Why you should just take the day off and travel

Travel always seemed to be a precious highlight that would only happen every once and awhile; I would crave it, and then wait for it to arrive. I always thought that a lot of planning was necessary and that I was only allowed to take work or University off at certain times of the year. This is until I learned why it’s important to just take the day off and go.

If you’re not going to go now, then when?

I waited until I had at least a week or two to go so that I felt like my effort would be worth it. What ended up happening is that I would wait, and wait, and wait and a year would go by before my next trip. That’s when I started to get open about what traveling meant to me.

Some of the best adventures have been the ones that happened within a day.

You know those movies where it starts and finishes, usually involving a high school or a massive party, and all of a sudden you realize that what you watched happened over just one day? That’s how some of my favourite travels have occurred. I’ve been so in the moment in that one day that it felt timeless. The experience was fulfilling, adventurous, and life changing; all I needed to do was get In the car and drive a few hours with a friend.

Take the day off.

I’m not saying to do this often, but if you get an opportunity that you’re craving, but you feel limited because you have work or class, give yourself permission to let yourself off the hook for once. If you have an amount of days that you can take off work and are hoarding onto them, let one go for a day. I’m definitely not encouraging this if you have a test on, or something important happening at work, but when it feels like the pull to travel is something that your heart is craving and you have the opportunity to do so, don’t let your walls go up by using these things as an excuse. If you miss one class, you can get the notes from a friend and if you stay late at work one night you can make up what you missed. Things can be made up, experiences cannot.

Saying no to your limits is good for the soul.

Not only is saying yes to travel fulfilling in itself, saying no to your limits does more for your well being than you can ever imagine. You get a rebellious and freeing feeling where you no longer, if only for a day, see your limits as limits. You realize that they are limits because you believe that they are.

Thinking about two of my favourite road trips, I went on one of them while missing a class at University and the other I missed a day of work. Knowing that I let go of my limitations so that I could go on an adventure that I would love to go on made the trip that much more freeing. I felt empowered and adventurous. Knowing that you are making your adventures happen, regardless of what your current situation is, is freeing and creates more opportunities for fearless adventures.

Saying yes to adventure allows others to do the same.

When you say yes to adventure at work, it definitely creates an open environment where your co-workers feel like they can say yes to it as well. If you’re extremely open with your employer, you don’t even need to ‘chuck a sickie,’ you can be upfront and honest with them and ask them from a place of love if you can take the day off. The other week I had an opportunity come up to go on a road trip down south and every part of me wanted to go; my soul was literally lit with excitement. I chose to be honest with my boss and tell her that I had an opportunity to go on a road trip that I would absolutely love to experience. Although it was extremely last minute, by showing up with honesty and a fiery spark for going, she said yes.

This hasn’t been the only time in my office where employees have gone on adventures either. We have chosen to say yes to traveling and so that has created and encouraged a culture of experiencing something new. Honestly, when you say yes to doing something that you would love to be doing, it gives people around you the confidence and encouragement to do the same.

Fearlessly say yes.

Often times these opportunities come up and are very last minute. You have that urge or a friend tells you to hop in and go on a road trip, and every part of you wants to say yes. You then think about what obligations you have and weigh out if you can go or not. Truthfully ask yourself if you can be missing something, because more often than not you probably can. It takes courage to let go of the idea that you are limited, by allowing yourself to fearlessly say yes to going on an adventure that you would love to go on. The more you say yes to these types of experiences, the less you feel restricted and the more you feel adventurous.

Are you coming up with limitations as to why you can’t travel right now? Comment below on what might be coming up for you and ask yourself if there is a way that you can say yes to a new adventure in the upcoming weeks.