About 2 weeks ago I sent the good people at Loksak my article/video about using their aLoksak to wash my clothes wherever I am in the world.
Their President, Linda, e-mailed me back and offered to send me a bunch of stuff. I declined because I already have enough of their stuff. I actually bought a few more bags before I left for India.
I use the Loksak bags for almost everything. During Songkran (a 5 day water fight in celebration of Thai New Year) I kept my camera nice and dry while the rest of my body got soaked. When I’m riding around Chiang Mai on my motorbike I put all my stuff in a Loksak so the condensation from my water bottle doesn’t get my cash/cameras all jacked up.
All my clothes get packed in aLoksak bags. And I also use the Opsak bags, which are similar to the aLoksak bags, but odor proof for food products.
Karol, You’re Such A Sellout, A Contest? WTF?!
Here’s the thing, I know any company that offers to give me something isn’t doing it strictly out of the kindness of their hearts. They’re doing it for exposure. Please know that I know this.
Here’s the other thing: I love Loksak products. I’ve mentioned them often. And hell, I dedicated a whole blog post/video to showing you how I use the 12″ x 12″ aLoksak to wash my clothes.
And here’s the other other thing: Loksak products are the #2 seller from my Amazon links. #1 is the stretchy clothesline. So I know you are into them too.
And here’s the other other other (other?) thing! While I declined Linda’s offer to send me stuff, I asked if she’d be willing to send you stuff. I sent her a list of exactly what I wanted for the contest and she said, yes, yes, yes, let’s make it happen! That was cool.
The contest is simple and available wherever contests are available. (Meaning, if your country doesn’t allow this shit, then sorry, this shit ain’t for you. Another time?)
2 caveats:
1) If you’re international, the products will be sent regular mail. If they get lost on the way we are not responsible.
2) You can only enter once.
Here’s what you can get:
1st package (Lots of sweet shit!):
1 Large aLoksak Assortment ($11.90)
1 9×10 Opsak assortment ($8.19)
1 Shieldsak (if you’re paranoid about that RFID chip in your passport!) ($32.95)
1 ArmPak-R ($17.69)
2nd package (A little less sweet shit!):
1 Large aLoksak Assortment ($11.90)
1 9×10 Opsak assortment ($8.19)
1 ArmPak-R ($17.69)
3rd package (A sampler of sweet shit!):
1 Large aLoksak Assortment ($11.90)
I probably could have asked for more stuff, but as far as minimalism is concerned, I didn’t want to go overboard.
If you want proper descriptions of all this sweet shit it’s all here: www.Loksak.com
How To Enter To Win:
1) Comment below with a 5 sentence (or less) travel story or tip. It can be anything. Anything at all. Give me something good. Give me something funny. Give me something.
2) That’s it!
I’ll use Random.org to select the winners. I won’t be participating in comments for this blog post so I don’t mess up the numbers. I have a feeling your chances of winning will be very good. :)
Bonus! (Well, bonus for me.)
If you’re so inclined, it would be awesome if you tweeted about the contest.
Sample tweets:
– I just entered to win some sweet stuff from @KarolGajda here –> http://bit.ly/a38NL0 #travel #contest
– If I don’t win this contest I’m going to beat @KarolGajda up –> http://bit.ly/a38NL0 #travel #contest
– Sweet Shit Saturday Contest Wowza! From @KarolGajda –> http://bit.ly/a38NL0 #travel #contest
– WTF is an aLoksak? I entered to win some from @KarolGajda –> http://bit.ly/a38NL0 #travel #contest
– aLoksak’s are the future. Enter to win some from @KarolGajda –> http://bit.ly/a38NL0 #travel #contest
Tweeting won’t help your chances of winning. I’m not using this contest like a lot of people do. That is, to get lots of traffic from visitors who don’t care about my blog, but just want free shit. This is for you, as a kind of thanks for your support.
So Tweet if you want to do me a solid (Wow, did I really just use that phrase? Never again.), but it’s not mandatory.
I’ll announce the winners next Saturday. You have until Friday at 2:13pm EST to enter. :) (use time.gov if you’re going to procrastinate)
Onward with sweet links!
Working From Home Is NOT Easy, But This May Help by Pat Flynn
Yes. Yes. Yes. So many truths on so many levels.
The Odyssey Expedition by Graham Hughes
“I have a shoestring budget and a toilet seat strapped to my backpack. Welcome to THE ODYSSEY.” I don’t want to give it away and I’m not even going to link to a particular article or section. Go to this site and spend the rest of your Saturday in amazement. :) (That’s a warning as much as anything!)
Kill Your To-Do List by Leo Babauta
I used to use to-do lists. You know my favorite thing about them? Nothing. I haven’t had a to-do list in a very long time and I still get everything done that I want to get done.
Outsource Force video by John Reese
I’ve known John since like 2002 or so and I first met him at his Triple Your Profits Workshop in Orlando, FL in 2004. That cost $4,500 + flights/food/hotel/etc. There were almost 100 others there. Did I triple my profits? Well that year, my first out of University, I had my first 6 figure *profit* year. I didn’t triple my profits, but I doubled (and then some). (Crikey I hate talking about money, but I know it gets the point across.)
Over the past few weeks John and I have been doing a lot of talking about travel (he actually sent me The Odyssey link above) instead of business because … well … we run our businesses because they allow us to travel! I influenced him to get a small 30L backpack and he’s doing some minimalist traveling in a few months! Whoa, tangent …
Outsource Force is about … you ready? Outsourcing! :) It’s something I have done a ton of in the past, but don’t do as much as I should now. (Damn me for not listening to myself!)
If you don’t have a business you’re probably not in the market for Outsource Force. That’s cool. Just watch the launch and see how well it’s executed. It’s important to learn from people in markets you have no interest in because you may be able to use what you learn in whatever you’re doing.
If you’re on any marketing newsletters you’ve probably heard about Outsource Force already. I’m not going to do any hard sells like that. Not my game. I almost didn’t even write about Outsource Force here for the simple fact that I don’t like being involved in big launches. I’m more low-key than that. But John’s a smart dude and I’ve learned a lot from him. Honestly, if it was anybody else I probably would pass on promoting the training.
If Outsource Force is your bag and you end up buying through me I’m going to fly you to Vegas (from anywhere in the lower 48 US States; e-mail me if you live somewhere else) for a mastermind session in late October. I’ll be there for Steve Pavlina’s workshop, but I’ll fly in a day ahead of time to meet with you. Is that a go big or go home bonus or what? :)
“Writing Wednesdays” #4: On Research, Or What I Learned From A Single Sheet Of Fool’s Cap by Steven Pressfield
There is no better blog update on a Wednesday than Steven Pressfield’s Writing Wednesdays. I stake my life on that claim. I was first introduced to Steven’s work (The War of Art
How To Live Anywhere Relaunch by Karol Gajda (haha!)
I took down HowToLiveAnywhere.com this week and I’m relaunching on June 8 with a ton more content and LOTS of sweet interviews. When you see who I’ve already interviewed and who I have lined up to interview you’re going to poop yourself. In preparation please start wearing adult diapers right now! (In the words of Daniel Tosh: “High brow poop joke? My father said impossible. I say nay!”) If you already bought your copy then you get the new version for nada. If you didn’t buy it yet, mark June 8 down on your calendar as Poop Day 2010.
Talk to you soon. Questions/comments/contest entries? You know what to do … (Remember, I’m not participating in the comments so I don’t mess up the contest entries!)
In 2004 I vacationed in northern Italy with my boyfriend. Little did I (or he) know, Italians love redheads. The servers and busboys brought me flowers and Limoncello. The boyfriend got angry and left me at the restaurant. I ended up at a strip club with the restaurant staff.
While volunteering at an orphanage in Guatemala, I helped butcher a bull to feed 250 orphans. The bull apparently knew where we were taking it, so it layed down and refused to go. We had to tie a rope around its horns & drag it to the slaughter house. Every once in a while it would stand up and chase us all, but eventually we did get the job done. Sorry veggie-heads… but, we did it for the hungry orpahans!
The saying goes, “There are two kinds of luggage, lost and carry-on.” Two years ago I switched to Red Oxx bags and have never looked back. Outstanding value. Would love to add Loksaks to the equation for seamless travel. These two would make the perfect pair.
Travel stress sucks, so don’t participate. Make it a point to run ahead of schedule so you’ll have plenty of time to deal with any last minute issues (and there are always issues!). If (miracle of miracles) none arise, then take your time and enjoy the free time! Browse shops, buy a drink or a snack, and instead of double and triple checking your lists, spend the extra time watching people. There is no more fascinating place than an airport!
Tip for packing light: List the minimum number of everything you think you will need (pants, shirts, shoes, etc.). Subtract 1 from each category and figure out how to make it work (you almost always can). Bonus tip: If you will be staying with friends, find out what you can borrow while you’re there (I always assume at a minimum soap, shampoo, toothpaste, dental floss, lotion, sometimes t-shirts).
I recently spent two weeks traveling around northern china. One thing I got very good at was bartering with the local merchants at the market. Despite the fact I don’t speak a word of chinese, and most of these people did not speak english, we got along fine with me entering numbers into my calculator, showing it to the merchant. He’d agree or disagree, which I could tell by the tone of his voice and hand gestures, punch in a new number, and hand it back to me.
Have fun traveling. Be happy with what you have at this moment. That can be new friends showing you the coolest way to see an amazing site or a screaming baby on the plane reminding you how much iPods kick ass. Be grateful that you can travel. Appreciate life.
Best travel tip I know of is always *always* pack good shoes/boots and keep your socks clean and dry!
The best travel tip I have is: if there is mosquito netting… use it. More than likely it is not there for decoration.
When i traveled to japan,(god i miss that country… hope to get again with carols guiding..:P)
i learned to eat with chopsticks.
well, thats what they say, i still take 15 minutes longer to finish my plate
compared to the rest of the guys.
knifu, spoonu anyone?.
Simple Lesson: The time you spend on non essential tasks should not be carried over to your vacation. Its time to break out of that mold and try something new. (Exception: Brushing your teeth)
One tip from me. Always be aware, where you put your bag/backpack/whatever. I wasted so many things because of not knowing that (I’m sorry, dear books ;) ). Wet surfaces especially in public transport are your enemies. I hope this will be helpful for someone.
Ultralight Packing:
We talk of many ways to pack light, but perhaps the best thing to leave behind are your expectations. They weigh you down, and can turn an otherwise amazing adventure into a disappointment, while causing you to miss the magic that may be right before your eyes. Instead, bring with you an attitude of optimism and a sense of adventure, the most important things to carry with you, no matter where in life you may go.
As for all the rest, for every ‘thing’ you leave out of your luggage, leave two more worries behind. You’ll feel lighter from the start
~Create an amazing life for yourself!
Laura
Divide and Conquer!
Pack your goodies in clear zip bags: You can always see what you’re looking for; if it all spills out on the floor, it’s still clean; when customs and immigration/security searches your bag (which they always do me), it’s easier for them, and their filthy hands which have pawed everyone else’s gross stuff don’t touch your delicates; you can segregate clean from dirty laundry; AND you have a built-in washing bag (ala Karol) when you need it!
Stick a dryer sheet in your shoes or one drop of essential oil on an index card in the netting of your bag to keep the stink off your fabulous stuff.
~Always fresh
Thanks for those tips Hilary. You rock! :)
I know I’ve missed the comp, but thought I’d add my 2p worth:
TRAVEL ALONE! Seriously. Solo travelers might never have considered traveling with a partner, but for sure most people who habitually travel in groups or pairs wouldn’t think about going it alone unless desperate. Here’s the thing – in a group it’s way to easy to hang out all together, decide what to do by consensus and put off potential approaches from locals and other travelers. DON’T DO IT! Alone you’ll be forced to meet people, rely only on yourself, choose what you want to do (and hence have to research it and learn). Even if you HAVE to travel with your best mates/boy/girlfriend, try to spend a few weeks apart and meet up again further along your journey. It’s the best travel decision you’ll ever make! To teach my sister this value I actually had to kick her out of the van and abandon her in Sydney. Was she pissed? Scared? Hell yeah! But what do you know, she met this random dude, went skiing to New Zealand with him, and they’re getting married in June next year! Which helps me feel a lot less bad about the tough love in the first place…