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Igniting Your Wanderlust

I’ve always felt like a traveler.

I’m not a traveler, but I’ve always felt like one. It wasn’t until recently with the freedom that my freelancing provides and the rapid growth of the Location Independent movement that I’ve really started to take traveling seriously. Not only is it something I’d like to do, it’s something I finally believe can be done.

In the last few weeks, especially since launching WSR and getting to connect with lots of great LIPs (Location Independent Professionals) like Lea Woodward and Cody McKibben and fellow aspiring LIPs like Sean Ogle, I’ve been researching destinations, having conversations and just really exploring the depths of my wanderlust. It’s grown from a vague item on a bucket list to an immediate and necessary passion.

During this exploration of my travel bug, I’ve been most affected by the videos I’ve watched, videos clearly depicting the kind of adventurous lifestyle I crave. What I’ve compiled in this post are, for me, the most compelling and inspiring videos for soon-to-be travelers. Enjoy!

The Longest Way

In this video, a man photographs himself on his nearly 5000km journey from Beijing to Germany. All the exotic and varied sights in the background nails the essence of what travel is to me, not to mention the epic Moses-style beard by the end.

Where the Hell is Matt?

You’ve probably seen this by now. Who hasn’t? Matt is a former video game developer who got sick of the uninspired and unoriginal games he was having to make. After quitting his job, he took an extended trip around the world and danced a goofy jig in all of his destinations. As weird or silly as it is, it really pulls out my inner traveler.

Cody McKibben Interview Via JetSetCitizen

John Bardos over at JetSetCitizen did an interview with Cody McKibben that I found informative and inspiring. This was the video that really got me thinking about location independence again, as Cody and I have similar stories and we both work with WordPress. Just a great conversation overall!

Most Beautiful Beaches

This video is my most obvious form of escapism. Watching this won’t give you any immediate actions, help you get money, plan your trip, or start your business. It’s just picture after picture of “I need to be there.” And the Jack Johnson soundtrack almost makes me feel like I’m there. Not only does this video make me want to travel, it actually has a calming effect in the here and now.

These are just a few of my favorites. Do you know of better videos? Let me know in the comments!

Update: Reader Suggested Videos

Photo by http://www.flickr.com/photos/jurvetson/ / CC BY 2.0

Related posts

  1. The Minimalist Road to Location Independence
  2. The Beginner’s Guide to Lifestyle Design
  3. Five Things Lifestyle Designers Should Be Thankful For Today
  4. How to Find Your Core in a Shell of Ambiguity
  5. Bullshit with Bullets


18 Responses to Igniting Your Wanderlust
  1. Technomadia
    August 12, 2009 | 7:06 am

    Awesome set of inspiring videos, for sure!

    We recently created on introducing folks to our full time technomadic LIP life that we'd love to draw your attention to – it covers how we met in the course of our own LIP pursuits, joined our journeys and designed our nomadic lives together..

    <object width="480" height="295"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/ILgWddqgoLI&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/ILgWddqgoLI&hl=en&fs=1&quot; type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="480" height="295" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object>

    In case the embed doesn't work.. here's a direct link:
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ILgWddqgoLI

    Best wishes as you take your wanderlust into reality! It's a fabulous lifestyle.

    • Cherie
    • jdbentley
      August 13, 2009 | 1:24 am

      Awesome video, Cherie. I'll be updating the post in a bit to include it. Also theres no an option to embed video in comments… just in case anyone else wants to do that.

  2. Cody McKibben
    August 12, 2009 | 7:12 am

    Thanks for sharing my interview with everyone JD! Glad you find it a little bit inspiring, that's why I'm here—to encourage others to go for it! :)

    If you like that video though, I'll bet you'd find my travel vids even more motivating. Check out heaven on earth—Railay beach in Krabi, Thailand, is my favorite place I've ever been: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PU8vmOJg4so

    Glad to be a co-conspirator in the rebellion against the stuffy status quo!

    • jdbentley
      August 13, 2009 | 1:26 am

      I loved the video. A hotel room like that for $18/night… and that view was so exotic. That's really inspiring! Can't wait to start traveling.

  3. Cody McKibben
    August 12, 2009 | 7:14 am

    Also, I keep seeing everyone is using Steve Jurvetson's CC photos from Flickr! What's going on? :P Steve is an awesome dude if you don't already follow him.

    • jdbentley
      August 13, 2009 | 1:27 am

      I didn't even notice who it was, I was just going by quality. He must have tons of great photos.

  4. John Bardos
    August 12, 2009 | 8:41 am

    Thanks for the link to my interview with Cody, J.D.!

    Life abroad is definitely possible and infinitely more rewarding. I hope we have a chance to meet up soon.

    • jdbentley
      August 13, 2009 | 1:27 am

      A meet up would be cool. Not sure when I'll be heading out, though. I'm just at the beginning of working all this out. It should be exciting!

  5. NomadicNeil
    August 12, 2009 | 2:06 pm

    So how long before you make your own video?

    • jdbentley
      August 13, 2009 | 1:28 am

      Soon I hope! I can't wait to have stories/photos/videos of my own to share. I'm hoping within the next 6 to 12 months.

  6. Sean
    August 12, 2009 | 3:45 pm

    You know its starting to get a little scary how similar our situations are…but aside from John's interview with Cody I haven't seen any of these videos! Very cool stuff, I especially like the most beautiful beaches one, as I know that wherever I end up first, there will be blue water and white sand…

    Good luck!

    • jdbentley
      August 13, 2009 | 1:30 am

      Yeah, I don't know if we were just conditioned to think of "breaking free" as "living on beautiful beaches" or what, but that's where my mind always goes first. And I'm not a big beach person! But the idea of waking up beside the ocean is an enticing one.

      Besides beaches, though, I think I'd be big on Europe. Dublin, London, Paris and Barcelona. I'm sure there are many places I'd love to check out, but those are at the top of the list.

  7. Dan
    August 12, 2009 | 4:59 pm

    I love it! I've been a "lurker" for so long, I've finally jumped on the bandwagon and started talking about how I'm living this lifestyle as well (our last episode was about flashpacking business people). WSR has been a great inspiration for me as well, thanks for the great articles.

    • jdbentley
      August 13, 2009 | 1:41 am

      It's always nice to see new readers (even more to see new commenters!) I'm glad WSR inspires people. I keep getting "fan mail" every day or two, which is really surreal. Needless to say, comments like this make my day.

      The production quality and content quality of your podcast is impressive! Maybe I'll have to do a top podcasts post!

  8. Robert
    August 12, 2009 | 9:41 pm

    Goodness, imagine releasing products and consulting or (insert online form of business) from Blue Lagoon in Turkey! I was nervous to read this post as I knew I'd catch the bug. I'm headed to the Dominican Republic next week and I'll just want to stay there…I've been taking some "practice" mini retirements lately. Next time you travel whether on vacation or escape or if you're the lucky few who already have some streams of income to actually not worry about the costs think from a what if I stayed here, generating income and living for a few months…totally changes the trip and opens your eyes!

    I also end up realizing I'd need to an already in place income stream or it's going to feel like you're already in the hole and need to find a way out when you get there. What do you think?

    • jdbentley
      August 13, 2009 | 1:32 am

      Yeah, I'm not location independent, yet, but I'm actually working on a steady income stream (WSR is part of the adventure).

      I bet the Dominican Republic is great. In 2004, I spent 8 days in Mexico and it absolutely changed who I was. I came back wanting to LIVE in Mexico. I'm sure everyone feels that way after any trip, but these ideas of living abroad never left me.

      Glad to see you here again Robert!

      • Levi
        August 14, 2009 | 7:24 am

        The Dominican Republic is, in fact, great.
        A++ Would Dominican Again.

  9. Dave
    August 16, 2009 | 5:41 pm

    You have a great site here. I see you have enjoyed Cody's thoughts. I went to college with him and he is a very intelligent person. Going to work my way around your site.

    Have a great day… Dave LifeExcursion