Travel – Karol Gajda

The Economics of Epic Excursions

Sometimes doing awesome stuff costs a lot of money. Sometimes you need to quit your bitchin’ and learn how to earn more.

Hotel Toiletries — Photo: I stayed in a lot of hotels on the Roller Coaster Tour. :)

This article will surprise some people and others will think nothing of it. There’s more to it than simply statistics about how much money I’ve spent on my excursions so I hope you’ll read all 1,500+ words.

I got a lot of hate from the peanut gallery when it came to the financial pit Roller Coaster Tour would be. I think a lot of people who commented about that either over-estimated it or live below the poverty line. And, fair enough, if you’re living below the poverty line the tour might as well have cost a million dollars.

I loosely budgeted $200/day ($6,000/month) for this excursion. Again, to a lot of people that sounds like a ridiculous sum of money. But how much does just living and staying put cost? A lot of people I know have monthly outlays of easily $5k/month. Mine is usually a lot less than that because when you’re living minimally it’s not extraordinarily expensive. Last year life cost me ~$3k/month. If I wanted to I could cut that down considerably, but I take a very loose approach to budgeting. The easiest way to put it is that I do what I want, but what I want is almost never very expensive.

I could have cut down the costs of the coaster tour considerably (especially in lodging and food costs), but my philosophy with the tour was similar to normal life.

I did what was:

a) comfortable

b) less stressful

I knew the tour would take an incredible toll on my body so I didn’t want to focus on saving a few dollars here and there in exchange for stressing myself out even more.

There are too many good books to read, people to meet, and thoughts to think to waste time on $10/hour tasks.

What I’m getting at is clipping coupons and spending hours upon hours of time to save a few bucks is not my idea of living. I have absolutely no issues with spending more money to save time.

Before I get into the details of the coaster tour costs, for reference and comparison let’s quickly go over a couple of past excursions:

Australia Excursion Costs

When I traveled through Australia/New Zealand for 100 days in 2009 it cost me almost exactly $10,000 ($100/day). This included all flights (I upgraded the long haul to Premium Economy) and other expenses (tours/side trips/etc).

This actually isn’t extravagant considering Australia is not cheap and I covered a lot of ground.

Australia looked like this: Sydney > Melbourne > Great Ocean Road > Adelaide > Alice Springs > Cairns > Daintree Rainforest > Brisbane > Sydney. And then I darted through 18 cities around the north and south islands of New Zealand.

Slow travel = cheaper travel. This was very rushed travel, which means it was more expensive.

Build A Guitar In India Excursion Costs

I spent a little over 2 months in India in 2010. 3 weeks of that was at a guitar workshop in Goa learning how to hand build guitars using virtually no power tools.

Building the guitar itself cost 55,000 Rupees. That was about $1,200 at the time. Renting a room at a guesthouse next to the guitar workshop was $13/day and I rented the room for 21 days. There were far cheaper places to stay in India, but I wanted to stay next to the guitar workshop in a nice guesthouse. I spent about $300 on food during those 3 weeks. That’s actually pretty difficult to do in India, but I eat a lot and ate out for almost every meal. My flight to India cost almost nothing ($60.20 in taxes) because I used free frequent flyer miles.

All told, that 3 week excursion cost less than $2,000.

Roller Coaster Tour Costs

I tracked every single penny I spent during the roller coaster tour (a link to my spreadsheet is below), because I knew I wanted to write this article. I did not include the 5 nights in Portland for World Domination Summit (June 2-7), since that was a separate business excursion and unrelated to the coaster tour.

To keep it simple I split up expenses into 5 categories:

Parks
Hotels
Gas
Food
Miscellaneous

#1: Hotels

Before I went on hiatus, I spent 43 nights on tour. Since I didn’t couch surf and rarely stayed with friends (I don’t know many people out west) my biggest cost was hotels. I spent $1,589.49 staying in hotels for an average lodging cost of $36.96 per night. (This average takes into account the nights I stayed for free with friends.) I only stayed in Motel 6 twice. For the most part I stayed in decent hotels (and sometimes even extraordinary hotels) by using Priceline. I routinely got great hotels for very cheap. In Denver, for example, I stayed for 2 nights at the Courtyard by Marriott in Downtown Denver for $51/night + taxes. The Expedia price for those same dates was $239/night + taxes.

The photo you see at the top of this post is my $1,589.49 bag of toiletries. :) I don’t use regular soap (I use Dr Bronner’s) and I haven’t used shampoo in over 2 years, so I collected the toiletries from my hotels because I thought it would be funny. It’s funny to me anyway!

#2: Gasoline

The next biggest cost was, as is probably expected, gasoline. I drove 9,949 miles for a grand total of $1,491.27 ($34.68/day) in petrol costs.

#3: Food

Coming in at $1,207.14 ($28.07/day) was food. I did my best to eat well, but it’s quite difficult on the road. Especially when you’re in the middle of nowhere and your options are Taco Bell or McDonald’s. If I never eat Taco Bell again it will be too soon. BTW, if you’re gonna go crappy fast food burritos then Taco John’s > Taco Bell. But I’m sick of Taco John’s as well. Whole Foods, veg*n restaurants, and Thai restaurants were my go-to as often as possible. (The black bean quinoa salad at Whole Foods is outstanding even if it does come it at a hefty $8.99 per pound.) My food costs include taking people out for meals. When I stayed with somebody I usually bought them at least one meal and often more.

#4: Miscellaneous

Coming in at #4 was Miscellaneous at $565.08. This included parking (very few parks have free parking), highway tolls, and other expenses like oil changes that don’t fall under any of the other categories. I’m actually kind of surprised I spent this much on miscellaneous stuff, but when parking is $10-$20 per park it adds up pretty quickly.

#5: Coaster Parks

I have a feeling a lot of people who followed my journey thought the roller coaster parks were going to be a significant chunk of change, but the parks came in last at $358.10. I spent $165 on a Platinum Pass from Cedar Fair, which included access to all their parks + free parking. I also bought a $75 Six Flags pass that got me into all their parks, but did not include parking. Truthfully, I probably could have gotten into all of these parks for free. A few of the Cedar Fair parks gave me free tickets because I didn’t realize they were Cedar Fair when I contacted them. Most parks didn’t cost me a dime and some parks I either couldn’t get ahold of, or they simply wouldn’t give me a free ticket. This was rare, but it happened.

Total living expenses from May 21 – July 6? $5,271.03

Check the whole day-by-day break down spreadsheet right here.

Is An Epic Excursion Unfathomable To You?

I know I’m going to get a lot of e-mails about this with a lot of excuses.

“You spent $5k on this?! I could never do that.”
“Uhm, I can’t afford to do stuff like this.”
You can surely imagine all of the lame excuses so I won’t continue.

Listen, if you’re reading this you have so much opportunity around you it’s sick. Opportunity is everywhere. You can choose to get off your ass and embrace it or you can sit on your ass and complain. That choice will always be yours.

A few weeks ago Pearson and I were at Six Flags Fiesta Texas talking about this very thing. If your goal is to make enough money to do some fun stuff and you’re not currently making that happen then you’re probably not even trying. Turn off the TV, put down the greaseball burger, and get to work.

In the illustrious words of Trick Trick: “Let’s work. You don’t work you don’t eat. I don’t wanna hear it’s hard in these streets.”

Quit Bitchin’ and Earn More Money

It all comes down to this. If all of these costs sound insane to you you probably have a scarcity mindset. Don’t worry, it happens to all of us. If you want to make epic excursions happen in your life it’s much more prudent to learn how to earn more money (<– study that link) than to save $3/day by clipping coupons.

That said, none of this has to be extraordinarily expensive.

Statistical break downs of epic excursions:

Shannon wrote a detailed breakdown of her one year round-the-world trip which came in at under $18k.
And Nora wrote about how to travel full-time for less than $14,000/year.
Trevor went on a massive bike tour of South America.
Chris and Cherie keep a monthly expense log. They’ve been traveling non-stop for 5+ years!

If you’ve done any epic excursions recently or in the past I’d love to see a breakdown of your own costs and I’ll add the link to this list. (Leave the link in the comments below.)

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The Insider’s Guide To Building A Road Bike and Going On Your First Long Distance Ride

My friend Jason breaks down the details of building your own road bike and doing a long distance ride …

Note: This is a guest article by my friend Jason. It’s not the normal type of article I have here, but I asked him for this specific article because I was interested in the information. If you’ll remember, I have plans to ride Route 66 by bike. I don’t know when that will happen, but it’s on my “fun things to do when I’m not already doing something fun” list. If you’re ever planning on doing a long distance bike trip you’ll get lots out of this information.

In May 2010, I completed my first solo long-distance bike trip. I rode from Chicago to Detroit over the span of 3 days, traveling just over 300 miles. When I first got the idea to do this, one of my goals was to build/assemble the bike I’d be riding. There were two reasons for this. One was to save a significant amount of money by not paying retail price for a bike that someone else put together in a bike shop. The other was so that if something needed to be fixed/adjusted along the way, I’d have the requisite knowledge to do so. When I was in my teens, I frequently worked on my BMX-style bike, replacing and upgrading parts as needed. That bike, however, only had one speed and as such I’d never worked on a bike with multiple gears, shifters, and derailleurs.

Having never done a ride of this proportion and not really knowing anyone who had, I spent a lot of time researching the equipment I’d need and just as importantly, where I could get this equipment for the lowest price possible. Everything I bought can be found on the internet but as I will explain, there is an advantage to getting some of this stuff in a store (even if it costs a few bucks more). I’ve also included some after-the-fact observations – things that I really want to stress to anyone attempting to ride 50+ miles in a day.

I just completed the same trip again this past weekend, and with only a few exceptions all of the equipment I describe below worked out well enough that I relied on it for both rides.

Of course, the right equipment can only get you so far. The information I provide here will get you off to a great start but it’s up to you to train effectively so that you are physically ready to attempt such a thing. How? It’s not rocket science. I trained for my first trip by starting off with short to medium distances of 30-40 miles and then adding another 10 miles or so each week until I was confident I could go 100 miles in a day and then wake up and do it all over again… and again.

I’d also suggest getting yourself as close to your ideal body weight (whatever that is) as you can by throwing out the junk food and eating a healthy diet. If the combination of a healthy diet and logging serious miles on a bike doesn’t make you shed the pounds, I don’t know what will. I didn’t alter my diet at all last year, but did so roughly one month before I started training this year and it worked wonders for my energy levels and stamina. What worked for me was Tim Ferriss’ The 4-Hour Body. Yes, I was skeptical at first but the results speak for themselves. I started at 180 pounds on March 6 and as I write this (May 16) I weigh 159. I’ve done no rigorous exercise over that span other than riding my bike 2-5 hours/day, 1-2 days a week. I’ve gained noticeably more muscle mass in my arms and legs throughout the training process, so that’s at least 25 pounds of fat gone in 2 months. Boom. Anyway…

Wheels

I bought my wheels from Bicycle Wheel Warehouse and would stick with these guys unless there is a specific brand/model you want and they don’t have it. They build wheels by hand and do a great job. From what I remember, their prices are pretty competitive. Some online retailers just put the spokes on there but don’t “true” up the wheel, so either you have to know what you are doing and adjust them yourself, or take your wheels to a bike shop and have them do the adjustment (for a price). I spent $190 on a set of Mavic Open Pros and I think they are pretty kick-ass. They came with Shimano Ultegra hubs which are compatible with the Shimano rear cassette I bought, and they were good to go right out of the box. You can configure spoke/stem/hub options on whatever you buy here, if you want to.

Frames/Misc Parts

I bought my frame, handlebars, and seat post from Bike Island. Their website looks somewhat questionable, but my order was delivered quickly and the shipping was/is free. I bought the cheapest frame they had in my size that also included the stem/fork/headset. Most are frame-only, so if you went that route you’d have to buy the rest of the parts I just mentioned separately. There are videos on YouTube that show you how to measure yourself for a frame, and you need to figure that out first. Selection at Bike Island is somewhat limited, but this place generally only carries quality components so that you don’t have to pick through a bunch of garbage to find something good.

Where I bought my crankset, brakes, rear derailer, and cassette…

I kind of get the impression that Jenson USA probably doesn’t have the best deals all the time, but for whatever reason when I was pricing stuff out last year they had great prices on previous-year SRAM components. It’s definitely worth giving them a look. My brakes and “drivetrain” are all SRAM. They are newer to the market than Shimano but from everything I’ve read the quality of their products is comparable. Even better, their prices are usually significantly cheaper than Shimano’s for equivalent-tier stuff. My components came from the ’08 and ’09 Rival series, which is the bottom of their three price tiers (Red > Force > Rival). I couldn’t be happier with what I have, so I can’t imagine why you’d need to upgrade unless you’re entering the Tour de France or something. I found places that sold the whole Rival set (brakes, crankset, levers, etc) as a bundle but as I was pricing things out, I found it to be cheaper to order the components separately. That may or may not still be the case.

Tons of parts, generally low prices

Nashbar’s selection can be a bit daunting, but they have pretty much everything you could ever need. I used this site mainly for odds and ends; things like brake lights, head lamps, extra cable, chains, tools, etc. I got my front derailleur here as well, since I already knew what model I wanted (’09 SRAM Rival) and they had the best price.

And now for some general advice…

Pedals

I’d recommend clipless pedals/shoes, though they aren’t a necessity. If you’re not familiar with them, clipless pedals use a locking mechanism to attach to the bottom of special cleated riding shoes. Since the foot is locked in place, clipless pedals basically allow a rider to pull up as well as push down on the pedals for more efficiency and power. I did last year’s ride on a set of cheap platform pedals with toe-clips and a pair of running shoes, but I’m sure it was more difficult as a result. I also had a numb big toe on my left foot for almost 2 weeks following the ride. Not good! Buy these in-store somewhere, or at least try some shoes on and figure out exactly what you want before ordering online.

Bike Computer

I bought a Planet Bike Protege 9.0 Wireless 9-Function Bike Computer. It tells you speed, temperature, distance, etc. A bike computer really doesn’t have to be anything fancy. I chose the wireless version because I didn’t want to have another wire cluttering things up on my handlebars, and it was only $5 more than its wired counterpart. Come to think of it, a bike computer is probably not even totally necessary but I like to know distances/current speed instantly without having to mess around with mapping software on my phone. It’s up to you. For $40 (or less), I think it’s totally worth it.

Lights

Headlamp: Get something that takes AAA or AA batteries and is bright. I got a 2-watt lamp, which I think is plenty: Planet Bike Blaze 2Watt LED Headlight It cost $50, which I know sounds totally crazy for what is basically a small flashlight. But when my cheap ($12) LED one kept running out of juice on US-12 at 10pm near New Buffalo, MI and I had to keep stopping in the dark to recharge it, I would’ve gladly paid $200 for the one I have now.
Tail Light: Just get something cheap. I got this one: Planet Bike Blinky 5 If you’re spending more than $15 for a tail light, you’re probably overpaying. Brightness isn’t as big of a deal as it is with a headlamp since it’s only there so people can see you, not so that you can see the road. Again, make sure it takes AA or AAA batteries!

Padded Bike Shorts

I personally wouldn’t take a 40+ mile trip without my padded bike shorts. Your ass may vary. The brand/style I have is water resistant and breathes really well. I am not a fan of the Spandex look, so the fact that these could pass for normal cargo shorts is a big plus in my book.

SmartWool Socks

These. An absolute necessity, as far as I’m concerned. They magically keep your feet dry and don’t bunch up like cotton socks do over time. They make different thicknesses; I’ve tried the Light and Ultra Light. I like Light the best. SmartWool socks are usually $10+/pair, but you’re crazy to do a 300+ mile ride without bringing 2-3 pairs. Especially if it rains. At all. I also bring Gold Bond powder just in case. Wet feet -> Blisters -> Misery. For you vegans reading this, I’m not sure if there are non-wool alternatives that perform as well as SmartWool. That would definitely be worth looking into, though, unless you plan on burning several thousand calories/day without breaking a sweat.

Water Storage

I have a small CamelBak, which I really like, but as long as you have some way of carrying at least a liter of water you should be fine. The water pouch in my pack is rated at 3L, but I think it’s actually closer to 2.5L. I found that I was consuming roughly 1L for every 35-45 miles. My CamelBak was also my clothes/supplies storage space but I plan on getting a rack this time around so I can shift the extra weight from my back to the bike’s frame.

Padded Cycling Gloves

Another absolute necessity. If you ride more than 40 miles or so without them, the palms of your hands WILL be destroyed regardless of what kind of handlebar grip tape you use. I got my gloves at REI. Try some on before buying. Most of the ones I tried on did not fit well. Look for plenty of padding at the heel of the hand, and preferably cut-off fingers so your hands don’t get too hot. Cut-off fingers also make you look meaner!

Avoid The “Gram Trap”

When shopping for bike components/frames you’ll see that prices vary wildly for things that seem functionally equivalent and get nearly identical reviews. This is usually due to weight (and brand, of course). The component manufacturers love to brag about how many grams something weighs. The fewer the grams the better, since less weight theoretically means you go faster. If you’re at your optimal body weight and are competing in races, by all means pay attention to grams. It will give you a slight competitive advantage. If you’re a normal person, like me, don’t worry about it. Carbon fiber is all the rage due to the fact that it weighs less than aluminum and is still reasonably strong. In practice, though, it’s not as big of an upgrade as the manufacturers would have you believe. For instance, the difference between the aluminum SRAM brake/shift levers I have (340g) and the following year’s carbon-fiber version (325g) is 15 grams. As far as I can tell, they are identical in every other way except, of course, price. You know what else weighs 15 grams? Six U.S. pennies. Yeah. Yet, my aluminum levers cost me less than half of what the carbon ones would have. And yes, I know older stuff is normally cheaper anyway but my point is that if you have the chance to go way cheaper at the cost of a few grams, go for it.

When shopping for this stuff online, it’s easy to get bogged down in details because you don’t have a lot else to go on without having the thing physically in front of you. My advice would be to pick a price you’re comfortable with, find products in that price range, and then search around bike review forums (there are a ton of them) for reviews from regular people who have those products. If the reviewer starts blabbing about grams, go onto the next one. Be more concerned about durability/ergonomics/ease of use and by the time you get it on your bike, you won’t know the difference anyway.

After all that, if you’re still concerned about weight, my advice is this: bust your ass and drop 5-10 pounds (if you have it to lose). That will offset all of the lighter upgrades you were planning to buy. Congratulations, you just saved hundreds of dollars!

REI

You can buy a lot of these accessories at REI. I signed up for their membership co-op. There is a membership fee and I don’t remember how much it is, but my first purchase of a CamelBak, shorts, a helmet, and some socks (at the new member discount) more than paid for the lifetime membership fee. They also pay out a dividend on past purchases. I don’t plan on buying enough stuff there to make it really matter, but the new member discount helped me save a couple bucks up front. Ultimately, you will probably be able to save a little money if you buy things like socks, gloves, shorts, etc. from the sites I mentioned previously as opposed to in-store (just like with any other type of product), but it’s nice to be able to try them on at one place and avoid the hassle of having to return things that don’t fit.

What Else?

Of course, there are plenty of things besides equipment to consider when attempting long-distance rides. If serious riding is something you’re interested in and you have questions about training/preparation, nutrition, road selection, etc., hit me up on Twitter: @sigsegfalt. I’d be more than happy to tell you what I’ve learned, and to hear about any cool trips you might have planned.

Ultra Light Packing List (Freezing Cold Weather Edition)

In which I update my ultra light packing list for below freezing temperatures …

Air O Swiss — It's not easy breathing water. :)

As you know I’m in Chicago right now. It’s Winter. And it’s very cold. So my ultra light packing list needed a bit of a revamp. Since I pack so little as it is my backpack is usually only 70-80% full. For Winter I think it’s nearing 100% full. That’s perfectly OK. A 32L backpack doesn’t allow for many frivolous things.

Actually, Nick from BecomingBold.com asked me last month if I had a tip for packing ultra light and I said something along the lines of: “You already have a tiny backpack, feel free to fill it all up.” :) (Nick and his girlfriend are each traveling with 28L backpacks!) You can’t exactly go overboard when you fit all your possessions in a backpack smaller than most children take to school.

Before we move on, if you haven’t already seen my previous packing lists here they are:

Travel Light, Travel Anywhere: The Ultimate Light Packing List

Updated Light Packing List (Or I’m No Longer An Ultra Light Traveler!)

Instead of listing every single item I’m traveling with assume that anything listed in the above lists I still have with me, unless it has been replaced. :)

13″ MacBook Air

I went all out and fully upgraded my Air. Including AppleCare the total cost was about $2k. I’m still unconvinced the Air is worth the $1,000 premium over a Windows computer. Maybe it’s just the learning curve, but I don’t feel like it’s an exceptional computer. It’s good and it gets the job done, but I haven’t been converted to the fanboy cult. Honestly, the only things that are measurably better are the bootup/shutdown which are blazingly fast.

Air O Swiss Ultrasonic Travel Humidifier

Winter air is dry. Especially when you factor in heating. My skin is incredibly dry as it is. Dry air compounds the problem. I had thought about getting a small humidifier and just then I read 4 Hour Body which mentions this Air O Swiss travel humidifier. I got it and I like it. Here’s my issue with humidifiers (in general, not just this one): I have no way to test how well they’re working. Obviously I’m putting water into the air. I can see it happening. But how much does it really affect the air quality? If you have any idea how I can test this I would love to hear it.

NeilMed NasaFlo Neti Pot

You already know how much I love the neti pot. I finally decided I need to travel with one. Good thing too because I seem to have developed a sinus condition over the past couple of days. :(

If you’ve never used a neti pot they are amazing. Even if you don’t have allergies or don’t have a sinus issue, once you breathe after using a neti you will feel like you were teleported into another world. For just $15 I can’t recommend one of these highly enough.

Thermos Nissan 12-Ounce Tea Tumbler with Infuser

I love tea. One of the luxuries I miss most when I’m traveling is drinking loose leaf tea. I can live without it, of course, but when I saw that Thermos made a container with a tea infuser I knew it would be mine. I planned on getting a small Thermos anyway because when you’re walking around in below freezing temperatures it’s nice to have a warm beverage. :)

I’d never owned a Thermos before and I’m quite impressed. It keeps beverages warm for a full day. In the morning what I do is brew a container of tea using this Thermos, then pour it into a cup. I brew another container and close it up. I drink the tea in the cup and when I leave the house I take my Thermos with me. I’ve got a hot beverage to accompany me on my “explore until your face feels like it’s frost bitten” walks.

Note: In an attempt to hydrate I have not been drinking caffeinated tea. Caffeine is a diuretic and may dry you out. I’ve been drinking lots of rooibos.

Bamboo Shirt

In an attempt to replace the travel shirts I’ve had to throw away (because they got worn out) I decided to try a bamboo shirt. It sounds sexy, no? Bamboo is a fairly easily renewable resource and supposedly does not hold odors. Sign me up.

Unfortunately, the shirt doesn’t deliver and I wouldn’t recommend it. It’s difficult to see in the photo, but the collar is stretched out which makes the shirt look like crap. That happened after the first washing. I don’t ring shirts out in the neck so as not to stretch out the collar, but it got stretched out anyway.

As for odor resistance? It’s pretty good in that regard.

Hemp Shirt

The hemp shirt faired a little bit better than the bamboo shirt as far as looking OK, but it’s only 55% hemp and 45% cotton. Which means it takes a long time to dry (it’s thicker) and it’s not as odor resistent as other travel shirts since cotton is the worst possible travel clothing material imaginable.

Old Winter Coat

Wait, wait, wait. Not old … vintage, right? :) I wouldn’t be surprised if this coat is over 20 years old. I “stole” it from my Dad when I was in Michigan last month. I will most likely donate it on my way out of Chicago.
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injinji Mini Crew Toesocks

I bought these to use with my Vibram Five Fingers because using Vibrams without socks stinks them up pretty quickly. I love how they feel and they fit perfectly with the Vibrams. Definitely recommended if you’re a Vibrams wearer. I also wear them with my normal shoes since I’m not using Vibrams in the Winter. :)

Not Pictured

I also stole a scarf from my Parents house. It’s just a scarf and I didn’t think it was worth photographing. :)

Travel Clothesline Comparison

When I was in Austin I created this video comparing 2 different travel clotheslines. As you will see I’m a fan of the Sea To Summit Clothesline, but the Rick Steves Clothesline has its place as well.

[If you’re reading via e-mail click here to watch the video.]

If you don’t remember, this is how I wash my clothes by hand anywhere in the world.

If you have any additional cold weather packing tips or questions about my packing list leave them below …

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While we’re on the subject of travel, Chris is opening up the Travel Hacking Cartel tomorrow. You get your first 14 days for $1 so it’s worth a look if you plan on doing any air travel within the next year. If you’ve read my Frequent Flyer Master Review you know I’ve learned a lot from Chris as far as travel hacking is concerned. I’ll see you on the inside …

Extraordinary Insights Volume 1

In which I answer dozens of your questions in 6,500 words …

Last month I opened up a Q&A where you had the option to anonymously ask me any question about anything you thought would help you and others. I received a lot of responses and this post is well over 6,000 words. Many of the questions were similar so I did my best to edit them into a single question and I also didn’t answer a few of the questions at all because they didn’t fall within the realm/spirit of what this is about.

Before we get to it, I would like to thank Roy Naim for formatting the questions for me into categories. :)

Let’s get to it …

Business / Blogging – 15 Questions

Knowing what you know now, if you had $1,000 to start your life of Ridiculously Extraordinary Freedom over, how would you allocate it?

This question could be taken a myriad of ways, but I’ll do my best.

Considering I started my first 6 figure business for less than $200 and this blog for less than $200 (as far as revenue, also a 6 figure business) I wouldn’t do much differently. We can always think about “I should have done this” or “I could have done that” or “I wish I did X this way” but none of that is particularly useful.

The simple procedure I’ve taken for everything that I’ve done successfully has been along the lines of:

Decide on a niche, even if it’s not particularly well defined.
Give that niche what it wants.

Is that too basic? Too pared down? No, it isn’t.

If you focus on giving people what they want then you will get what you want. There are no ifs, ands, or buts about it.

Which might lead to another question: “Well, what do people want?”

Health, wealth, and happiness.

In whatever niche you’re in this is what people are looking for.

Say you write a blog about fitness. What is your audience looking for? They probably want to lose weight and get fit so they feel good about themselves when they’re out and about in their daily lives. What does that mean? They want health and happiness.

It’s not complicated. Most people overcomplicate business and achieving success. That’s not to say that it’s necessarily easy to dominate or establish a foothold in your niche, but it is possible and the general process is not complicated.

How do you decide on particular niche markets? What filters do you use and how systematic can you make it for beginners?

Find the cross section of what you love and what people pay for. Again, it’s not complicated. Most of us have multiple interests. Take stock of those interests.

Which would you be happy to be involved with 5-10 years down the line?

That’s a good start. If you don’t see yourself in any particular market 5-10 years down the line then you’re not business focused, you’re money focused. That’s what day jobs are for.

Once you’ve envisioned one of your interests 5-10 years down the line, it will take a little research to see if it’s a viable market. In other words, can you make money?

To do that look for other blogs, books, eBooks, courses, seminars, webinars, and websites in the market. Is there anybody making money in your prospective market? If yes, good. Are there multiple people making money in your prospective market? If yes, great.

Are there not very many websites on your topic? It’s probably too small and it would behoove you to choose one of your other interests.

Do you use in-the-back stuff like keywords and backlinks to increase traffic? I know you use great content to secure followers and affiliate links to increase income, but how great a role do the less-visible elements play?

Backlinks that come naturally from other websites linking to me? Yes. Everything else? No.

My SEO sucks. How did you get good at it?

I don’t focus on SEO at all. Thesis Theme (the wordpress theme I use) is set up out-of-the-box to have great on-page SEO and 15% of my traffic comes from Google without focusing on Google whatsoever.

I’ve done absolutely nothing else. I don’t research keywords (although maybe I should). I don’t do article marketing (although maybe I should). I don’t spam with crappy article spinning (ugh, please never do this; if you don’t know what I’m referring to then all the better).

I’ve witnessed your site (and business, in general) grow from TALKING about being extraordinary, to truly BECOMING extraordinary. What were the most integral steps to making that happen?

I’m not entirely sure what this means, to be honest.

What I will say is nothing new though: give people what they want, be honest, show your true self (flaws and all), and people will connect with you.

The reason you see this advice repeated is because it works.

Another reason you see this advice repeated is because the general question is fairly common.

Successful people aren’t successful because of luck or necessarily even skill.

They’re successful because when they get advice (like give people what they want, be honest, show your true self) from someone who is successful they take action on it.

There are no secrets. No magic pills.

Napoleon Hill said (paraphrased): “If you can conceive and believe, you can achieve.”

What he left out was “Get off your ass and do something.”

I’m a bit overwhelmed with the mechanical aspects of starting my own website. Can you offer a little insight into what you use to run Ridiculously Extraordinary? Google Analytics? Themes? E-junkie? Feedburner? Widgets?

I have a very uncomplicated setup although if you’re just getting started then it will seem complicated.

Web host: BlueHost

Content Management System (CMS): WordPress (very quick install when you use BlueHost)

WordPress Theme: Thesis (I hung out with the creator Chris Pearson a couple times in Austin. He’s a really smart guy and I’m happy to support entrepreneurs who kick ass.)

Traffic analytics: Google Analytics

Shopping cart: E-junkie

Credit card processor: Paypal (usually) and Google Checkout (sparingly)

RSS subscriptions: Feedburner

E-mail course: Aweber (The #1 factor for your long term business success is having an e-mail list. Ignore this at your own peril.)

Image hosting: Amazon S3

Note on Amazon S3: I use Amazon S3 to host all the images and file downloads on my blog so that my web host is not overwhelmed when there are traffic spikes. When we did the Cyber Monday Only72.com sale we did almost 500GB of bandwidth in those 3 days. That would kill most web hosts. BlueHost held up just fine because we only used it to host the website, not all the large files. :)

WordPress Plugins:

– Akismet

– Amazon S3 For WordPress

– Contact Form 7

– Google XML Sitemaps

– MaxBlogPress Ping Optimizer

– PC Robots.txt

– Subscribe To Comments (highly recommended you use something like this)

– TweetMeme Retweet Button

– WordPress-Facebook-Like

– WordPress.com Stats (not very good and have considered scrapping this)

– WP Super Cache

I have quit my day job 4 months ago and am trying to make money online since. I have a vision to earn small amount of $500 – $1000 monthly – that is my ‘enough’ line. I intend to then share my knowledge to others because I believe everyone should know an easy way to make a basic living without much work. This is probably very hard question but anyway, what would you do to achieve my goal? Or is it utopia?

Unfortunately you did it backwards. The idea is that you start making money first, then you quit your job. It’s very rare that somebody can quit their job and then figure out how to make money for themselves. There is just too much pressure.

As far as your idea of sharing your knowledge about how to make a living without much work: it doesn’t exist. And it’s actually a trap a lot of people get into.

How many bloggers write about how to blog without having a successful blog of their own? How many bloggers write about how to make money online without making any money online for themselves? How many bloggers write about traveling the world and working from anywhere without actually knowing a thing about travel? Too many. Some, unfortunately, are successful and spread messages and theories that don’t work. Thankfully, most are not successful.

Don’t think about how you can make money showing people how to make money. Add value to other people’s lives and you will make money. That value will not come by showing somebody how to do something that you do not know how to do.

Regarding branding for a blog: Do you think it’s better for the domain name to be the author’s own name, or a word/phrase that relates to the niche the blog is about?

There are just too many great examples for me to say you can’t use your name.

ChrisGuillebeau.com and TylerTervooren.com being two of them.

That said, you’ll see a common thread amongst the bloggers who blog with their names as the domain: they all give their blogs a unique name.

Chris’s is The Art of Non-conformity.

Tyler’s is Advanced Riskology.

As long as you come up with a good hook, the small details don’t matter.

For me, the pivotal moment that brought me wholeheartedly into your camp was the You Are Not A Number post. You have a great capacity for being welcoming and connecting with your readers, and it’s very much appreciated. How do you keep up with all of that and still have time for all of your writing projects and the other things that are important to you? How can new bloggers learn to focus without getting sucked in to the blogosphere to the exclusion of all else?

It’s not an issue of having time or making time. It’s what I do, so the time is there. In other words, there is nothing to keep up with because it’s what I do.

The way you approach blogging and connecting is important. If you take it seriously you’ll make it happen.

As for not getting sucked into the blogosphere: don’t have more than 10 subscriptions in your RSS feed and don’t spend all your time pretending to connect with people on Twitter. These subscriptions and follows can change over time (i.e. remove one, add one, remove two, add one, remove one, add two, whatever). Simple. Do it or don’t.

How do you decide whether or not to write about other people, say friends and family, in your blog? Do you ask permission or change names? I realize that you don’t do it very often and that your blog is about your goal to help your ‘right people’ realize their personal definition of freedom, so other folks don’t show up very often in your posts. Even so, if you have an answer, I’d love to hear it.

I write about whatever I want to write about. I don’t worry about repercussions because any repercussions you might be imagining are in your head. Nothing truly bad will happen by being honest with yourself and those in your life. Will some relationships fizzle or strain? Maybe. But isn’t it better to live with a free conscience and let your friends/family know how you truly feel? If it does bother you just don’t write about people.

Is it realistic to build your own online business in three months with 5-figure income coming in at the end and quit 9-5 job?

No.

I have a product I am trying to sell but I’m having a hard time connecting with people in my industry through email. I try to come off friendly, offering value, in a short, personal email, but largely these emails go ignored. I know these individuals are pitched all the time and my low pressure friendly tactics don’t seem to be working. Do you typically build a friendship first or just try and get to the point? Is it really a friendship if your looking for business?

If you’re just looking for business, then no it’s not friendship. That doesn’t mean it can’t work, or that you won’t become friends, but it’s an uphill battle.

How do you get around it? Connect with people you’re a fan of. It doesn’t matter if they’re in your industry or not. Most of my friends are not in my industry. Most of the people I know online are only in my industry in a roundabout way because we’re bloggers and Internet entrepreneurs.

If you’re trying to sell someone on an initial contact then you’re not coming off as friendly or offering any value. You’re focused on what you can get not what you can give. Give first. Give what you think may be too much. You’ll get more than enough back.

To better set and track my goals of world domination, what is a vague/approximate number for “small army members” per annual dollar in revenue? For example, if you have 10K people who occasionally check out your site, 2K people who buy your cheaper stuff & click on affiliate links and 500 people who buy your flagship project, this produces an annual income of x number of dollars. (I’m shooting for a goal of $2k in income per month from my online business and wanting to know what milestones I need to set to accomplish this goal.)

This is literally impossible to answer in the way you’re thinking about it because every single business, without fail, is different and produces different metrics.

If you want $2k/month this is how it’s broken down:

If you have a $10 product you need to make 200 sales to make $2,000. If you need to make 200 sales and your conversion rate is 1% then you need 20,000 visitors.

If you have a $100 product you need to make 20 sales to make $2,000. If you need to make 20 sales and your conversion rate is 1% you need 2,000 visitors.

You have to look at the numbers specifically for your business and reverse engineer what you have to do to make the numbers work.

Is it a possibility that privatization of the internet, anti net neutrality legislation (or the government’s refusal to protect net neutrality in the US) will have a negative effect on Freedom Fighters who are trying to pursue an online freedom business lifestyle?

Do what you do, don’t worry about what could happen. Live for today, not for tomorrow. Nobody can take today away from you. If you’re worrying about tomorrow then they’ve already taken everything you will ever have.

I am new to the internet business world. I have decided to set up a team to move forward with some of my ideas. My question is, how do I best identify potential partners whom I can trust will be on topic with my vision? I do not have a lot of local access, my inner circle is not as savvy as I am, which is not saying much.

The first question I have to ask is, why do you need a team? Start small, start with just yourself, when you need to add someone to the team (you might not) then worry about it. At this point you just need to get started and ship something. You’ll know when a potential partner is a good fit based on how you feel and when you know exactly what you need them for.

How do you think the minimalist lifestyle and business model applies to those gifted in and drawn to the artisan crafts or fine arts?

Can you live a minimalist lifestyle and still produce artisan crafts? Yes. I’m assuming you’re asking since you’ll need a lot of gear to make certain crafts. Minimalism is about having exactly what you need and nothing more. It’s not about owning 100 things.

Follow up to the last question: Can you achieve freedom as a leather craftsman?

Yes, but it depends on your definition of freedom. Truthfully, only you can answer this question because you are in the fantastic position of defining your own freedom.

Personal Development – Fear, Habits, Passion – 8 Questions

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There are many great blogs out there talking about how to monetize your passion. My question is what about those of us who don’t really feel passionate about anything? I find that since I decided to stop “striving” for pointless achievements I feel lost in limbo. I “like” many things, but nothing I would call “passion.” On behalf of the passionless what is your opinion/experience with this?

That’s a great question. If you’re passionless it’s a symptom of something greater, like depression. I know what that’s like. I spent years in a seemingly endless pit of despair.

That said, to find your passion, a great place to start is with the things you like, but you don’t believe you’re passionate about. You may surprise yourself once you begin focusing on something.

It’s similar to the way I approach fitness and working out. Lots of people say they hate working out or they start a workout program and quit because they don’t like it. Fair enough, there is a lot not to like.

The key isn’t to force yourself into a workout program you don’t enjoy. The key is to keep searching until you find a workout that you do enjoy.

The same can be said for passion. Which of your “likes” can you see yourself working at 5-10 years from now?

How do I combat my fear of not being perfect or good enough and just get started doing and living extraordinarily?

Nobody is perfect. The fear holding you back is most likely fear of failure. But we already know failure doesn’t exist. Resistance, to use Steven Pressfield’s word, is also holding you back. But it holds all of us back. Know that every successful person in the world deals with the same issues as you. Sure, once somebody has a bit of success it begets more success, but that doesn’t mean that Resistance isn’t trying to keep us back. If there’s something you want to do sit down for 1 minute, just 60 seconds, and start doing it. Once you start you will build momentum. If that doesn’t work then you’re working on something you’re not at all interested in.

(If you’d like to know how to achieve perfection click here.)

I find myself wanting to just stay away, be alone with my own thoughts for fear that I may lose my uniqueness. This may sound weird but this is one of the reasons I don’t read a lot, unless is something specific I want to know about. With so much information out there, how do you keep your thoughts/ideas from being contaminated with those of other people?

Here’s the reality: nobody is truly unique. Every thought you have came from somewhere. Every thought I have has been influenced by someone or some thing. I welcome my thoughts being “contaminated” by other ideas. This is how we grow. I know what I believe, but I’m also open to change. In actuality, reading a lot will expand and reinforce many of your ideas. And it might even change some of them for the better. :)

When an individual finds someone who inspires them, it can be easy to fall into a “what would Karol do?” mindset, at least initially. You are great at shifting the focus from you and your ideas to us and our potential. Human beings are in general self-centered, and shifting the focus from inward reflection to outward desire to help others is so valuable. How did you learn how to do that, and how can we learn it, so as to help others with our particular gifts?

When I’m writing on my blog or other public writing it is usually directed to one person, or maybe a few people. That helps me remove focus from myself and shift it to you. It’s a very conscious process. And in that respect it’s very easy to learn. If you want to share your gifts with someone simply focus on them when you’re writing or speaking. Don’t think about helping the masses, think about helping one individual, or a few individuals with similar traits.

One of your big things is “it’s not a race.” What’s your best advice for new readers of RidEx and Freedom Fighters who desperately want to leave the rat race, and have a hard time pacing themselves and dealing with the concept of delayed gratification? How do they temper their urge to hurry, so as to get the most out of the valuable process of life changes without losing momentum?

I will share with you the truth: you have no choice. You can pace yourself and succeed or you can rush through things and virtually guarantee failure. Knowing this doesn’t necessarily make delaying gratification any easier, but at least you know the outcome of whatever you choose to do. As for momentum, if you’re working towards something that you feel in every fiber of your being then you won’t need motivation to keep it up.

Somebody once asked me why I’m an entrepreneur. It’s because I have no choice. I can’t work a 9 to 5. It’s not simply due to freedom or because I hate corporate structure or whatever else everybody says. I simply have no other choice because I am not a hire-able human being. Don’t give yourself any other choice. No backup plans. No “ehh, if X doesn’t work I can always do Y.” If you want something get it. It’s there for you to take. Opportunity is everywhere, but most people waste it because they’re too busy road raging, watching Dexter, and sucking down quarter pound grease-ball burgers from McDonald’s (hat tip to Denis Leary for that line).

Sometimes a seemingly random event can be the thing that tips one over the edge toward determination to live a more extraordinary life. It can be as simple as a line in a song or a conversation with a neighbor. What’s one of yours? What are some ways people can think constructively about them, and take the needed steps and do the work to expand on them?

Well, I don’t believe things happen for a reason. We just happen to live with a lot of coincidence. Which is great. We can still hone that and use it for the greater good. I get a lot of inspiration from music. A line I’ve been quoting for years now is from a Down song called “Never Try” and it goes like this: “Never try, either do it or don’t waste your time.” Any time I’m not sure about something or I feel a bit unmotivated that usually perks me up. Or it forces me to make the decision to quit what I’m doing because it’s not something I’m really interested in pursuing.

Actively pursuing these “random events” isn’t worth the time or effort so there’s nothing I can recommend as far as taking certain steps or expanding upon them. You need to put your success on your shoulders instead of randomness or coincidence and make things happen.

I seem to fall off the wagon at the 5 day mark when changing a new habit. Days 1-3 I’m full of enthusiasm, 4 and 5 I use willpower to make sure I’m doing what I’m supposed to, but then I forget that I’m supposed to be changing my behavior. Any advice on that?

There are various studies that say you need 21 or 28 or 30 days to form a new habit. To be honest with you, I don’t bother with looking at numbers like that very often. Every day is Day 1. If there is something you need to do, do it. If you make it to Day 4, stay in the moment and think of it as Day 1. If you miss a day, start at Day 1. No guilt. Changing yourself for the better is an imperfect process, it doesn’t happen overnight, and it’s not a race. Eventually momentum will take over and it will be easier. There’s a reason I write every day. It’s not necessarily for the practice or even because I enjoy it. Both of those things are true, but it’s because I’m constantly fighting momentum, Resistance. If I skip a day it’s pretty easy to start back up. If I skip 2 days it gets more difficult. If I skip 3 I might as well forget it.

As an example: this document was supposed to be completed about a month ago. Do you know what happened? I let Resistance win. I let momentum win. I skipped a day because I didn’t make the time (due to traveling or some other commitment). Then I skipped another day because “hey, what’s one more day?” Today (note: date of writing = January 11, 2011), a full 3 weeks after the last time I even looked at this document, I decided I’d work on it for just a few minutes. It’s now 2 hours later and I’m raging through it. I may not finish it today, but I’ve started the snowball effect. Tomorrow I’ll be much more likely to tackle more questions. In a few days this will be complete.

We all struggle with this. It’s important not to let guilt or shame or any other negative feelings stop you from achieving what you want to achieve.

How does one get over an injustice?

Injustice is a part of life. There is not much you can do to control outside forces. You can, however, control how you react. The best way to react is not to react. Let it be, let it pass. Move on.

Lifehack – 7 questions

How can you get affordable health insurance working for yourself?

I wrote about this here.

Don’t smoke, don’t drink a lot, exercise, be healthy. Then choose a plan with a high deductible and a Health Savings Account (HSA), which allows you to put money aside in a bank tax free to be used only for medical expenses.

When I first began buying my own health insurance it was about $50/month. 6 years later it’s $100/month. For absolutely no reason (besides corporate greed) since I very rarely go to the doctor. The health industry needs a drastic upheaval, but politicians are too weak to make positive change happen. The best thing you can do is not rely on shady politicians (in other words, every single politician; yes, even that one) or the backwards insurance industry. Get healthy. Use high deductible insurance as “catastrophe” insurance in case of an accident or something else major.

How do you move around and find affordable apartments / housing for 2 to 3 months in a foreign location? I mean, in a way that doesn’t just rely on the internet or craigslist.

Why the aversion to relying on the Internet? We live in an amazing time that makes our traveling lives immeasurably easier than just a few years ago.

I’ve found all of my apartments via the Internet, except in India where I found it in a guidebook. CouchSurfing.org, Craigslist.org (not my favorite, but it works), GumTree.com (where available; Europe, Asia, Australia), and Google searches for “short term apartment + [city]” will help you find what you need. In a pinch you can use something like AirBNB.com, but apartments there have been incredibly overpriced every time I’ve searched.

How can we as Freedom Fighters bridge the gaping holes in the education system so that future leaders and creators don’t fall through the cracks? I realize there are as many answers to this as there are people in the world, so this question is for everyone reading this. What do you think about it?

The educational system is horribly flawed. It is not there to create thought leaders, but to churn out numbers; cogs in the machine. What you can do is influence the younger generation through writing, speaking, and mentoring. You won’t reach everybody, but even if you only reach one youngster you will have changed someone’s world. The more often this happens the more amazing our future will become.

Please comment on travel and living from anywhere for a person who is sight impaired. Are accommodations for the disabled better or worse outside the USA?

Honestly I have no idea how well the world is accommodated to the sight impaired. That said, I’m sure there is lots of information out there if you ask around, specifically at organizations that you probably already have contacts with. Even though this is a horrible answer I’m hoping maybe somebody has more insight and will answer in the comments. :)

I’m not a travel virgin, but I’m getting ready to plan a couple of much bigger trips (1 solo across the country, and 1 overseas to Europe) and I was wondering how do you plan your trips?

Congrats on your upcoming voyages! I don’t plan much except where I’m flying into and possibly when I’m leaving. But even this depends on a lot of factors. For example, when I went to India last year it was to learn how to build a guitar. I knew I’d be there for at least those 3 weeks, but I planned on staying for approximately 3 months. I didn’t enjoy it very much so I left after 2 months and headed to Thailand. In Thailand I could only get a 30 day visitor on arrival visa and I didn’t want to keep doing border runs (I did one and it was a waste of a day), so I stayed for 40 days and went to Poland for 4 ½ months. If your trip is open-ended you should leave room for a lot of flexibility because you never know how you’ll feel about certain places.

Any advice for tackling sleep onset insomnia? The kind where your body is tired enough to fall asleep but your brain won’t shut off?

Interestingly, Tim Ferriss’s new book 4-Hour Body has a whole section on sleep onset insomnia. I used to have it as well. There are 2 things that helped me: I stopped being depressed and I started writing every day. I have one of those “won’t shut off” brains, but by consistently getting words out of my head and onto paper (or a computer) it has helped a lot.

What are your techniques for getting the basics of a new language down quickly? How do you adjust when you are in a new language situation? What successes have you had in language learning that can inspire others?

I don’t shoot for anything but the basics so there is no real strategy I use. There are a few things you should always learn: hello, thank you, please, goodbye, how much, where is the toilet. Once you’ve got that all down (it should take an hour or two) it’s all a matter of just getting out there and expanding as you see fit.

When I’m in a new language situation I use a lot of Traveler’s Sign Language along with the above words/phrases. TSL is universal and there’s no correct way to use it. Point and smile, point and smile. :)

I don’t think my language learning will ever inspire anybody. I took 2 years of Spanish in High School from a teacher who probably never left the United States and probably couldn’t hold a conversation in the language. I know approximately 27 Spanish words. As for Polish: I can speak fluently but that’s because I grew up with it and went back to Poland recently with the specific task of not sucking at speaking Polish anymore. I’ve always considered myself fluent, but it was always really slow and broken and awkward. It’s a lot better now, and I’m going to make regular trips back to Poland to keep me on my toes.

Personal – 11 Questions

How are you managing family relationships with the people that do not follow you around the world?

I have a small family and I haven’t lived near them in 7 years so I do what I’ve always done: phone or skype. I also visit at least once per year.

That said, as I recently wrote, relationships are the most difficult part of traveling.

How did you really feel after the Everything Matters post? And a couple of days after the whole TV discussion?

You’re assuming I felt differently than what I’ve previously expressed.

Those who got it, got it. Those who didn’t, didn’t. It’s really nothing more than that. I find it sad that people will defend their TV watching (TV is set up to keep you from reaching your dreams), but it doesn’t bother me because those are most likely not my right people. That said, my right people choose me, I don’t choose them. I might draw the line in the sand, but you choose which side you’d like to stand on. Or maybe you just say “fuck the line” altogether. :)

What do you regret? Or what are your thoughts on regret?

I don’t think about regrets. I do, however, think about “if I don’t do X then I’ll regret it.” In that way, I don’t create future regrets.

Do I have regrets? Sure, but it’s of no use thinking about them except to acknowledge that they were there. There is absolutely nothing you or I can do to change the past, so no sense in having any negative feelings (such as regret) about the past.

How do you take criticism or deal with criticism? How do you take it constructively and not let it get personal?

Great question with a fairly simple answer: I don’t read hater e-mails, comments or reviews. As soon as I get a comment or an e-mail that is hateful (it’s easy to spot) I delete it. I know the writer is sad or lonely or depressed and probably just needed to get something off their chest. They probably don’t feel any better after doing it and I’m sure not going to add fuel to the fire by responding or even reading. In other words, “fuck ’em.” ;)

I wasn’t always like this. I used to get really depressed with criticism until I realized it wasn’t a problem with me, it was a problem with them.

As an example, I was recently having a pleasant conversation with a cute girl at a bar. She said something insulting so I told her “you can go back to your friends now.” If you just read that it might make me sound like an asshole, but I just don’t have time to waste on personal attacks of any kind. You shouldn’t have time for them either. You can let certain people walk all over you or you can show them the door. The power is in your hands, not theirs. It’s your choice.

This also holds true if the criticism is coming from people close to you. You must stop associating with them. Avoid the unhappy and unlucky. Think you can’t do it? Read what Jennifer Gresham wrote in “Why I Fired My Father (And Maybe You Should Too)” about why she quit her relationship with her father.

You deserve positive, encouraging, inspiring, helpful people in your life. Don’t accept anything less.

In the Luxury of Less you mentioned that you had some depressive moments in your life back in the days. What has contributed to turning around this dark period of your life? When was the “click” moment that you felt that it was time to do something? Have some helped through this process or did you do all by yourself? What would you say to the ones that are living those hard moments right now?

My answer to this question changes every time I am asked. Mostly because it wasn’t any one thing. I knew I wasn’t going to kill myself because that was stupid to me, so I could either choose to be happy or choose to be depressed. Being depressed is no fun, being happy is fun. It was a simple choice when I boiled it down to its essence. If I had to pinpoint it then the “click” began when I started going out and meeting people through CouchSurfing. It was like “oh, wow, there are cool people out there who like me for me!” and we got along very well. In that way it was a group effort, but internally it was a solo effort.

If you’re living those hard moments right now I would say this:

1) Find something you love so much that you wouldn’t leave it by killing yourself. For me that was my cat Jessie, but it can be anything, even an inanimate object. Hell, even a TV show. :)

2) Get professional help. This was my mistake. If you’re on the brink right now, in the US you can call (800) 273-8255. We want you here.

3) Start slowly, but get out of your comfort zone. In Luxury of Less I talk about Solo Social Activities. Don’t be afraid to go out and do things that most people do in groups even if you don’t have a group to do them with. Learn to love spending time with yourself. An interesting thing happens when you do this: you’ll actually find people who love spending time with you as well.

Do you finish what you start?

Yes and no. Yes, if I want to. No, if I don’t. For example, if I’m reading a book and it hasn’t captivated me in the first 50 pages there is no way I will continue reading it. My time is too important to waste. If I’m working on a project that doesn’t seem to be going anywhere and I can see pushing through that dip isn’t worth it (sometimes it is worth pushing through the dip) then I quit.

So the question remains: how do you know if something is worth pushing through the dip? Well, Seth Godin wrote a whole book about this (The Dip), which I recommend you read. You intuitively know when you’re working on something that will change your world. And you also know when you’re working half-assed towards something. Either put your all into it or don’t bother. Otherwise you’re wasting your time and everybody else’s time as well.

One of the things that inspires me most about your lifestyle is the small number of possessions and clothing that you own/carry around with you. Which for me begs the question: what do you wear while you’re doing laundry?

Ha! Right now I have 4 shirts, 4 pairs of socks, and 4 underwear. So on Day 4 I do my laundry and I have clean stuff to wear on Day 5. When I wash my pants (not very often) I wear my shorts. It’s all very simple really. :)

I want to hear more about when you became vegan. What prompted the decision? Did you go vegetarian first? How old were you? What did/do your family and friends think?

What prompted the decision is knowing that I was ruining the world and myself by directly contributing to and supporting the torture and rape of animals simply so I could get fat and lazy at McDonald’s and Taco Bell and “that awesome local restaurant OMG!” I was first exposed to vegetarianism when I was 19 and dated a vegetarian. Since that time I began incorporating more vegetarian meals into my diet. I never liked cooking with meat so at home it wasn’t an issue. If I was out and about the raw meat was sight unseen so it was easier to deal with. Eventually, consciously thinking about what I was eating sickened me so much I couldn’t even do it when I was out at a restaurant. Yes, I went vegetarian first, for about 2 months. I was 27. My family/friends thought I was insane. Insanity is believing it’s OK to brutally kill (it’s never quick and painless, it is brutal, don’t fool yourself into believing otherwise) billions of living things when there are alternatives. I don’t expect most people to understand this because most people don’t live life on purpose. I’m actually working on something to inspire people to at least make the step to not eat animals 1 day every week. That’s so easy to do. While it may not have a massive impact, a small positive impact is better than no impact.

And because I get a followup question a lot: what about hunting? If you’re going to go out and kill your food in the wild (not canned hunts) like a conscious, sane, member of the ecosystem I don’t have an issue with that. If you’re human enough to kill/prepare/dress the meat (no cop outs, anybody can murder) like our ancestors then you deserve to eat it. Most people will never do this because it sickens them, and yet … ?

Do you meditate with a phrase? I like “May you be filled with loving kindness. May you be well. May you be peaceful and at ease. May you be happy.” I like this one a lot and it helps to center me. Do you have a phrase or mantra that helps you and could maybe help others?

I don’t meditate, but I hope for anybody who does they get something out of your mantra. :)

Did you find a way to deal with the scarcity mindset you described in this post and was it actively working towards the solution or just letting it go away?

Writing that post actually did the trick. :) In that way it was an active solution, but it was also realizing that every successful person deals with scarcity and resistance and tons of other mental blocks. It’s OK that you feel them. Let them be, let them pass, continue on your path.

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Whew! There we have it. Extraordinary Insights Volume 1. I enjoyed doing this and I hope you got a lot out of it. I’m thinking I will probably do something like this once or twice every year.

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One Compelling Reason To Change The World

You only need one compelling reason to make massive change in your life …

The title of this article might be a little bit misleading so let me clarify: if you want to do anything that’s important to you, something that will change your world, you need just one compelling reason.

As you may know I strongly dislike cold weather. I also strongly dislike constantly saying how much I dislike cold weather. :)

I’ve written many times that I refuse to travel to cold destinations (except to Michigan for the holidays) because there are a few lifetime’s worth of warm weather places to visit. Why waste my time in place that make me decidedly miserable? Doing something that makes one miserable is something only fools do. Unless …

Cold Weather and Compelling Reasons

Unless you have a compelling reason to visit your cold weather destination it will be an insurmountable (or miserable) hurdle. (Cold weather can be anything for you. Hot weather. Rainy weather. Rocky geography. A certain state. A particular restaurant. Etc. Etc. Etc.)

I’ve decided my next mission, from January 2 – March 11, will be in a very cold weather destination. It’s not even an “exotic” cold weather destination like Stockholm or Oslo or Antarctica.

Nope.

I’m heading to the land of the Magnificent Mile. The Field Museum. Millenium Park. Chicago Diner. Soldier Field. Navy Pier. The former Sears Tower. Monkey Bar Gym.

Monkey Bar Gym?

Yes, Monkey Bar Gym. For the purposes of this article: my compelling reason.

The specific compelling reason is vegan fitness bad ass Jon Hinds.

I first heard about Jon Hinds about 4 years ago when I purchased jump ropes from LifeLine USA, the company he runs with his father. If you look at my ultra light packing list you can see I travel with the LifeLine USA speed rope. When I learned Jon was vegan and that he did training with high level athletes I was immediately intrigued. I put “train with Jon Hinds in Madison, WI” on my things to do.

But Madison, WI?

My thoughts: “Why would I ever want to move to Madison? What’s in Madison? I don’t want to move back to the midwest. Nah, I’ll just put this off.”

We all put things off, no matter how much we lie to ourselves that we want to do something. The important thing I’ve learned is not to force it. I follow my heart and inspiration. I wasn’t ever in a proper frame of mind to drop everything and go to Madison to train with a vegan fitness trainer, no matter how well respected he was/is.

That is until my Brazil plans starting falling apart a bit. See, I originally planned on heading to Brazil for multiple reasons.

It’s warm. (Good, but not compelling reason.)
I’ve been wanting to visit the Amazon since I was in 3rd grade and my class did a month-long assignment on Brazil. (Good, but not compelling reason.)
I wanted to bike Route 66 in the US in 2011 and I needed a warm place to train. Curitiba, Brazil is on many lists as a very bike friendly city so I chose that. (Compelling reason!)

But when I knew I wouldn’t do the Route 66 trip in 2011 I had a feeling Brazil would fall apart. I just didn’t have a compelling reason to go there.

A List of Compelling Reasons (or How I Changed My World This Year)

Let’s break down the compelling reasons for me to visit every place I’ve visited this year.

Baga Beach, Goa, India

To learn how to build a guitar from scratch. I’ve been playing guitar for 16 years and had always wanted to learn how to build one.

Chiang Mai, Thailand

Consistently shows up in lists of the top vegetarian cities in the world. I needed to see what that meant with my own two eyes and my thousands of taste buds.

Wroclaw, Poland

I was born in Poland and wanted to experience the city my Parents grew up in as a real resident instead of just a passerby. I was also incredibly embarrassed by my lackluster Polish and wanted to learn the language better. (Success on both counts, I believe!)

Austin, TX

The cat I saved from certain death (with the help of 20+ vet visits and $2,000+ in fees! haha) after Hurricane Charley lives there. I missed her. :) Also, Austin is one of my favorite cities in the world, if not my definite favorite. Coincidence that I moved Jessie the cat from Orlando to Austin on an epic 19 hour car ride where she got out of the car in the middle of the night in the middle of Nowhere, Texas? Not really.

Metro Detroit, MI

Holidays + Family

Chicago, IL

I contacted Jon Hinds and asked him whether he is training people anywhere. I was fully ready to move to Madison and even began searching for apartments. But Jon replied that he’s moving to Chicago and opening a branch of the gym there. Boom! Next destination settled with compelling reason in place. I’ve already registered for the Jan 10 – March 10 60 Day Challenge and put down a deposit on a Gold Coast apartment.

Running Blind vs Tunnel Vision

When most people set goals they set empty goals devoid of emotion or experience. If you’ve read much of my work you know I don’t believe in specific goals. I believe in specific experiential goals. A specific goal is good and provides some direction. A specific experiential goal provides tunnel vision and a compelling reason.

Which of the following goals is better?

Goal 1: I will earn $250,000 this year.

Goal 2: I will earn $250,000 this year so I can indulge in my childhood dreams and become one of the first civilians to take a trip to space.

Goal 2 is immeasurably better. And while that might not be a compelling enough reason for you to earn $250,000 this year it’s much more tangible than “I want to earn $250,000 this year just because.”

I’m willing to bet that the very large majority of people who set specific (but not experiential) goals don’t ever reach them. This holds true for the people I personally know. The people I personally know also kick ass when they set specific experiential goals. An experience gives you something to work towards and it involves your emotions which are very powerful motivating factors.

What’s Your Compelling Reason?

Do you have something you want to accomplish? What’s your compelling reason? Without it you’re running blind and you’re setting yourself up for quitting or failure.

If you’d like, share your compelling reason(s) in the comments below.

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In Transit (A Day In The Life)

A day in the life of a technomad …

4:45am – Your alarm rings. After 4 hours of sleep you feel surprisingly alert. It’s transition day. Leaving the world you’ve known for 4 months behind and heading back to a world you’ve known your whole life. Emotions are a mixed bag of heartache and hope. But at this moment there is no time for dwelling. Your options are one: pack the rest of your few belongings, shower, eat a light breakfast, and hit the road within 45 minutes. 3 flights, 14 hours of airtime, and 19+ hours of total travel time are your future.

WRO – Airport #1; 7:15am: You say goodbye to your birthplace and what you’d like to consider your second home. It’s just a short 90 minute flight to your first transfer destination.

MUC – Airport #2; 9:00am: You approach Passport Control knowing full well you’ve overstayed your Schengen visa by 45 days. You select the biggest, meanest looking border police and get in line. You hand over your passport hoping for a quick passage. So why select an unfriendly looking guard as opposed to a friendly one? First, let’s face it, they all look unfriendly. Second, mean looking people never seem to be. You hope a combination of charm and acting ignorant of the situation will work in your favor. And you’re correct. After a short line of questioning, the confused border police gives you a don’t-let-it-happen-again wag of the finger and you’re allowed to pass with no fines or detainment. Much better than when you entered the Schengen zone in Helsinki and were unnecessarily questioned at length regarding your plans in Europe.

You remember this city and its airport fondly from a previous experience that might have had something to do with a shower. You smile and move on to your next mission: food. Hoping for falafel, a common sight in this country, you settle in for a small green salad as well as a fruit salad, ringing in at a whopping total of 9.40€. You quickly realize this is the most expensive meal you’ve eaten all year. The benefits of staying in lower cost countries like India, Thailand, and Poland.

Now that you’re fed it’s time to get to your gate. You walk up to the gate attendant at 11:00am, 45 minutes before flight departure, and ask if any exit row is available. Usually at this stage you’d be far too late. Since you weren’t able to use frequent flier miles to fly Business class for this particular trip due to varying factors, it’s worth a shot trying to get Exit row. You never know if you don’t ask.

“You’re in luck sir, an exit row seat just opened up as we were talking. Good timing.”

You respond with a big smile and a thank you, knowing full well there is no such thing as luck. No use getting into a philosophical discussion with the busy flight crew though. You take your freshly printed boarding pass, find an empty seat in the boarding area, toss on your headphones, and wait for the boarding announcements.

In the air: The long haul flight is comfortable but uneventful. Lufthansa is always a nice airline to fly and this time is no exception. The flight attendants are smiley, friendly, and make sure your vegan meal gets to your seat piping hot. You spend the flight watching bad movies, reading, writing, and fighting to stay awake so you don’t have to deal with a sleepless night.

CLT – Airport #3; 3:45pm: You enter the USA and head to border control. After a line of questioning the man says “you’d make a good intelligence officer” and passes you through. What does that mean? Is he saying you’re a good liar or maybe that you have a poker face? You decide not to overthink it because there are much more important matters at hand. It’s time for a black bean burrito, sure to be found at any airport in the US. After a long walk to the far corners of the airport you find your drug of choice and settle in for a 70 minute wait for flight #3, the final flight of the day.

DTW – Airport #4; 8:20pm: You know this airport well, having spent 22 years in this city, but with recent renovations at the terminal it all feels new. You’re greeted by family and hit the road for a short journey to your temporary two week home.

Home; 9:25pm: A sense of comfort comes over you as you enter your temporary home. It’s now almost 24 hours since that alarm thousands of miles, 4 airports, and 3 countries away. The day is a blur. It’s been an exhausting one, but the best days always are. Tomorrow, new adventures await.

Today’s last adventure? zzzzzzzzzzzz …

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Programming note: this coming Monday, October 4, 2010 at 10:00am Eastern I’m launching my new eBook The Luxury of Less in what is sure to be “The Largest Minimalist Book Sale In History!” What I mean is, I’ve put together a 3 day sale where for just 1 small price you can pick up virtually every ebook on minimalism (or at least written by a minimalist) on the market. There are 13 people involved in this sale (including myself). My first 24 hours of profits will be sent to Third World entrepreneurs via Kiva.org. I have a small goal: send $2,000. This isn’t an extravagant launch like How To Live Anywhere was, but you will get more information on Saturday and then again on Monday.

So please bear with me if this doesn’t interest you at all. I have something outstanding (if I do say so myself) planned for you next Thursday.

On Poland (Mostly Wrocław)

My time in Poland is almost over. Here are my thoughts …

An incredible change of pace from my normal articles, but since I’m leaving in 48 hours, and since this is the place of my birth, I thought it would be fitting to write a little about Poland. Specifically Wrocław, which is the capital of the Lower Silesian Voivodeship (think Province). Wrocław is in the south west of the country, close to both Czech Republic and Germany.

Phonetic English pronunciation of Wrocław: Vrots-wahf. 2 syllables.

Some preliminary details: I was born in Wrocław, Poland, but my family moved to the US 4 days shy of my first birthday. Prior to this current trip I visited Poland twice. Once in 1992 for 1 month and in 2005 for 2 weeks.

All told, that wasn’t very much exposure to the culture. I’ve now been here since 10 May, over 4 months. Although it would be delusional to consider myself anything other than a tourist in my own country, I do feel I’ve experienced a closer connection to the place and its people.

A few glaringly obvious observations between my first trip 18 years ago and this one: the “Western” (or Modern, or whatever you’d like to call it) influence is strong. I remember the first time I was back here it was like a completely different world. Obviously some of that may have been due to the fact that I was 11 and everywhere new seemed like a whole different world.

Today it doesn’t look like a completely different world. Almost anything I can find in the US, I can find here. (Except black beans. I literally bought every black bean I could find in the city. There weren’t many. My apologies to the other black bean lovers.)

It’s just little, superficial things I remember from my first trip. The first Pizza Hut. Or the only milk available having a layer of fat on top (gross, two times!). Now Pizza Hut is everywhere and you can find soy milk at every supermarket. I also remember people “looking” a lot healthier. That is, skinnier. Now, with KFC, McDonald’s, et al. running rampant across the city and the country, waistlines have expanded along with more economic prosperity. The former is sad, the latter is awesome. This may sound judgmental, and again, superficial, but it’s fact.

The People

Train Station People — Wrocław Głowny (main train station)

In general, the people I’ve interacted with have been exceedingly kind.

Something that caught me off guard:

Twice I’ve had a person tell me they don’t like Americans. (In Sydney, Australia I had someone tell me I should apologize for my country after they found out I was from the US. Hate, unfortunately, is universal.) On two different occasions a person stopped talking to me (we were talking in Polish) after they found out I was born here, but grew up in the US. This type of stuff doesn’t affect me. It’s obviously a personal problem exclusive to a select few people. And yes, I could paint a rosy picture that this stuff doesn’t happen, but it does, so no sense in hiding the truth. My only hope is that these types of people continue at the lower rungs of society as opposed to becoming leaders. When hate and leadership combine, well, we have far too many examples to show what can happen.

A few months ago I was asked what I think of the people here. Specifically, “do you find them to be closed off?” It’s a difficult question to answer, because I find most people are closed off. That’s not based on region, it’s based on the human condition. While we’re definitely social creatures, we also stick to our own.

The fact that I did 90% of my socializing through CouchSurfing means I was exposed to an open, welcoming group of people on a regular basis.

Usually when someone would find out I came back here to relearn the language and experience my birthplace I would get nothing but respect. And many times, surprise: “Why would you come back? Nobody comes back after they leave.”

For every old man who tried to push me off my bike, I had 20 positive interactions with friendly people.

English Language

WhatBetterTimeThanNow — What Better Time Than Now? (mural on Wyspa Słodowa)

English speaking is still in its infancy here. You’ll find that most younger people speak English, because in post-communist Poland they commonly teach English (and German) as second languages in school. If you interact with someone who grew up in, or went to school during, the communist era then English is much less common or completely non-existent.

Obviously this didn’t affect me because I didn’t speak English unless I was interacting with someone who didn’t speak Polish.

I feel like the lack of English makes visiting a place more fun. For example, most of my interactions in Thailand were in “Traveler’s Sign Language” because my Thai was limited to approximately 5 phrases. It’s a fun challenge.

I wouldn’t worry about the language barrier. Come visit! You’ll figure it out.

The City of Wrocław

Odra Katedra — Odra River with the Katedra in the background.

I’m completely biased, but I love this city. I love that it’s big (~630,000 people), but has a small feel to it.

I love that there are bike lanes everywhere.

I rode my bike through these tunnels near Most (Bridge) Grunwaldzki almost daily.

I love that there are massive parks throughout the city.

I love that the public transportation is safe and generally efficient. (Even though I used it less than 10 times since I rode my bike everywhere.)

I love that it’s just touristy enough, but not overrun with tourists (like Kraków, for example).

Rynek (Market Square) in the distance, straight ahead!

Wrocław is a very artsy city, which I also love. All over the city you will find art installations, some of them without explanation. The city is currently competing to be the European Capital of Culture for 2016 (Edit: they won!). More info here: http://www.wro2016.pl/en/

HistoricalArtInstallation — Corner of Świdnicka and Piłsudskiego

Statue Of No Liberty — Not sure what to call this: Freedom? ("Statue of Liberty" made of locks, swallowing the key.)

The Country

Poland is in transition. It’s a member of the European Union (since 2004), and with that comes a lot of change. It is expected the country will adopt the Euro as its currency within 2-3 years, but a lot of people are saying it won’t happen so soon. I obviously can’t speculate. [Edit: This was written in 2010. It’s now 2012 and Poland is still on the Złoty.)

It seems the whole country is under construction. For example, train stations across the country are currently being renovated. The whole time I’ve been in Wrocław, the main train station has been under construction. It’s a massive complex and the first time my family visited Poland I distinctly remember taking the train from Berlin > Wrocław and being a little bit in awe of all the activity going on there.

I can’t speak too much else of the country as a whole, since I spent the majority of my time in Wrocław. What I can state is that I feel a general sense of prosperity here. Although the per capita GDP is currently just over $11k USD, the economy has been growing steadily in the post-communist era.

Should You Visit Poland?

Yes. Specifically, come to Wrocław. :) Most foreigners I talk to don’t end up here on purpose, but every single one of them are happy they stumbled upon the city. I’ll be here again in 2012 for EuroCup2012. Let’s hang out?

What Does It Mean To Be Cultured?

Does traveling the world automatically make you cultured?

Culture Is Not A Crime — Buying a very closed system Apple computer and putting a Creative Commons sticker on it is culture? Hmm...

“It is not part of a true culture to tame tigers, any more than it is to make sheep ferocious.” – Henry David Thoreau

If I met you on the street (or at BlogWorld, see you there?) and asked you “What does it mean to be cultured?” how would you respond?

Rabah tweeted that I’m cultured because of my wide and varied musical tastes. I know he was just joking, but it got me thinking.

Is that culture? Being into artists like Death, In Flames, Fiona Apple, Regina Spektor, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Trick Daddy, Merle Haggard, Lady Gaga and others?

I don’t fully agree with that.

It’s a topic that comes up a lot with travelers. Like you’re automatically cultured if you’re a traveler. Or if you’ve been to a lot of countries you’re more cultured than someone who’s been to less. Well, that’s just not true. Because I believe if someone is cultured they’re not prejudice or racist. And let’s just say I’ve run into lots of close-mindedness over the past year amongst very well traveled individuals.

So, what then? Is there a good definition for a cultured individual?

According to Dictionary.com it means enlightened; refined. As most text-book definitions go, that’s pretty meaningless.

I know what cultured doesn’t mean to me.

If I hear someone say “I hate [insert style of music/art/books/etc]” I feel like that’s someone who’s not cultured. I understand not liking a particular artist, piece of art, or thing, but not liking a whole genre or group is impossible to me.

Personal example: I don’t like reading fiction, but I give it a shot regularly. Lo and behold, a few years ago (after a recommendation) I read The Alchemist and I’ve been hooked on Paulo Coelho books since. I give other fiction books a try if they come highly recommended as well even if, on the whole, I dislike fiction.

Another example: I used to say I hated country music. It’s true, I hated what I had heard up to that point. Then somehow, some way, I heard Merle Haggard. Now I can say I love country music, even if it is just Merle Haggard at this time. :)

So am I saying I’m cultured? Sometimes yes, sometimes no. I curse a lot and I wear the same clothes almost every day. Do cultured people curse? Do cultured people wear incredibly plain, not particularly nice-looking, clothes? Or maybe cultured people only curse when the public is not watching? And maybe being cultured means you wear nice clothes in public, but in private it’s sweats and Ts? You know, put on a facade.

Mostly, I’m saying I’m ignorant of a lot of things and open to a lot of things.

What’s My Definition of Cultured?

Respect what you’re ignorant of.

If we all followed that rule we’d live in a much happier place.

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Note: I’m on a train right now. (The magic of WordPress scheduling!) I’m not sure when I’ll get back online so comment moderation might be slow. But please do leave a comment if you have something to say and we’ll chat when I can. :) Also, no Sweet Saturday update this weekend. It was always meant to be occasional, but we went 18 straight weeks! :)

Stress Free Vegan Travel (or How To Stay Sane While Traveling On A Vegan Diet)

Many people have asked me how I travel on a vegan diet. Here is my answer …

TasteFromHeavenCookingClass01 — I made all of this vegan food in Chiang Mai, Thailand!

How do you piss off vegans the world over and maybe piss off non-vegans as well?

By writing what I’m about to write. ;)

Traveling on a vegan diet isn’t necessarily difficult, but it is more challenging than willy-nilly eating anything and everything in sight.

My veganism is out of respect for animals. A lot of my ideas on veganism are rooted in Buddhism. I am not, however, anywhere near a Buddhist. I am simply a fan of some of the philosophy.

An Overview (Paraphrased from the book Monk Chat, published by Wat Suan Dok, Chiang Mai, Thailand)

Monks must abstain from killing living things. Therefore, monks are vegan. Technically. There is a loophole.

Every morning they must go on their alms round. Which is a way for laypeople (Buddhists who are not monks) to make merit (Tam Boon). As the monks make their alms round, laypeople give them food. Monks are not allowed to refuse any food, whether it has animal ingredients or not.

And that’s the loophole. If the people who are making merit offer food with animals, the monk has to accept it. :(

There are, however, 10 kinds of meat a monk may not eat under any circumstances: human, elephant, horse, dog, serpent, lion, bear, feline tigris, leopard, or yellow tiger. Do not ask me why, as I do not know.

Monks follow the idea of “eat to live, not live to eat.” Most of Western society lives to eat, hence all the obesity and heart disease. We should eat for nourishment, as fuel for our incredible bodies, as opposed to simply for enjoyment. Food is for survival.

My Interpretation

It all boils down to respect. A monk cannot disrespect the layperson by refusing their food. And so, he must eat the food, whatever it happens to be.

I take this same stance. If I order food that is supposed to be vegan and it arrives un-veganized I have only 2 options.

1) Find someone who will eat it and order new food.

2) Eat it myself if I can’t find someone to eat it.

Under no circumstances may I throw the food away (by sending it back). An animal has provided that food with their life and I won’t disrespect it like that.

Fortunately, I have yet to come across a situation where I have been accidentally given meat. I’m still unsure how I will react in that situation, but I have a feeling I will not have a problem finding someone to eat the food.

Yes, I have eaten dairy products since going vegan. And I have absolutely no problems calling myself a vegan. I don’t purposefully buy non-vegan food and I don’t prepare non-vegan food when I’m eating at home.

When I was in Berlin recently I ordered a cheese-less pizza. Unfortunately it arrived with cheese and enough garlic to kill a man. Not a single person at our table wanted the pizza due to the overpowering smell of garlic. I ate it. Throwing it away would be extraordinarily disrespectful. Not only to the animal who was mistreated and eventually died to provide that cheese, but to anybody who has ever gone hungry (billions of people every day).

I submit that if you’re a vegan due to compassion for animals that you should follow this same path.

Think about it, which of the following is more compassionate?

1) Eating cheese that you didn’t order. The animal you didn’t want to die for you has been given to you to eat. If you eat it, at least it didn’t die for absolutely nothing.

2) Throwing away the cheese you didn’t order. The animal you didn’t want to die for you has been given to you to eat. If you don’t eat it, you’re pissing on its life. It died for nothing. And it will be your fault that it died for nothing. You do not have a worthy argument otherwise. (Except lactose intolerance, which I definitely understand.)

It’s an obvious choice if you truly are compassionate.

Stress Free Living

Stress kills. Stop it. ;)

A couple of years ago a friend of mine said, “Karol, you have the most stress free life out of anybody I know.”

At the time I laughed because that wasn’t true at all. In fact, it was quite opposite.

These days, however, most of my choices boil down to whatever is least stressful and I probably do have the least stressful life of anybody I know.

It is less stressful to eat a bit of dairy I didn’t order than to whine and complain that “the stupid chef (or cashier or line cook) is a god damned idiot.” They’re not idiots. They’re human. We are amazingly imperfect creatures and we make mistakes.

Eating vegan, in and of itself, helps release lots of stress. Not only on my mind, but on my body. Animal products are incredibly difficult for our bodies to digest. Especially dairy, which is meant for calves, not grown humans. From a health standpoint dairy is just nasty, no ifs, ands, or buts about it.

Preaching Veganism

I don’t preach. Yes, I do want you to eat a vegan diet. Not vegetarian. Vegan. But I don’t care if you’re an omnivore. I will date you (err, if you’re female, haha), I will be friends with you, and I will probably even pay for dinner if we go out and you order a meat dish. It’s not my place to force my choices upon you.

There are many arguments against veganism and every single one is unfounded. I won’t go into any of them here. I just ask that you do a lot of research if you really want the truth. Preferably research that’s not funded by the beef or dairy industries, which will be biased.

It sucks when somebody comments on my blog, e-mails me, or discusses in person their misinformed ideas about the meat and dairy industries. But I don’t correct them. I’m not interested in arguments (Life Lesson #8). I simply ask them to research what they’re saying. And so, if you comment below with misinformed arguments you should save your time because they will not be accepted.

How To Make Vegan Travel Easy

Now that we’ve determined that if there is a mistake made you will not disrespect the animal, let’s get into the details of how to actually eat a vegan diet while traveling to unknown lands where you may not speak the language. It’s actually pretty darn easy to eat vegan anywhere in the world!

1) Eat lots of fruit.

Fruit is available and plentiful everywhere. And, of course, it’s vegan and incredibly nourishing. ;) While eating only fruit (Fruitarian) would not work well for me, I have gone a full day eating only fruit on at least 1 occasion. Not sustainable (for me) for the long haul, but one day? Sure, I can handle that.

I eat a lot of fruit anyway.

In India I ate ~20 lady finger bananas per day. These are very small bananas, maybe the equivalent of 6 or 7 regular bananas. In addition to that I ate lots of whatever other fruit was available. Fuji apples, grapes, strawberries, and papaya were plentiful. And, of course, my daily fresh coconut for 20 Rupees. :)

Fruit is an important part of our diet and most of us don’t get enough. I definitely didn’t until I started eating vegan.

I call bananas the perfect travel food. You can pick a banana out of a mud pit, open it up, and eat it. :) No need to worry about the outside getting dirty because you only want the sweet fibrous inside. In addition, no utensils necessary.

My favorite fruit in the whole world (besides the not-so-easily-available Jakfruit) is mango, but I’m not a fan of the preparation. Thankfully, in Thailand I was able to eat mango a few times per day. For 10 Baht (~30 cents) it was freshly sliced and ready to devour. And it’s available everywhere in Thailand (along with many other fruits) at the ubiquitous Thai street carts.

When you arrive in a new city immediately go out and find the nearest market (or corner store or anything) that sells fruit and stock up. It’s simple, it’s cheap, it’s healthy, and it’s vegan.

Note: avocado is a fruit. Mmmm … I love avocado. Here is how to check for ripeness: do not squeeze! You will bruise the insides. Instead, push in the stem a little. If it gives it’s ripe. If it doesn’t give then wait a day or two.

2) Eat lots of beans / whole grains.

Whether you’re making your own food or eating out, beans and whole grains (brown rice, quinoa, etc.) are a perfect combination of food available in most parts of the world.

My favorite dish is a combo of black beans with either quinoa or brown rice (and avocado if I have a ripe one handy). Quinoa is much less readily available so I usually have brown rice. I eat this at least once/day and sometimes twice.

3) Eat lots of vegetables.

Due to so many vegetables needing some kind of preparation I’m not a great vegetable eater. While I eat them daily, I eat far more fruits than vegetables.

My favorite easy to prepare vegetables are tomatoes (crap, another fruit? haha) and broccoli. I eat these raw and sometimes I eat tomatoes like they’re apples. When I was younger I didn’t like tomatoes at all, but as I grew and my palate changed I grew to love them.

If you’re not a vegetable fan you might have to train your palate. Try something new every time you go to the market and you will eventually find something you like. And remember: different varieties of the same vegetable taste completely different. There are some tomatoes I’m not a huge fan of. And mushrooms have so many different flavors it’s insane. Continually test your palate!

Eating a nice salad every day is an easy way to get a lot of your vegetables in one fell swoop. I’ve been known to eat an almost 2 pound salad (lots of greens, LOTS of tomatoes) for dinner. :)

Salads are available in virtually every restaurant in the world. Eat a big enough salad and it is quite filling.

4) Eat nuts.

Nuts are also available everywhere and greats sources of many nutrients. Goa, India is known for its cashews (kaju) and you can bet I ate a LOT of them while I was there. They are my favorite nut. Unsalted, raw, of course. Nuts pack lots of much needed energy in the forms of protein and fat. You don’t want to make nuts your staple, but eat a little bit regularly. They’re also great while you’re in transit (planes, trains, and automobiles).

5) Research local restauarants.

HappyCow.net has listings for veg and veg-friendly restaurants all over the world. (Don’t waste your money on their iPhone app if you have an iPod Touch. It’s a waste.)

If there are a lot of restaurants listed on HappyCow I also post in the CouchSurfing.org Group (message board) for whatever city I’m going to be in to get favorite veg restaurant recommendations.

Restaurants where you should never have a problem finding veg food:

Indian – Channa Masala and lots of other stuff.
Thai – veg/rice/tofu.

You will find Indian and/or Thai restaurants in so many cities in the world it’s crazy. Even here in Wroc?aw, there are two Indian restaurants that I know about.

Bonus restaurant tip: If you pass by a health food type store walk in and ask about local veg-friendly restaurants. I had trouble finding a decent restaurant in Cairns, QLD, Australia and asked a girl at a health food store. She said there aren’t many options (boo Cairns!), but gave me directions to a Mexican restaurant. This Mexican restaurant actually had a vegan menu! :)

6) Allow yourself some junk food.

I promise once you start eating a whole food plant-based diet that your cravings for junk will almost completely subside. I rarely crave junk. But when I do? I go all out. I will happily eat a whole bag of chips or a veggie burger (or 3) or a pizza or a 2 liter bottle of soda. It doesn’t happen often, but when I have a really strong craving I let myself at it. Some people advocate having a “cheat day” once/week. For me that’s far too often and sometimes not often enough. It would be forced. As I sit here right now I am eating a 90% dark chocolate bar. :) I probably won’t finish it, but I won’t deny myself if I happen to want to eat every last bite.

Another thing about junk food: when you’re in new lands you will find some very interesting choices in vegan junk food! The best, by far, is in India. I’ll let you discover it for yourself. ;)

What About Soy?

You’ll notice I don’t mention soy above. I’m not a huge fan. In Thailand I ate soy regularly because it was part of a lot of local cuisine (in the form of tofu). For the most part I don’t eat soy.

That said, I’m currently in a phase of drinking one B12 fortified glass of soy milk every day. B12 is the one nutrient that I have had trouble introducing into my diet without drinking soy milk. I can handle that.

Claims that soy is unhealthy are incredibly overblown. (Again, I ask that you research it yourself. Don’t believe anything I state.)

Learn The Local Vegan Options Ahead of Time

If you can, do a little research about traditional meals that are already vegan. If you know ahead of time which meals should be vegan that will make things a lot easier on you. My best suggestion: utilize CouchSurfing again. :) Go into the Country Group (or any City Group) and ask what meals are traditionally vegan. There may be none, but it’s worth asking.

The Language Barrier

The language barrier is what can sometimes cause the aforementioned un-veganized food at restaurants.

It’s fairly easy to solve: learn how to say you don’t eat meat or milk or cheese or butter in whatever language you’ll be encountering. If you’re not willing to do that then you could always sit at home, watch TV, and do nothing. ;)

Back to keeping things less stressful: don’t worry too much about the language barrier. When you start traveling things seem to just fall into place. I could write for days about this topic (or any topic) and you’ll never learn as much as by experiencing it for yourself.

Emergency Rations

On the overnight train to Chiang Mai from Bangkok there was a menu with 8 or 9 meat options and 1 vegetarian option. I ordered the vegetarian option, but it wasn’t available. Dammit. The lady taking orders refused to accept that chicken was not a vegetarian option. I spent a good 1-2 minutes insisting she not give me chicken because it is not vegetarian. (I run into this a lot. Chickens and fish are animals people!)

I travel with some sort of emergency rations. Currently that is a Clif Bar. Important: these rations must only be used in an emergency! Like, when you haven’t eaten for 14 hours on your train from Bangkok to Chiang Mai. :)

Emergency Rations For The Emergency Rations!

As you may know if you’ve gone through my whole packing list I carry a Light My Fire Spork with me everywhere. In case I need an actual quick “meal” and can’t find it this is what I do.

1) Head into any super market / convenience store.

2) Buy a can of beans (my preference is black or kidney) with an easy open top. (If not available, buy the can of beans and a can opener.)

3) Open the can a little and dump out the water. (I usually rinse the beans with clean water as well.)

4) Enjoy!

You might scoff at this, but a can of beans is a filling, healthy, nutritious meal. And it’s cheap to boot!

I don’t always use this as an emergency meal. Sometimes I just want to eat a can of beans and make this a nice little meal/snack. :)

Keep An Open Mind

Would you believe it if I told you that steak houses are one of the easiest restaurants to eat vegan? Think about it. Baked potatoes, beans, lots of salad options. If your friends want to go to a restaurant that is “obviously” not vegan, stop to think about it for a second. When my friends want to eat at a traditionally non-vegan restaurant I don’t usually have any problems eating a very filling meal.

A Learning Process

Eating vegan while traveling is a learning process. Before I embarked on my adventures I was as worried as anybody about being able to eat vegan. It has been a fun experience eating vegan in Australia, New Zealand, India, Thailand, Germany, and Poland.

On many occasions (usually while staying at hostels), when I’d make a meal others would comment on how amazing it looked. When you use lots of fruits/vegetables your meals look quite appetizing. ;)

If you’re worried about traveling to far off lands and keeping a vegan diet, stop worrying. Start living.

Special Note On Comments:

If you have anything negative to say, if you’re not willing to do your research (as stated above), or if you’re making stupid arguments your comment will be trashed.

Feel free to add positive thoughts or helpful points for vegan travel. Thanks!

How To Learn Any New City Without A Map (or How To Get Lost With Purpose)

In which I learn how to get to a cemetery and also make an old lady bleed …

“If you don’t know where you’re going, any road will take you there.” – Cheshire Cat (via Lewis Carroll)

When you’re Living Anywhere it means you’re moving to new places on a fairly regular basis. At the very least you’re traveling to new cities regularly.

Before I get into the details here let me flat out state that this is not incredibly useful if you’re on holiday for a week. (Although it would be a fun exercise if you were on holiday as well.)

I have a simple strategy I use to learn new cities. It works fantastically well, especially in places where you can’t read or pronounce street names. :)

Getting Lost

I moved into a new place just outside of the Rynek (market square) area of Wroc?aw, Poland a week ago and wanted to get to know my new area. Three days ago I went for an open-ended (no real time limit) bike ride with purpose: to get lost and still make it to a specific place. The only map I have of Wroc?aw is from the Centrum Informacji Turystycznej (Tourist Information) and it only covers the city centre. I would be exploring further out.

I lived my first 6 months (of life as a fat baby) in a neighborhood called S?polno, and this is also where two of my Grandparents are buried. I knew the general direction of S?polno, but didn’t know how to get there or exactly how far it was. I did know the cemetary was along the Odra River since I took the public transport there before (1 hour trip from my previous residence in the Popowice neighborhood).

At 12:30pm I took off over the brick streets and sidewalks of Wroc?aw. 30 minutes later I happened upon Ogród Japo?ski (Japanese Garden). It’s actually only a 10-15 minute bike ride from where I live, but remember … I’m getting lost. Exploring, taking turns, not remembering exactly how I’m going to get back to my starting point. :)

Behind the Japanese Garden is a big park and I like parks so I stopped to relax for ~30 minutes.

Stopping to relax is an important part of this journey. It makes it much more difficult to remember how you got to the point where you’re at. In other words, you have to actually think about where you are which will help you remember how you got there. Confusing? It’s not. ;)

I got back on my bike and started pedaling. I took a few turns, left, right, right, left … and then stumbled upon a sign for S?polno telling me to turn right again! So I did and rode along the Odra River for about 15 minutes. You can guess exactly where I ended up: the aforementioned cemetary. I hung out there for a half hour and decided to find my way back to the Rynek so I could get dinner at Vega before meeting up with friends at 5:30.

This is where it gets fun and stuff goes wrong. ;)

Instead of making my way back the way I came I took a detour. Across one bridge. Across another bridge. Across yet another bridge. To the point of not knowing which side of the Odra I should be on. I chose a direction and rode for 20-30 minutes. :)

Eventually, as I was making my way to Siberia, I asked a nice lady how to get to the Rynek. (Important point once you’re incredibly lost.) She laughed at me and said I am not anywhere near where I want to be. Then she proceeded to giving me 27 directions. “Najprostsz? droge,” she says. (The straightest road or the quickest/simplest way.)

If you need to ask for directions and you don’t speak the local language ask younger people. The younger generation is more likely to know English.

Blood! Sandals! Lessons Learned!

Almost immediately upon departing for this “najprostsz? droge” I came upon a middle-aged lady in the middle of the bike lane and I rang my bell to let her know I was going to pass. I always ring my bell about 30 feet behind people because everybody gets freaked out by bike bells. This lady was no exception. She made a b-line for the bushes lining the bike lane and took the worst spill I’d seen since this.

I helped her up, which wasn’t easy considering she decided to get her legs tangled in her bike frame. As she stood up we noticed the blood leaking from her foot. It wasn’t too bad, but there was a lot of blood and her left sandal had a new paint job. The dirty white wasn’t fitting anyway. :)

Lessons learned:

1) Don’t wear sandals on a bike.

2) Don’t ride your bike in the middle of the lane. Stay on the right or left and people can pass you without problems!

As I’m writing this I am cooped up in my apartment due to my own bike spill yesterday. :) Karma!

Success!

30 minutes later, after taking a few more detours, I made it to Vega and had some fantastic vegan go??bki.

Along the way I got to see lots of scenery I would not have seen otherwise. And now when I go north of Wroclaw I can make it back with less problems (and hopefully less blood). Next mission: get lost in the south. ;)

How To Get Lost

By now you’re probably thinking “gee Karol, I’d also like to make old ladies bleed! How do I get in on this action?!”

Simple:

Leave your home on foot or bike (not public transportation) and take a leisurely stroll for an undetermined length of time in any direction. Go down small side streets. Stumble into markets. Say “hello” to random people.

The important thing is not to have a time limit. I actually had somewhat of a time limit in the story above since I was going to meet friends. It took me 4 hours to go round trip to a place that’s about 20 minutes away on bike so I did give myself lots of leeway. ;)

Your turn: what’s your single best tip for learning a new city?

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