This article was last updated on January 17, 2015
Why? Because your twenties were made for travelling! If you’ve got the urge to travel, if you’ve got the itch inside of you that makes you want to explore the world, then find a way to settle it. Below are four of the biggest reasons why your twenties are the perfect time to travel.
4 Reasons Why You SHOULD Travel In Your Twenties
1. YOU’RE YOUNG, HEALTHY AND QUICK-TO-LEARN –
It goes without saying that while you are in your twenties you still tend to have the health and the energy levels that are carried over from your teenage years. Having only finished college/university a few years before, you are still in the habit of learning. Yet so many of us are in a huge rush to get a job and use these optimal years investing in our employers rather than investing in ourselves. Instead, take some time out to learn about yourself. Find a way to go see the world. Travel is a brilliant teacher and will help you learn more about yourself than school ever did. And besides, jobs will always be there but the sprightliness you have in your twenties won’t.
2. YOU’VE GOT NO HOUSE, KIDS OR CAREER YET
People are always in such a rush to the latest iPhone, iPad, MacBook and Smart TV. Society doesn’t help. It often reaffirms the fact that you haven’t “made it” until you have yourself a house, a career, kids and a spouse. Oh, and a car that is way more than you can afford but you need it to show off to your neighbours. Well if this is what it takes to “make it” in the world’s eyes, then perhaps we should start looking at things through a different set of eyes. Realise that you will never be able to measure your success in material things, and that you don’t have to measure your life up against anybody else’s. The measurement of a life well-lived is one that is authentically you. Travelling in your twenties can help you to discover that authenticity. Then you can spend the decades that follow honing it and becoming all that you can. Plus, it’s easier to pack up and move to Asia for six months when you don’t have the commitments that society rushes you to get.
3. YOU CAN SEE FOR YOURSELF THAT THE WORLD ISN’T AS SCARY AS IT SOUNDS
We live in a world where we have 24/7 news and media coverage. Not to mention the fact that social networks are perpetually active. People sit in front of screens for on average 8 hours a day, and there are some studies that predict that by 2015 we will be consuming 15.5 hours of media a day. Great right? We must be really clued up… WRONG! The news is full of negative stories – because they sell the best. Take a look for yourself. Browse through a news website today and count how many bits of good news you see on the homepage. My guess is less than you can count on one hand (and if I’m wrong, I’m dying to see it so please comment me the link). There’s no denying that there is bad news and cruelty out there, but the news we consume neglects to show that the bad is completely outweighed by the amount of good in the world. The planet is full of good people just like us who are striving to live a happy life. Travel helps you connect with these people, and see for yourself just how many incredible individuals and communities fill this world of ours. Then when you return home again perhaps you can see through the negative stories of the news (or better still, live without it).
4. YOU CAN DISCOVER WHO YOU REALLY ARE
Howard Thurman said: “Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is more people who have come alive.”
Travel gives you time out to discover what makes you come alive. Time to explore your talents, and learn what lights you up. It doesn’t matter if you are reading this at 18 or 81, if you’ve still got life left in you, I urge you to travel and find yourself.
Most importantly though, whether you decide to travel or not, never ever settle for a life that is anything less than you are capable of.
Photo credits: Mario Mancuso
