Help! I’ve Lost My Travel Mojo

Obviously, I love to travel (see every article I’ve written for HelloGiggles, ever). I’ve talked about carefully planning trips and taking off for a last minute, no-planning-involved vacation. I’ve given tips on packing and budgeting. I’ve talked about cruises and national parks and studying abroad and luxury travel and cheap hostels. But in over two and a half years, I’ve never talked about one aspect of travel, and it’s one I’m struggling with right now. I’ve somehow lost my travel mojo and it’s really bumming me out.

There’s been more stress than normal in my life lately. It’s been a mix of work stress and life stress and big decisions that need to be made. And while some of those decisions are good things, they still add to my overall exhaustion level. This inevitably leads to me crashing when I get home from work. After staring at a computer screen all day, I just can’t make myself do my usual trip searches and flight comparisons and daydream about where to go next. I’m burned out.

It’s funny, because you’d think the time when you’re most stressed would be the perfect time to go on vacation and relax. And it would be. The problem is that that relaxing vacation in my head takes a decent amount of planning beforehand. I feel like I’ve outgrown my post-college adventurous days of throwing some clothes in a backpack and taking off on the first cheap flight I could find. Now I worry about things like clean hotel rooms and parking.

Believe me, I know some of you are rolling your eyes at this. You’re probably thinking how lucky I am to have this problem. And you’re right, on the scale of awful horrible terrible problems to have, this is definitely at the bottom. But it’s jarring for me, because of all the obstacles to travelling I’ve had and still have (lack of time, no money), motivation has never been one of them. I’ve always felt that burning desire to just get out there and go. And the wanderlust is still there, it’s just hidden behind the mountains of exhaustion and stress.

So, what should I do to climb over those mountains and regain my travel planning mojo? The first thing I’m going to do is allow myself to step away and not feel badly about it. I’m going to listen to myself and take a break. It’s ok that I don’t know where or when my next trip will be. When you try to force something, it’s never right. So I’m going to run and write and read and generally try to de-stress my life. I’m going to focus on what’s making me happy at the moment, and what will make me happy in the future. And by doing these things, I know that eventually I’ll feel that tug…that pull…those itchy feet. I’ll want to spend hours staring at websites and comparing flights and reading endless travel blogs and guide books. I know that I’ll feel that familiar, undeniable urge to go again.

What are your tips for getting (or staying) motivated?

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Featured Image courtesy of Paramount Pictures