A Manifesto for Joy Seekers (Why I am Ending My Trip Early)

Do you have a dream that keeps coming back to you? Something in your heart of hearts that if time, money and energy weren’t a factor you know you’d go for?

At what point do we decide to go for what we truly want, and risk the familiar for diving deep into the unknown?

Six months ago, I went for it! I set out to live out the biggest dream in my heart, to travel the world full-time for a full year, as I coached, spoke and wrote. But here I am, only six months into it, and already this experience has changed my entire perspective on everything, including inspiring a new direction. There’s been a massive shift within me, one that can only be described as a miracle.

So far this year, I’ve traveled solo to 18 countries and 30 cities, but while visiting all of these magnificent places, something surprising happened. I fell out of love with traveling.

At the start of my journey, my friend Amy Leigh Mercree visited me in Costa Rica, and she said, “I think you love traveling so much because it’s warp speed personal growth.” I said, absolutely, “It’s a deep dive into my heart and fast track to new awarenesses.”

As you can imagine with all the traveling I’ve been doing, there has been a lot of processing and learning. No other way can you learn so much about yourself so fast, as you are forced to function optimally outside of your comfort zone.

Experiencing new cultures is exciting, challenging and keeps us locked into consistent aha moments, but “Traveling” I’ve learned isn’t just moving from one place to another. It is the movement that happens in your heart. Genuine travel is what really happens on the inside of us: new perspectives, new understanding and awarenesses that lead to new outcomes and life direction.

But here’s the thing, you don’t have to be a world traveler to be a “Traveler.” We are all on a cosmic journey, traveling through our own life and time, as our souls are ever growing and learning more about who we are and what we want.

“To be a successful traveler means letting go of expectations, trusting the journey and letting love lead. It isn’t an outward journey at all, but 100 percent on the inside.“— Lou RichElle Andrade

In approaching our life like this, knowing that maximum growth happens when we live from the inside out, knowing that it’s a delicate dance we can live a life with more meaning. For me, the things I didn’t know I was hiding from for most of my life, faced me front and center. I thought traveling was my number one passion and it would make me happy. But on this journey . . .

I’ve learned that nothing outside of ourselves can bring us true, lasting joy. We are happy and joyful because we choose to be, not because of anything else.

Sorry to break this to you wanderlusters, but Travel can’t make you happy. However if we do it right, it will show us what will. For the majority of my trip, I haven’t actually been happy. In fact, over the past 6 months, I’ve been frustrated, stressed and challenged, emotionally, physically, and spiritually, but that is what I set out to embrace…the journey.

I wasn’t looking for happiness, I wanted to feel authentic joy. Because happiness isn’t the goal, that is fleeting, what I’ve been searching for and found is much deeper. I discovered a sense of purpose, connection, how to life a life with more meaning. And in learning what matter most to me I realize it is connecting with loved ones, family, friends, having a sense of community. Being part of something bigger than yourself, it’s about belonging.

I’ve been honoring my heart’s deepest desire and showing up more courageously in the world. I’ve been on a deep inward study of self and life as I explore humanity and cultures, I’ve learned some of the most extraordinary life lessons that never would have come to me if I ignored the dream and stayed home.

You see that’s the thing about following our heart. It gives us more clarity and direction. It helps us become who we are meant to be.

One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned is that:

When we change and grow, so do our dreams.

When we grow into the next level of us, our dreams do too, and often we outgrow them. We can’t force ourselves to be and do things that no longer feel good. I’ve been calling my journey the Joy Seeker Project and it’s been just that, a project into what it means to truly be alive. I’ve leaned what it means to be happy and find inner peace and real joy, and I am excited this will be my next book The Joy Seeker Journey.

So why am I sharing all this with you? When we set out to live our dreams, we become more of who we are supposed to be, but it isn’t always pretty, as it will be a layered experience. It may bring up all the things we need to look at. Growth requires us to go to the deepest corners of ourselves and crack open to expose the wounds beneath the surface. It can be uncomfortable, but it is liberating . . . for you no longer hide behind the fear or insecurities you once leaned on. You are living your authentic truth.

There is freedom in the release.

I had to let go of who I thought I was in order to become who I am meant to be. Let go of how you think it’s supposed to look, let go of your expectations, and let the journey unfold for your highest good.

Everything has an expiration date (even your dreams.)

I’ve been pretty open and public about my experience on Instagram and Facebook. But the thing about travel is, if you do it right, you really do the majority of traveling within. And what I’ve recognized is, my dream to travel full-time has an expiration date sooner than anticipated. When we change, our dreams will too. It’s important that we always honor the new direction vs. trying to make things work that are no longer meant to.

My traveling is no longer working in my life. For so many reason, I won’t get into here…rather than be specific about why, I want to share the big picture with you.

I’ve grown into a refreshed version of myself that has new priorities, new hopes and new dreams. I got to live this dream, I have seen it through to it’s natural completion. Although it isn’t necessarily what I thought it would be (a full year abroad), it is 100% what it needed to be.

I’ve had some major internal shifts, all for the good, but traveling full-time no longer has the same excitement it used to. I am burnt out on living out of a carry-on suitcase, and perhaps the most significant shift is, I no longer need to see the world in order to feel like I belong.

As wonderful and glamorous as traveling the world may seem, there are a lot of sacrifices that I no longer want to make. My next flight is not to some exotic location or new destination, but back home, to Portland, Oregon. My goal of traveling for 365 days straight has expired after six months, because I am giving myself full permission to do what feels right, to always honor my heart’s pull and be true to myself.

There are new things opening up for me, exciting opportunities and I want to stay connected to joy. This means we often change course.

The reason this choice feels so good is because I know I am being true to me. I am continuing to follow my heart and trust the unfolding of life. Thank you for being here on this journey. I hope you’ve enjoyed the travels this year. Travel will always be a passion of mine, but full-time living abroad is no longer a need. Now, I plan to take all of what I’ve learned into new teaching, videos, books and courses for you. Thank you for your continued love and support.

Here is my wish for you, fellow Joy Seekers