Stage 15: Grown
Stage 15: Grown
The Episode
Home is hopefully a wonderful place to grow. But it can keep us stagnant. Never challenge us for bigger things in life.
Travel has ways of challenging us and forcing us to grow in ways we couldn’t have anticipated. We see what we are good at and where we can improve and reveal to us what our full potential is.
But growth is not a singular moment- it is a series of moments, that build up over time- a gradual slope- like the ever wearing of wrinkles on a face, like the singular gray hair- like the singular leaf that turns orange before the rest.
This episode will explore the theme of change in a new place. Who were you before and how did travel transform you?
We Discuss
How travel inspires you to grow
How travel helps you grow up
What travel teaches you about yourself
Why it's important to challenge yourself
Why you should travel when you’re young
How to travel with your kids
Why you should travel with your kids when they are adults
Traveling with your kids as adults
How to face your fears while traveling
Why study abroad is amazing
Why study abroad is good for your development
Why we need to challenge ourselves
Why we never stop growing
Why travel helps us keep growing
Why we never get old when we travel
Featured Guests
Travelprenur
Growing up in Miami, Adrianna was surrounded by the Spanish influence and she wanted the gift to be bilingual. So in college, she declare a Spanish major. She was going to master this language. So when an opportunity came during her sophomore year of college to go to Spain for six weeks, it seemed like the perfect way to level up. She felt confident she wouldn’t get culture shock and would be able to speak fluently the moment she landed. It wasn’t until she was boots on the ground where the universe gave her the challenge she needed.
Bryan Berlin
When we travel in our youth, it embodies us to take more risks as an adult and have a more enriched life. But we all approach it in different ways. Some of us face our fears by bungee jumping over Macau Tower in china.
But, for others it's just getting on the plane. That is how Bryan Berlin, a NYC storyteller and host of the podcast Love Hurts felt the first time he went to London during his study abroad exchange. From the big things like talking to strangers, from the small things, like peeing in a different toilet, Bryan challenged himself day in and day out and slowly started stepping into a more confident person.
Jon Barr
the areas we need to grow into are expedited when we come up against them outside of our comfort zones. A growth spurt. This goes for the natural risk takers as well. Everyone endures the growing pains. Muscles stretch, brains expand, pants shrink. But it can be a satisfying pain, knowing that you are getting more comfortable in different situations. A raw pain that only comes trying new hobbies, exploring new cities, talking to more strangers. The kind of pain that leaves you smiling because you know you pushed yourself. And on the other side of that pain is joy. Knowing it was worth the struggle all along.
That is how Jon Barr felt when he jumped off the edge and plunged himself into a new career track. Since college, he had been steadily raising the bar when it came to his career starting in radio and transitioned into television. He was looking to level up. You can check out his youtube channel here.
I think that those who don’t travel are stunted in growth. They aren’t getting the right nutrients they need from the world. They are experientially deficient. And that isn’t to say that having a conventional life is wrong. It is absolutely what suits people. Having a fulfilling career, family, and community is vital to our sense of purpose. But traveling connects us to our larger humanity, taps into the oneness that we are undeniably linked to. It is vital we keep learning. It muffles our egos and boosts compassion. We make new discoveries and solve difficult problems. Learning is as necessary to our survival as clean air and bread. Some of us discover that in later years than others, like Palle Bo the creator of Radio Vagabond.
Palle worked in radio his whole adult life in a small town in Denmark. He liked it there. He raised a family and stayed close to his two daughters. But around the time when most people are looking to settle into retirement homes, Palle booked hostel rooms. His youngest daughter was moving out into her own place, so he had little tethering him to Denmark. He decided to sell everything he had and travel the world in his golden years.
Strangers Abroad is a travel podcast hosted by solo female traveler and storyteller, Adrien Behn. Strangers Abroad is ‘ This American Life’ for travel. Each show we bring you a theme and multiple perspectives on that theme. Each theme is a stage we experience when we travel and dissect it from every angle to make our listeners travel richer.