Hard Conversations and Owning Responsibility

I just had the privilege of attending the Adventure Travel World Summit in Salta, Argentina. This annual conference is powered by the Adventure Travel Trade Association, of which I am a member. We are a fiercely passionate tribe of travel lovers who believe we can change the world, and we do.

The theme for this year’s Summit was “Unite. Protect. Lead.” into which we dug deeply, and what we uncovered left many great impressions on me.

As travelers (that means you, too), leaders in our industry, and business owners, we are in positions of power, whether we recognize it or not. And, with great power comes great responsibility (thank you Spiderman).

As my regular readers well know, I’m not afraid to start hard conversations. In fact, I believe that as a leader, it is my responsibility to start them, and right now I feel called to amplify some of the hard conversations we had in Salta this week.

I invite you to engage, there is a comment section below. Please, be bold, use your voice, this is me using mine.

On Expectations

Two years ago when I went to Patagonia for the first time to attend my first Adventure Travel World Summit, I went with zero expectations. Sometimes, this is a good strategy that can avoid disappointment and end with pleasant surprises, and I often try to take this approach when I travel.

However, I also now recognize how having zero expectations can be detrimental, not just to ourselves.

I’ve never been much of a planner, probably because one of my greatest “gifts” is the ability to change my mind. A lot. I don’t believe this is a bad thing, we have permission to change our minds as often as we like. It’s our prerogative as human beings, and I believe it can be a healthy exercise that some don’t practice enough.

However, I also believe that in positions of power, it is important to set goals and work actively towards them, having expectations, setting an example for those around us, and carrying our followers with us, because they are watching.

As leaders, we need to own this, and I’m talking to myself. Am I talking to you, too?

Without constructive expectations and goals, we risk floundering and sacrificing our gifts, which serves no one.

Above all, authenticity matters. We were not blessed with individuality to waste it on imitating someone else. (Share if you agree).

No matter what is going on around us, we must listen very carefully to ourselves, so that we can properly align our paths with our goals, with our gifts, so we can make the difference we are individually called to make.

When I attended my first Adventure Travel World Summit in Chile, it deeply changed my life, but I didn’t go to Chile with a plan, and not having a plan equates to one thing: default.

If we don’t prioritize our lives, someone else will (thank you Essentialism). If we don’t design our own paths, they automatically default around the nearest decision-makers. I won’t speak for you, but that’s not how I want to live.

This year, I’m working on making my decisions by design, not default.

Set expectations.

Set goals.

Work towards them by design, with purpose. It is not just a healthy work ethic, it is our responsibility as leaders.

In this, I am challenged to identify and set measurable goals so I can better understand how to work towards the things I feel called to accomplish and make the most of the situations I am in.

The other day (after the Summit), a friend of mine asked me where I see myself in five years.

I hate this question, because I never have an answer. This is a question you ask normal people. It is not a question you ask Traveling Jackie.

To my utmost surprise, I answered him, and what came out of my mouth was not my typical “Um.. I don’t even know where I’m sleeping tonight, much less in five years.” And I kid you not, we were traveling on a bus from Argentina to Chile at the time, we literally didn’t know where we were sleeping that night. However, I rattled off at least 4-5 big goals that I hope to accomplish within the next five years, including specifically where (geographically), I could see myself. I didn’t even know I could do that, but you know what? It felt good!

Maybe you are all on to something with this planning and expectations thing after all…

On Sustainability

Recently an article was published by Lonely Planet, highlighting the top destinations to visit in 2018. When I saw that my beloved Chile was number one on the list, my heart dropped.

A beautiful photo of Torres del Paine National Park graces the cover of the article, but all it makes me want to do is run to Torres del Paine and stand in front of it like a treehugger. I want to protect it from the hoards of tourists that “don’t care about it” like I do. The ones who leave trash behind and camp illegally, risking starting devastating fires.

When we love something, it is our natural instinct to protect it. But we can’t love something if we don’t know it.

I can’t stop people from traveling to Chile, in fact, the true irony here is that I bring people to Chile myself! It’s almost absurd that I have this reaction, because I personally promote travel to Chile. What scares me is that the “beauty of Chile” will fall on empty eyes and deaf ears and be exploited.

The real answer here is sustainable travel. Come to Chile (I’m here right now), meet the people, learn from them, and share with them. Hike the beautiful trails, let Chile touch you as it has me, get to know it, learn to love it. When you come, work with local operators so your dollars directly benefit the local economies, pack out what you pack in, learn about where you are, be smart and respectful.

And once you have done that, do it with the next destination, and then next, and do it with your home as well.

With great power (travel) comes great responsibility. If you’re going to participate in travel, participate responsibly.

I believe in travel as a tool to unite people, to break down stereotypes, discover our true selves, and ultimately make the world a better place. We need travel, we just need to do it right.

What can you do right now?

• Watch Chasing Coral on Netflix, ASAP. Bring tissues.
• Check out 2041.com and learn about what is happening in Antarctica.
• Make an effort to avoid single-use plastics, like Costa Rica.
• Reduce. Reuse. Recycle. What you do does matter. No one is off the hook when it comes to taking care of our planet.

Robert Swan, an inspiring leader and keynote speaker at the Summit this year, quoted it best, “The single greatest threat to our planet is the belief that someone else will save it.”

On Leadership

Are you in a position of leadership? (Whether you recognize it as such or not…) Do people watch your every move, align their goals with your goals, pay attention to how you react to problems, and take inspiration from you?

I am, and people do. But just existing in that space isn’t enough. It’s on me (and you) to assume that role and take the reigns with the right intentions. To do good with it.

Ever since I was a little girl, I have been a natural leader, but for a while I let go of leading in my adult life. I worked really hard in high school and couldn’t be bothered to take on too much responsibility for years after that. College was easy. All I wanted to do was travel and play, to fly under the radar, to not have hard conversations, to see the world, to speak all the foreign languages, live lightly, and eat all the food.

I was a hedonist. In my defense, there’s nothing really wrong with that. I still am. I love to have fun. I love to travel and play and push the envelope, living completely outside the box. It suits me, and I’m good at it, and like the saying goes, “Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy.”

There are so many gloriously satisfying things to experience in this world, and I have given myself all the permission to pursue the ones that call to me. I have no problem going after what makes me happy and following my passion to create a positive change in the world, these are not mutually exclusive. Come on, people, don’t take everything so seriously! Live a LOT, this is your chance!

What I hadn’t really considered was that once I began putting myself out there as a travel authority and my audience grew by the hundreds and then thousands, my role changed, whether I recognized it or not.

I have created a leadership role for myself.

The key is to pay attention, to recognize when it happens, and to be responsible with that power.

When we are new to something, we must allow ourselves time to learn and grow into our role in that space. But with each step we take, we should be getting closer to figuring out how to accomplish what we feel we have been called to do. If this isn’t happening, either we haven’t quite figured out the right goal, or we aren’t trying hard enough.

No matter what any of us faces, it’s easy in this chaotic world to forget why we choose to do what we do. It’s easy to lose sight of the real reason behind our greatest efforts, our greatest gifts. THIS is why it is so important to have a goal, a plan, or even a mission statement. For me, since day one, my underlying goal has always been one thing: to show people themselves by showing them the world.

Measurable goals that go along with that evolve as I evolve. As we live, we learn, we grow, we change, our paths evolve, and our responsibilities and capabilities change as a result. Therefore, we need to continue to adapt.

As Steve Prefontaine said, “To give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the gift.” Even if we don’t quite see how to do it from Day 1, if we keep showing up and saying yes to our gifts, we move up, we move forward.

And if we do it right, we will carry others with us.

When I started studying online business, I listened to Pat Flynn’s podcast religiously, and one of the things I specifically remember him saying is to bring someone with you as you go. Be a mentor, and be mentored yourself, we are here to help each other.

I started by guiding people to independent travel, and alongside that journey, I have evolved into a solo nomadic traveler who writes about personal development and lifestyle. That has evolved into leading mentorship groups and adventure trips for my audience, and even to hosting my first women’s adventure retreat in Ecuador this February, with one ultimate goal in mind: to show people themselves by showing them the world.

To use the personal-development tools I have discovered during my own world-wandering journey to help others, to bring others with me.

To lead.

And like my friend Pat Flynn said, we must carry others with us as we go.

If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together. – African Proverb

On Privilege

We can’t help the color of our skin, where we were born, or what families we were born into. None of us earned any of that, yet we are all judged for it. The best we can do is recognize not only where we fit on the privilege scale, but also consider how others may see us, regardless of how we see ourselves.

What message are you sending? What message am I sending? I am white, and whether I like it or not, that automatically grants me a certain amount of privilege in this world. What I do with that privilege is up to me, and I believe I have a responsibility to be sensitive to it.

I want to set a good example, for my regular audience, but also for my friend’s 12-year old Latin-American daughter whom I didn’t even realize follows my Instagram. What does she see when she looks at my photos? Does she see strength, inspiration, and authenticity in a female role model who’s using her superpowers to change the world, or does she see another privileged “white travel blogger?”

If we do it right, we will carry others with us. We are the ones who will make a difference, each doing what we are gifted and called to do, and I’m going to do my best to own that responsibility. Are you?

Salta

I’m curious if you caught that all of this took place in Salta… If you’ve read my story, you should recognize that word by now. #SALTA… Leap… I don’t think it’s coincidence that this place has represented a milestone for me. At least, I’m choosing not to see it as such.

I’m choosing to see it as a pivotal point in my journey, something I’ve been actively working towards for quite a while, and what is now more clearly beginning to reveal itself to me.

Life is crazy, and change is amazing. Thank you for reading this and allowing me to challenge you as I challenge myself to better steward the leadership role that I have created.

I hope you’ll continue to come with me, and I hope I’ll continue to be worth following.