be happy you have to chase your own dreams, even if other people think they’re silly, stupid, or crazy.
Incidentally, if you’d like to follow along as my friends embark on their awesome National Parks Van-Living adventure, check out their websites OneRelentlessLife.com and NotSoJuniorRanger.com.
You can also find them on Instagram here and here!
They’ve helped inspire me to follow my own dreams. I’ve no doubt that they can do the same for you.