I ran across some vintage photographs of my family, circa 1940. Every summer, my grandfather would haul my dad, my aunt, and my grandmother on a road trip. Grandpa was, in his unique way, a dedicated travel photographer. He cared about composition, so pictures almost always included a glimpse of the scenery, a person, and some portion of his car.
My family all had distinct reactions to being photographed. My grandmother detested it and usually had a foul expression on her face, like she was smelling something rotten. In direct opposition, my grandfather relished his time in front of the camera. He was a jaunty character, shamelessly posing, – cigar in mouth, hat tilted, gaze delighted. My dad was typically laid-back, as was his nature throughout life.
The real revelation, though, was my aunt. She was the quiet one in the family. Pleasant but shy, happy to be in the background. But my aunt’s photos defied this. She looked unflinchingly at the camera, somewhat bored and perhaps a bit defiant. While always thin and nicely dressed, my aunt looked like she could have been posing for Vogue. She wore her clothes – on trend for the time – with such sophistication.
What happened? I imagine what happens to a lot of us when we travel. Free of our encumbrances, our other self emerges. Instead of capturing the quiet unassuming young woman we all knew, the lens revealed something different. Aunt Ruth knew her mind, unapologetically.
And maybe that’s why travel is so popular. Each year, millions of people leave their daily grind to explore, discover, maybe even experiment. Ask anyone about to retire and they will likely tell you that their upcoming plans include travel. Boomers alone spend around $157 billion on trips every year.
But travel is not just for the mature. Study abroad, gap years, and backpacking through exotic locations are on the agenda for many young adults. Millennials prioritize this, averaging 35 days of vacation each year, with Gen Z not far behind. Even as life gets in the way of our travel plans – work, family, and other responsibilities – we squeeze in time for a long weekend or at least a trip to the grandparents.
What is it about vacation that makes it a magical elixir? Travel essayists, famous writers, even your employer has a theory on the benefits of travel. Taking vacation improves mental and physical health. Employees return to work with a fresh attitude and feel rejuvenated. And, despite taking time off, workers return more productive, performing at higher levels. Employers aren’t stupid – they know this improves the company’s bottom line.
Restorative benefits notwithstanding, the real question is why travel opens us to a fresh perspective and clarity of thought.
I was thinking about that a lot on a recent trip to Santa Fe. Like so many others, travel provides me with a new lens to view my life. But shouldn’t I be able to accomplish this by simply spending a relaxed and carefree afternoon at the beach? Why does this fresh perspective seem to rely on luggage and a full tank of gas or a plane ticket?
I have some ideas:
Travel connects us to the present. If you’re like me, my days are heavily routinized. Probably 50-70 percent of my time is spent doing pretty much the same thing every day. You know the drill: wake-up; get coffee, work; lunch; more work, etc. Even our weekends are fairly repetitious.
When we go on vacation, though, our routines are disrupted. Without our daily rituals, we become attuned to what’s happening around us. We can’t fall back on familiar surrounding so, instead, we pay closer attention to our new environment. We live in the present.
Breaking daily routines can be a powerful way to unlock great new ideas. Researchers suggest that the best way to break from our routine is to literally put ourselves in unfamiliar situations. Neuroscientist Gregory Berns advises that the disruption of our brain’s reliance on patterns will free us of boundaries, and thus open us to new opportunities.
Travel increases flow. Once you’re living in the present, you may experience flow – that highly enjoyable state of being entirely wrapped up in the moment. Flow makes us happier and helps us be more creative and productive.
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, the psychologist who coined the term, described the state of flow as “…being completely involved in an activity for its own sake. The ego falls away. Time flies. Your whole being is involved and you’re using your skills to the utmost.”
My family took many vacations that involved lots of hiking. I loved those escapes because it forced me out of my head. I couldn’t compose an email response or brood over an unsolved problem. Instead, my mind and body were totally committed to the physical challenges of the hike. That respite from my daily problems cleared my head and helped put things into perspective.
People are more interesting. Let me ask you this question: how often do you stop and talk to a stranger? Even as extroverted fundraisers, it’s unlikely that you do this with high frequency. But there is something about being on vacation that increases our curiosity. Instead of being closed off, we find ourselves more receptive to talking to strangers. In Santa Fe, I chatted away with a woman from Houston on her wine preferences and what her adult kids were doing. My husband, a true introvert, becomes positively loquacious on our trips. He jumps in the front seat of a cab and has in-depth conversations with the driver. Or I find myself pulling him away from a new best friend he met waiting for a bus.
Striking up a conversation with strangers might have personal benefits. Writing for Wanderlust, author Jodi Ashbrook suggested that talking to others can transform your travel into a truly unforgettable experience. Opening ourselves up for conversations can boost our confidence, help us find inspiration, and possibly establish meaningful connections. Perhaps most importantly, when we get to know others from a different country or culture, we may learn to withhold judgement by resisting the temptation to categorize.
Travel helps us answer life’s meaningful questions. Maybe the most important benefit of travel is that it clears our minds and provides us with a certain distance to evaluate our circumstances. In our daily lives, we constantly ask ourselves what we should do; when we travel, the more relevant question – what do we want to do – seeps into our consciousness. The distance somehow provides us with a better understanding of our place and purpose.
We may not be able to hang on to that clarity or the warm glow that happens when we travel. But the experience, perspective, and understanding make it worth the trek.