Working on the Road, Free Travel, Embracing Simplicity – Road Trip Roundup

Traveling Apr 30, 2012 No Comments

What kind of work can you do on the road?

What kind of work CAN’T you do on the road?  Today there are so many options, if your passion is to take to the road, then there’s a career out there for you.  It used to be that workkamper jobs were one of the main opportunities for full-timers, but there are lots of folks on the road now with service-related jobs:

  • Artist
  • Bookkeeping
  • Consulting
  • Graphic Design
  • Virtual Assistant

Ramona Creel has a great write-up over at her blog, Real Life RVing

Are you travel hacking?

You don’t have to be living in an RV to be living on the road.  There are folks who advertise traveling the world – full or part time – at next to no cost.  The secret?  Airline frequent flyer programs, combined with hotel stays and credit card offers (lots of opportunities to earn 40, 50, even 100 thousand miles just by applying for cards and meeting small minimum spending requirements.)

I’m just a beginner, but following the world of travel hacking with considerable gusto.  You can get started easily – read up at Chris Guillbeau’s site, or go to FlyerTalk for some great introductions to the sport of Travel Hacking.

Home School Kids Travel

Not all homeschoolers are actually “at home” learning – there’s a big crowd that takes a year (or more) on the road, and “home” schools while they travel.  The Soultravelers3 continue to amaze me with the stories of their travels, and what they’re learning as they travel and teach.

Simplicity is Freedom

I just absolutely love Courtney Carver at BeMoreWithLess.com and this post is a good reason why.  It’s way too easy to get caught up in the hype of getting more, or keeping more, and so counterintuitive to think that you can actually be happy with less.

The main benefit of simplicity and minimalism, she says, is freedom.  Here are just a few examples from her post:

  • When you simplify your commitments and obligations, you have the freedom to say yes to the things that make your heart sing and no to the things that don’t.
  • When you simplify your digital connection/addiction, you have the freedom to go outside anytime without your phone or your iPad.
  • When you simplify and begin to understand that you don’t need much, you can travel lightly.
  • When you simplify your fears, you can embrace vulnerability, soften your heart and have the freedom to clearly see that you are enough.

Can you see how all of these ideas are interwoven?  There’s a lot of introspection involved in dreaming big, and reaching for something monumental, and yet simplifying and freeing at the same time.  I hope that in our travel dream we find the catalyst that brings more simplicity and freedom into our family, in everything we do.

Got any tips or articles to share on these same ideas?  I’d love to hear from you!

Bret

Bret Shroyer lives in Minnesota, where he enjoys outdoor activities and road trips in all seasons. He and his wife Tracie raise their three teenage children to be honest, independent, financially savvy and well-traveled. Together with their giant poodle, the Shroyer family strives to find excitement in whatever life has in store today. Bret's day job as a reinsurance actuary provides the resources and the flexibility to lead his family in their common pursuit of adventure.

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