A few years ago, I was fortunate enough to spend 10 days in Peru on a culinary and cultural tour with Chef Jose Duarte of Tambo 22 restaurant in Boston. Along with his passion for Peruvian cuisine, Chef Duarte is also passionate about the people of his native Peru: their nutrition, education and overall wellbeing. He is an advocate for small scale farmers & has worked to bring nutrient dense Peruvian grains, vegetables and fish to US markets.
The time in Peru with Chef Duarte was both educational and inspiring, and a reminder of how international travel can open our minds and our hearts to other cultures. This open mindedness often leads to greater personal & professional creativity. Travel has many benefits, and one of them is creative energy.
How Travel Promotes Creativity
Travel has long been known as a way to feed the soul. The perspectives we gain with travel have profound affects on who we are and how we see the world around us. The act of finding your way around an unfamiliar place and the things you experience while doing so impacts your worldview and the entire way that you establish and maintain that view. It alters the very ways that you view the human race, not just the people who surround you during your travels, but yourself and your family back home included.
Aside from widening your perspective to ways of life and cultures you may not have been aware of, the feeling of constantly moving and having to adapt to new surroundings changes the way that you react to new situations, making that very adaptation easier every time. In a world of constant and rapid change, this is a valuable skill.
Its easy to get bogged down by ruts in life and routine. Travel can help us unlock new directions to channel our creative energy. All travelers can tap into their creative side while abroad – here are some of my favorite reasons why traveling is the best inspiration for getting your creative juices flowing.
1. Change of Surroundings
A change in surroundings can help you overcome any form of creative block. New experiences bring new ideas. When these new ideas are layered over our memories of home we see things in a new way. We become curious about things that might not have seemed interesting or inspiring before.
There is so much beauty in the world, but we often forget to look at the parts that stare us in the face every day. We’re so focused on the tasks at hand- what we need to accomplish today, next week or next month- that we forget to look around. When you find yourself in a rut, changing your surroundings will almost always open your eyes, simply by giving you something new to look at. Sometimes this helps us see that the same things we find so amazing during travel probably exist back home, but in forms we’ve never noticed before.
2. Change the Way You Think
Travel can rearrange your mind: the way it operates and creates new memories and ideas. Often we leave on a journey dissatisfied with home, job, relationships and surroundings, only to find upon our return that we missed home more than we thought. This helps us see what was once bland and familiar with new, refreshed and loving eyes.
Changing your perspective on your surroundings isn’t the only positive aspect of a mental shift. Depending on where you travel and how hard you try to expose yourself to the local cultures, any traveler can find creative inspiration through exposure to styles, foods, smells and sounds, not available at home.
3. Meet People from Different Walks of Life
Sometimes the random conversations we have with people we encounter during travel will be the things that stick with us for the longest time and bring about the greatest change. While there may be a language barrier, I’ve found that people from other cultures are generally interested in sharing their lives and their thoughts, and are generally receptive to hearing about yours. While traveling in Croatia, I struck up a conversation with a woman returning home from work on a bus. Her thoughts and concerns about balancing career and family- the conflicted feelings that giving too much to one area detracted from the other- struck a universal chord.
Through conversations with people very different from ourselves, we learn what people’s lives are like: the differences and similarities that exist on basic levels, like life priorities. Many times it’s those conversations that will bring about the greatest connection, self-reflection and positive change.
4. Be Courageous!
Taking the leap and deciding to go abroad does wonders for your mental state – being thrown into the unknown, facing challenges daily, and ultimately surviving will inspire independence and self reliance. Your newfound confidence will spill-over into many aspects of your life, including your ability to create.
Remember to travel with an open heart and an open mind. Sometimes travel is difficult and unpleasant: missed trains, delayed flights, lugging baggage, communication barriers, sore feet. Begin your journey with no expectations and the resolve to be open to whatever comes your way. You may be surprised by what most meaningfully impacts your travels. Remember, 90% of all personal growth progress happens outside of our comfort zone.
Let travel help you take new sights, sounds, sensations, tastes, and conversations and turn them into positive personal and professional creativity and growth. Take a trip and boost your creativity!