A habit is something we do without thinking about it.

We brush our teeth usually without thinking about it.

The way we use the bathroom, the really awesome technique we do it with is usually automated.

Now, if we spend the required time to direct where we want our habits, we are able to achieve the better results we want.

We don’t usually make the conscious decision to not work on our muse or information product, we usually decided it before our conscious brains receive it.

We may want to be fit, but we may eat foods and do activities which make us get fatter and unhealthier.

What if we directed it a little, just a little so that we get into the habit of doing actions which progress our lives instead of making us go backwards?

To Make a Habit:

Do it once a day, everyday for 30 days.

For example. I want to make it a habit to write better and create content consistently.

I write one blog post a day for Vagabond Insider which I queue for posting at 5:59am pacific time.

While I might miss a few days, the more I do it and the longer I do it, the more content creation habits I make and help with all my other ventures.

It’s ok to fail, just don’t use that an excuse to stop doing a habit.

Just keep doing it regardless of what that voice in your head says.

Listen to your heart and the future self you will become and keep going.

Make it a habit to stick to your habits and it becomes a huge snowball effect.

Related Posts:

• How I Cured My Back Pain

Is it really worth sacrificing their future to look good in the short term?

Nope.

You can’t take everything with you. (Photo: BrittneyBush)

The act (or is it art?) of packing light is different for everyone. In my previous article about being prepared for being unprepared, carefully choosing the gear in your packing list is worth the time spent.

Packing light to some people might be just going around the world with just a jacket like Rolf Potts (I’ll do this within one year).

To others, it may be having just two full suitcases of clothes and gear. I don’t recommend this approach at all because even if you are not going from place to place, it becomes a reason to stay where you are.

Think why you may have not moved yet. Wouldn’t it be a pain to get all that stuff you have to your new home? Buying boxes, buying tape, getting movers or renting a truck yourself. Packing the boxes, and moving them onto the truck and moving them off the truck and unpacking them, and organizing it all.

Some people love the process of moving. Is it a really effective use of time? Could you be building your business? Spending more time with your kids and loved ones?

Wait, what does this have to do with packing light? Well, everything.

Are you ok with having an apartment full of stuff while you are trekking the world? This choice I leave up to you, but I didn’t want to have stuff to worry about while traveling.

If you decide to pack light (I say one medium sized back pack and one small bag works just fine) you’ll gain mental freedom.

Carrie talks about clutter, and clutter really causes more problems than you may know. With minimalism, you’ll also gain physical freedom.

If you don’t like where you are staying, find a new place, because it takes you 10 minutes to pack up your bag and 5 minutes to book a room in another hostel. Of course if you wanted an apartment while traveling, that will take a little more effort, though it is still very easy.

Another benefit of packing light is no checked bags. A lot of US airlines are now charging for checked bags, and I’m sure there are international ones doing it too.

I don’t know much about international ones doing it because I always carry on my gear.

Losing gear and waiting for gear at baggage claim are just a waste of time while traveling (even though time is plentiful when you don’t have a schedule).

I wanted to include what I packed for my travels. Most people who see my gear think I’m crazy, which is fine, I get all the function I need and I have a lot less to maintain. While my list isn’t the cheapest, I won’t need to buy much stuff in the long run.

A large portion (most of it really) was inspired by Karol’s list. Karol is already traveling and I trust his experience and expertise, which saved me a lot of time and experimentation with different gear (like I’m doing for you).

How to Travel Light

-

1. Start with a smaller pack, those backpacker packs that are 40L+ are far too big to lug around everywhere. I use a 28L pack and I suggest anything 35L or below. Most packs bigger than that risk having to be checked in.
2. Pack enough gear to wear for at least two days. You’ll be hand washing your stuff frequently. Once every few days. Bring essential stuff.
3. Buy what you can where you travel. Unless you have a special formula of some sort of awesome tooth paste you need for your teeth to stay on, you’ll find a lot of stuff you can buy locally. Buying an Umbrella in Taiwan for $3.00 instead of lugging it around is not so bad. I’ll tell you that Taiwan doesn’t have much deodorant or ANY almond butter, so plan accordingly.

It’s as simple as those three things.

My Gear

-

I find I have everything I need and if I don’t have something, I can easily buy it from a grocery store, like tooth paste. The list might seem huge, though it’s really not all that much stuff.

Everything fits into my 28L bag just fine with some space to spare.

There are some affiliate links below, so I’ll leave it up to you if you want to click the links for the items.

Clothes

1) Black Icebreaker Men’s Bodyfit150 Ultralite

This shirt dries fast, and lets air flow very well in the humid weather I’m in. It also is odor resistant, I’ve worn it 4 days without a wash and it still smells fine mostly.  Very comfortable. A bit tight around the mid section. A bit expensive.

Buy the Icebreaker Men’s Bodyfit150 Ultralite

2) Black and Red Stoic Merino Bliss Shirt

I bought this for a future layer shirt for when winter rolls around. I use it mainly on days I wash my other shirts. Dries fast and odor resistant as well. Very comfortable. Was a bit expensive.

Buy The Stoic Merino Bliss Shirt

3) Black Icebreaker SuperFine 200 Kent Polo Shirt

A little thicker than both other shirts, though it fits very well and is made out of the same wool. Great for being a little better dressed. Dries fast, breathes well, and odor resistant. Very comfortable. A bit expensive.

Buy The Icebreaker SuperFine 200 Kent Polo Shirt

4) ExOfficio Men’s Give-N-Go Boxer Brief x 3

They dry fast, they resist odor, and can be used as swimming shorts. A bit expensive.

Buy The ExOfficio Men’s Give-N-Go Boxer Brief

5) SmartWool PhD Outdoor Light Micro Sock x 2

Just like my shirts, they dry fast, they resist odor, and they breathe well. Very comfortable. A bit expensive.

Buy the SmartWool PhD Outdoor Light Micro Sock

6) REI Thermal Pants

Great for layering and wearing when all my other clothes is drying. Resists odors, and dries fast.

7) Patagonia Sock

Bought these at an REI sale, just like the other wool, they dry fast, and resist odor.

8 ) Running shorts

They were originally shorts I bought a long time ago to run in, I use them mostly when I’m washing my pants or doing something active.

9) Biking gloves

Bought them a while back when I had my road bike, will be using it with the layering clothes when it gets cold or when I do some hiking.

10) Columbia Men’s Silver Ridge II Convertible Pants

They dry fast, and they convert to shorts. Handy for hot days or when you go to a place with a dress code (keep the pants in the pockets) Karol had trouble finding darker ones for his size and these are the darkest ones I found.

Buy the Columbia Men’s Silver Ridge II Convertible Pants

11) Wal-Mart flip flops

Cheap flip flops that were just too large for me, I couldn’t find any ones that fit me well so I just use these old things. Great for short walks around town or if it’s raining.

12) Sketchers Shoes from Macy’s

Fancy enough for the night clubs, though strong enough to do rigorous things with.

13) Black SEV Tropical Vest Jacket

Converts into a vest, carries a ton of my stuff while flying or on a scooter. Folds into itself, the jacket works great.

Buy The SEV Tropical Vest Jacket

Toiletries

1) Tiny tooth brush

2) Bigger tooth brush from dentist

3) Deodorant x 3

My friend brought me some back from the states because they don’t really have any here where I’m writing this from (Taiwan).

4) Multiple tiny toothpaste things from dentist

5) Multiple floss things from dentist

6) Multiple Floss threaders (for my permanent retainer)

7) Tweezers

8 ) Razor

9) 3oz bottles of almond Dr Bonner’s soap x 3

I use this to hand wash my clothes

10) MSR Packtowl UltraLite

I got the medium size, dries my whole body perfectly. Easy to wash in the shower and ring out and use it to dry myself and ring out the water again. Dries in a few hours or a few minutes on a fan. I recommend not letting it stay wet too long because it can stink and stay stinky.

Buy the MSR Packtowl UltraLite

11) MSR PackTowl Personal

My friend just gave me this because my other towel is not doing so hot. Medium size again.

Buy the MSR PackTowl Personal

Electronics

1) iPhone 4

Got rid of my flip video camera, and  my point and shoot camera. Also use the GPS and compass on this to find my away areas I don’t know. Tons of great travel apps, and essentially compressed 5 or more items into one (camera, phone, itouch, video camera, kitchen timer). If your iPhone 4 ever blacks out and doesn’t turn on even though you know it has battery power, press the home button and power button at the same time, and release it after 15 seconds or after it shows you the Apple logo.

2) Apple Mac Book Pro 13.3-Inch Laptop + Charger

My Windows 7 computer crashed and broke. I lost a months worth of data, and this is probably the 7th time it has happened to me since I started using computers 15 or so years ago. I bought the Mac because it just works, and it just works. It still has it’s own problems, though I spend more time getting work done than trying to make things work in Windows.

Buy the Apple MacBook Pro 13.3-Inch Laptop

3) Sansa Clip MP3 Player

Bought this a long time ago for use during workouts and just regular use overall. Still works great for when I don’t have anything as an alternative.

Buy the Sansa Clip

4) Head phones with Mics x 3

1 Came with the iPhone, I brought two from home for just in case. One is a factory included blackberry curve headset.

5) JBuds Hi-Fi Noise-Reducing Ear Buds

To block out sound in busy places when I’m working. They were very cheap to buy compared to most head phones.

Buy the JBuds Hi-Fi Noise-Reducing Ear Buds

6) 250GB Hard drive

I use this to back up some data and put videos and other larger files on.

Buy the 250GB Hard Drive

7) iPhone Cable + Hong Kong iPhone wall charger

8 ) All in one Converter

Bought this one from a store in Hong Kong

Misc

1) Emergency Blanket

For just in case situations where I may need a blanket.

Buy the Emergency Blanket

2) Medium Eagle Creek Pack-It Compression Sac Travel

Carry around my clothes in my bag with this and keep it on my bed at hostels

Buy the Medium Eagle Creek Pack-It Compression Sac Travel

3) Small Eagle Creek Pack-It Compression Sac Travel

To compress dirty clothes or my jacket if I’m not using it

Buy the Small Eagle Creek Pack-It Compression Sac Travel

4) First Need Trav-L-Pure Portable Water Purifier

Haven’t used it yet, though it’s for countries where I can’t drink the tap water and hiking trips

Buy the First Need Trav-L-Pure Portable Water Purifier

5) Exercise Rope

I was using this to do some weight training while traveling, though I just gave this to my friend because I have a book on body weight exercises, so no more lugging around this rope.

Buy the Exercise Rope

6) Sleeping Mask

Have only used on planes so far.

7) Petzl Tikka Plus Headlamp

Great for when you need to see in the dark! Since it is a headlamp, you have two hands free to do the things you need to do. Hasn’t failed me yet after 4 years, get LED.

8 ) SilentEar Reusable Ear Plugs  x 3

Mostly used on planes. Reusable, and work great.

Buy the SilentEar Reusable Ear Plugs

9) Laptop screen wipe cloth

10) Micro SIM Cutter

The iPhone 4 requires specially shaped SIM cards, so instead of using scissors, I will use this card to cut SIM cards in the different countries I visit.

11) 12×12 Aloksak bag x 2

I gave one to my friend to wash his clothes or hold stuff. I use these to hold dirty clothes and hand wash clothes.

Buy the Aloksak

12) 6×9 Aloksak bag x 2

I gave one to my friend. I hold my valuables in here in my bag.

Buy the Aloksak

13) Quart zip lock bags x 4

Back up for when my travel quart bags rip.

14) 55L Bag Lock

Heavy, and bulky, though it gives me peace of mind when I’m in a place with no lockers or I just need to lock my stuff up.

Buy the 55L Bag Lock

15) Neptune Krill Oil

Need my Omega 3′s yo.

Buy the Neptune Krill Oil

16) Bottle of Probiotics

Keep a healthy digestion system while eating random foods and tons of street foods.

Buy the Probiotics

17) Bottle of Digestion Pills

To keep my digestion system good (they are preventative measures unlike indigestion pills, which you should NEVER take the in digestion pills that is).

Buy the Digestion Pills

18) Fiber Harmony Whole Husk Psyllium

There is not much fiber here! Where are the beans, lentils or fiber stuff at? This is a bulky item, which may seem silly, though I’m glad I can have one serving a day.

Buy the Fiber Harmony Whole Husk Psyllium

19) Clothesline

Hang up my wet clothes if there is no where to hang them up.

Buy the Clothesline

20) Check book

In case I need to write a check.

21) Combo locks x 3

I use these to lock my 55L Bag Lock and zippers when I travel. Better than needing to carry around keys.

22) Foldable Water Bottle

Great water bottle for travel as it compresses down when there is no water in it. It still tastes great after using it for many months now. Great for when there is filtered water.

Buy The Foldable Water Bottle

Travel Gear

1) Deuter Futura 28 Backpack

Awesome bag which fits everything I have perfectly (with room to spare). What I like about this bag is that it has a bottom compartment so I don’t have to dig through the whole  bag to get to certain items. It also comes with a rain cover.

I restricted myself to a smaller bag so I wouldn’t take so much stuff with me. I always carry this bag onto the plane with me so no need to pay or wait for checked bags.

Buy the Deuter Futura 28 Backpack

2) Kiva Key Chain Pack

Great for taking stuff around a hostel and keeping near me when I sleep.

Buy the Kiva Key Chain Pack

Gear removed since traveled

1) Travel Pillow Case

2) Mac book pro Extension Cord

Having this would be an excuse to be tethered to one area for too long. Also didn’t need it as it was just extra weight.

3) Camera Stand (tiny)

4) Flip HD Camera

5) Olympus Camera

Terrible camera.

6) Kiva Duffel Bag

Gave to my friend to carry around as we travel. Was far too big when expanded.

7) Metro200 side bag

I felt too metro sexual even in metro capital Taipei. It was too heavy and it dug into my shoulder when I would carry it around.

8 ) Cotton shirts x 3

They dried slowly, they dried badly, and they stunk fast.

9) Sleeping Bag

Yea, totally didn’t need this, though I wouldn’t turn down a linen

10) Cotton socks x 3

Dried slow and smelled fast.

11) REI Jacket

I may get this jacket back if the other jacket proves not warm enough for colder places

12) Teeth whitening crap

13) Exercise Shorts

14) Multiple Feng Shui items my mom gave me to keep so I wouldn’t drown in August

15) Necklace from Australia

16) Travel clock/alarm/currency converter

Cheap eagle creek thing broke after 2 drops.

17) Kitchen timer

18) Scissors

Taken away at Hong Kong airport even though it fit the requirements for scissors.

–

That is my whole packing list!

What sort of tips do you have for packing? What are your must have items for traveling?

Let me know in a comment below!

Posted 6th November 2010.

I wish you were here with me. (Photo: snowriderguy)

Ni Hao.

OK, I haven’t talked about this much. I moved around California a lot, even to big weird cities like San Francisco. It was a fun experience, though not the place for me.

I didn’t really plan where I was going, I just found things which interested me and choose to seek out the areas.

I’m now across the ocean in a far time zone away from the places I called home. I packed my 28L bag, and side bag and flew away.

This awesome tropical island I’m at is called Taiwan. I don’t speak Mandarin at all. Doy-ba-chi.

I have to say the people here are very friendly. It started raining and I stood there in my shorts and no umbrella near a jewelry shop. I took the rain cover out of the bottom of my backpack and covered my backpack.

I stood there staring at the rain to slow down for 5 minutes. This was so I may run to the train station 5 blocks away without getting too wet.

The shop owner of the shop I was standing near walked out side and beckoned me to come over to him, he handed me an umbrella. He made the motions to throw it away when I’m done with it. This was awesome.

I went to the local 7 eleven (they are on most corners, literally 1 block away from each other) and bought an umbrella. I brought back his and thanked him.

I didn’t come to Taiwan prepared for a lot of things, I took the time to figure it out while I was here. I prepared myself with clothes, and the ability to reach the Internet, though beyond this, all I did was book a plane and a hostel (the day before the flight) and figured my way around as soon as I landed.

Some folks I talk to here say I’m really prepared when it comes to my gear. Not really. I just put a lot of research before hand to have stuff which works great around the world. I’m not prepared for everything, just most things.

It basically boils down to this, be prepared for 20% of the important stuff, and you’ve covered 80% of the important things. Of course this is the 20/80 principle or whatever, just apply your numbers in whichever way works for you.

This 20/80 principle basically applies to all of life. The numbers might look like 10/90 or 5/95 or even 30/70.

If you focus on the important aspects of ANYTHING, the rest usually falls into place or is worth putting mediocre effort on.

This applies to jobs, school, and yes, even relationships and especially traveling.

Wait, relationships? Are you saying I shouldn’t give it my all? Well think about it. Did you give 100% of yourself throughout every relationship (lover or friend)? Definitely not. Over time we sometimes start taking things for granted.

What if you focused on the really important things to your important people, like making sure they feel loved, surprising them randomly, and spending some quality time with them? Things usually fall into place. The small things are important as well, they are part of the 20%!

How to be Prepared for Being Unprepared

Now here are a few ways you can do the 20% of important things while traveling. You’ll get an adventure out of it because you get to figure out the rest and spend more time doing the important things. The bonus for using these tips is you carry less stuff and travel light, which is a whole different experience compared to having heavy suit cases.

-Use a laptop/smartphone/itouch and know where to find everything you need or grab a map

I got an iPhone 4 (which has maps, currency conversion, translators, video camera, camera, and tons more useful stuff).

Before I got my iPhone, I navigated my way around town using google maps on my laptop (before hand I’d preload the maps and during my travels I’d find my location with location finding services/gps, there are lot of wi-fi open signals in more populated areas).

I’d get directions from other folks, and just asking the public transit people for tickets to cities I didn’t know how to get to.

It’s easy to book stuff on hostelworld.com/hostels.com and many other websites. You can book your plane tickets on your computer, use virturaltourist.com and lonely planet to get more information from other travelers.

If you don’t want to use tech, GRAB A MAP! I can’t tell you how many times I got lost and if I didn’t have my computer or something, I’d go bonkers. When you arrive at the airport in your destination, there are usually visitor/tourist areas where you can pick up some free maps in English.

-Bring an all in one converter for your world travel electronics/buy one in the airport or electronic store of the country you are visiting.

I don’t want to get into voltage conversions and all that other stuff, but to make sure your electronic stuff works with the local wall outlets, get a device which can at least convert your electronic devices to many other different outlets. There will be times you may want a transformer and a surge protector though, you shouldn’t need to worry about it too much.

When I stopped by Hong Kong a few months ago, I picked up a 5 in 1 outlet converter and was able to charge my laptop right away. Just pick one up or buy one before you leave home.

Here is a handy dandy link to some converters.

-Use a translator program for websites countries you don’t know the language or grab a translation book! I don’t have any recommendations as I don’t use any, though there are phrases and stuff in Lonely Planet books.

I use google chrome, and it has a built in translation feature. I also use an extension for google chrome, called Google Translate. It’s not the best translation, though for most things, it gets the job and gist done. Stuff is getting smarter and smarter to the point where I believe you are able to take a photo of something and it will be translated if you have connection to their databases for some products/ companies.

Here is a handy dandy link to some translation books (which none I recommend over the others as I haven’t used any).

-Pack enough clothes where you need to wash every other other day or every other day.

Do you really need loads of clothes for traveling? Naw, not really.

Here is a good amount of stuff, took me a lot of experimenting, and you’ll see my travel list soon.

Avoid cotton. It dries slow, it smells fast, and it weighs a lot. If you are ok with wearing animal products (like wool), avoid synthetic stuff as it smells faster than cotton! I recommend merino wool because it dries fast, literally  a few hours, it doesn’t smell much (odor resistant), and it’s light.

• 2-3 shirts (I like merino wool shirts because they don’t stink and they dry fast, they are pricy though)
• 1 Pants (I like convertible pants because I get shorts too!)
• 1 Light workout shorts (for when you wash your pants or workout/be active)
• 2-3 Underwear (Yes, there are underwear out there which will not smell, dry fast, and are great as swimming shorts too)
• 2-3 Socks (Merino wool socks are awesome…)
• 1 Awesome Jacket which is not too bulky, good mid range for cold weather, though breathable for rain and water resistant
• 1 Long sleeve shirt (I still like merino wool here and it’s for layering when it gets a little cold, of course if you are only in tropics, you won’t really need it)
• 1 travel towel, smaller size (they dry fast, and pack well)

-Learn a few good phrases and words for the country you visit or have them readily available when you visit.

I recommend checking if Pimsleur has a program in the language of the country you want to visit, you’ll learn conversationally faster than any other program to speak conversationally.

I find the following words and phrases as important and most used as a traveler:

• Hello
• Thank you
• Do you speak English (or your language)?
• I’m (nationality)
• I want to eat that (and you point)
• Excuse me
• Where is the bathroom?
• One
• Two
• Three
• Four (fingers work for numbers too, just avoid the middle one most places and the thumbs up in Iran)
• Are you single? (only for the single travelers yo or sleaze balls or different area code people)
• How much?
• Chicken
• Pork
• Beef
• Vegetables

If you decide not to learn these words, learning how to read body language and conveying meaning by body language will help a lot.

-Know the currency conversion wherever you go using apps on your phone or just remembering the conversion for your destination.

As long as you know this, it makes ripping you off a little more difficult. It’s also good to know the general prices of things in the countries you visit.

Here are some resources:

Free iPhone/iTouch/iPad App XE Currency

XE Currency Website

Free Android App XE Currency

-Have a good international ATM card.

This is a great way to save money while taking money out of the ATMs in other countries, and of course let your companies know you are out of the country. They reimburse most or all the fees other ATM’s charge you, which includes international. Sometimes ATMs group ATM fees into the total amount pulled out and it makes it difficult to impossible to know how much the ATM charge was for. This is where your fee’s are not reimbursed.

Not all countries take United States ATM Cards, so plan ahead accordingly.

Two banks I know that offer ATM reimbursements:

Charles Schwab High Yield Investor Checking

Fidelity mySmart Cash Account (I use this one personally)

-Ask for help at the hostels or from people you are able to communicate with

I’ve learned that when I meet a person, they always have something I don’t have and I can seek them out to learn things.

Before I learned this, I thought I had all the answers, I never sought help, I never read books and lost a lot of valuable potential relationships and information because I never sought it before.

My life changed when I started looking at everyone and realizing they knew more about something than I knew. I started to seek out very valuable people and creating relationships with people. I’m not saying to only seek people who have something that can help you. I’m saying seek out people who you can provide value to and them providing value to you.

-Be prepared to compromise when things don’t go your way. Be prepared with semi actionable back-up plans.

By semi actionable, I mean to know what resources to use to find what you’re looking for or something you’ll be OK with.

You wanted to see all those sights right? Well that typhoon hit and you can’t. See other places or meet some people if you are staying at a hostel, that’s what I did.

You wanted to stay at that hostel tonight right? Well, they are full. Ask them for a referral or search online or ask local people where to stay. People will help travelers most of the time if you have some way to communicate and friendly about it.

–

The most important lesson is “Be prepared with semi actionable back-up plans.” I should have given this concept it’s own category or post, though it works out because I’ll talk about it a little more here.

Be warned, I’m not telling you to have back-up plans for your dreams, just for your travels. I actually think it’s OK to have semi actionable back-up plans for your dreams, because all they would be, are things you can do which will push you further toward your dreams.

As long as you know a course of action to take to solve your problem, you’ll be fine winging things. Most people who “wing” things have some sort of actionable steps they may take for different sets of problems. It only seems like they might wing them out of spontaneity. Once you know how to solve problems which might arise, you can wing it out of the blue. This applies to all of your life, not just travel.

You can either curl up into a ball and complain the world isn’t fair, the train was too slow, the people are unfriendly, or you can find the solution.

An example would be what to do if you are walking around in the middle of the night trying to find your hostel. OK the action steps here depend on what you prepared before hand and where you are at, though they are still actionable steps you can take.

1. Find a store that may be open late and ask them, even if they may not speak your language, the local people may know more than you think.
2. If you have a device which can catch wifi (such as an iPhone/iTouch/iPad/Android/Laptop), try finding a place with wifi and find more information on where you are at. Wifi may just be some one’s open network you are borrowing (which is illegal in a lot of places) to find where you need to go or call on skype/gmail.
3. You can use a pay phone to call the hostel you are looking for and ask for help.

These are just 3 examples of what you can do, think about the other actionable steps and let me know what you would do in the comments below, I would love to hear them. I dare you to.

Posted on October 31st 2010.

Leverage yourself to change your world (and others). (Photo: alicepopkorn)

Hey there.

I’m writing this from LAX airport in Los Angeles. I just finished a seminar by Eben Pagan. It was the GURU Business Plan. Eben charges $4997 to attend this seminar. I got in free.

Almond Butter!

It was about managing self and doing the highest leverage things in business and in life. Did you know Eben has an assistant who restocks his groceries weekly/bi-weekly. If he doesn’t have the specific almond butter he requests he gets angry and irritated. He even said to us “You really don’t want to see me when I don’t have my almond butter.” Very high leverage (I really mean it).

Eben Pagan & Bobby Huang

Some of the important stuff I learned I wanted to share with everyone. I’ll start dissecting the content and provide some awesome stuff. If you really want to be a vagabond, there are a lot of things you’ll need to do.

Here is a list

• Have income you can generate through the internet
• Leverage your time now so you can always use your time to do what you want later
• Be disciplined
• Become educated of the places you travel at least a little (for things like currency exchange and if you would die because some sort of war or something)
• Tons more

Some people think a vagabond can do whatever they want and wherever they want, and you’re right. Most people just won’t be one because they think it is impossible.

Why can’t I change?

The biggest problem I see a lot of people having is wanting to change to be better and not being able to stick with the change.

Have you ever wanted to lose weight?

Have you ever wanted to work out everyday?

Have you ever wanted to talk to that beautiful girl or handsome man across the room?

What if there was this little thing, little thing, you change about yourself to be able to start getting the results you are looking for?

Would you do it? Do you even know what it is?

Simple, you already know what it is, this answer, this small thing we could change would change us a lot.

Change this small part of you and you will leverage yourself better in all situations.

The biggest obstacle isn’t external, it is internal.

The biggest obstacle of FREEDOM is not money, it’s not material possession, and it’s not even relationships. It is OURSELVES. It doesn’t matter if a person is making billions of dollars a year. Talk to some billionaires and they’ll say it’s just not enough. They need to keep working, they need to keep earning or else they’ll lose it all.

I don’t know about you, I think I’d do fine living my life well with even a percent of their wealth

Talk to some people who have no money to their name and no home, they’ll tell you they are free. And you know what, they are. They, mentally, are free to think and do what they choose to.

Freedom is possible even inside a job; it is all about who you are INSIDE.

Do you choose to be with your kids every day? Do you choose to be at your job every day?

You’re right, there are some external obstacles as well, and those are easier to take care of when we align our internal selves with the people we want to be. We’ll focus mostly on internal for this duration and talk about external later.

Is it impossible?

The mind set of thinking it impossible does something. The unconscious mind believes what the conscious mind believes. It makes it impossible.

There is much more behind this than just what I write. There are many reasons why and many ways to not make things impossible. I learned most everyone already knows how to do the things they are suppose to. Except, it just seems like too much work for the benefit.

I believe most people are right; it does seem like too much work to do what we should be doing in the short term.

Though in the long term, those few things which take little effort in the short term will pay off 20x-100x more than the required effort.

A few of these things are:

• Exercising
• Eating Good Whole Foods
• Building Healthy Relationships

Our Two Sides

We have two sides to us (actually a ton more than 2).

These different personalities take over us at different times all the time. Whether it is laziness, staying in our comfort zones, changing things, charging the world and making things happen, these different personalities arise at different times.

One side says, “Hey, don’t do that, it’s not safe” or “Don’t take that risk, it’s not good for you.” This side tells us to stop even if it is something we want to do and know is good for us.

The other side tells us, “Hey, you should go do this new thing, it will be good for you.” This side wants you to experience new things and do things outside your comfort zone. It wants to take risks, change everything.

Some people pursue the safe side or the adventurous side and ignore one. This may not be the best approach. The thing about both sides is that they are both there to protect us. It may be best to meet both sides and combine them so we make the best decisions possible.

There’s an exercise Eben Pagan does in a lot of his programs which I think a lot of people will find beneficial. I don’t know if I’m allowed to clip it out and just show that part, so I’ll make my own.

Do the following exercise; Parts Integration, it comes from NLP, just open your mind to it.

Now, after doing the exercise, don’t you feel good?

You can do this anytime you want, anytime you feel an inner conflict or whatever feeling. It will build these “muscles” to help you make a better decision for everything you do.

I barely, BARELY scratched the surface of this, and this probably isn’t too in depth for people like me who need more direction and more detail.

I’ll get into it deeper and cover it more in more posts. Stay tuned!

Posted on June 15th, 2010.

Changing the world is easier done than said. (Photo: toffiloff)

This is a series of posts about changing your world. How do you change your world? Easier DONE than said (challenge yourself to believe this phrase instead of the normal “easier said than done”).

In the later posts in the series, I will elaborate on the main details below.

–

One of my favorite phrases comes from a video game, Xenosaga I (which I recommend if you like Role Playing Games).

“Perception and pain are one in the same.”

The “current” main enemy says this as he blows his head off with a weapon, and grows it back. The main characters watch in this event with disgust.

If we think about these words, it says we don’t all feel the same pain and we don’t all see the same things. Our idea of how much a punch hurts can mean something completely different to a martial arts fighter or an everyday mom. This also means what we perceive is what we decide for ourselves in our subconscious mind.

An example is seeing is believing. If we see our parents fail in everything they do, we might say there is no chance for ourselves. What about the other people who see their parents succeed and in turn believe they can succeed?

Seeing is believing is saying what our eyes see rings TRUE for ourselves. If we see it, we must believe it. What about the other people who see different events and believe different things?

The more powerful phrase which doesn’t limit us and goes along with “perception and pain are one in the same” is believing is seeing.

If we believe we will be rich, we will unconsciously develop ideas and action which can lead us to wealth.

If we believe we will be poor, we already lost the game because we limited ourselves and most likely be poor.

These are the very high level/view of controlling your time and perception. There are more nitty gritty things you can do, which I am still practicing and will write more about later.

Try these steps out today, it will help you control your perception and start making large changes in your life.

Controlling Our Perception

There are 3 main ways to do it. There are thousands of smaller ways to do it.

Here are the main 3 I use:

• Taking responsibility for EVERYTHING
• Controlling the controllable
• Changing what we believe into what we see (such as slowing or moving time faster)

We control our perception by creating good habits. Good habits in turn control our perception by forcing us to do “good” things for ourselves. Of course “good” is in the eye of the beholder, basically, your perception.

It is good to follow a few guidelines of what good habits are. A few are:

• Something which benefits you in a positive way
• Something which doesn’t hurt you in a negative way
• Something if done repeatedly as a habit which will enrich you

Remember, perception and pain are one in the same; it is all in the eye of the beholder.

Posted on February 16th 2010.

Anti-social is the new social. (Photo: Scott Beale / Laughing Squid)

Have you seen a group of friends typing away on their phones instead of talking?

I have. I use to be one of these people in fact. I had my blackberry (aka crackberry). Now seeing these people waste the precious time they have with their friends or loved ones to type away on their phones, allows me to value my time spent with others.

It isn’t just about being anti-social either. It is a big time waster to type away on these phones most of the time. I know a lot of people who use unproductive behavior as an excuse to not be productive. Do you find yourself tweaking with your new iPhone App instead of finishing that paper or making that sales call? Do you press on the iFart application and laugh in the corner?

I would find myself wasting time on my phone doing useless things like tweaking settings here and there instead of working. When hanging out with other people I would pull out my phone every few minutes to check email or other items. Now, with a few tweaks, I can focus on the important things in my life. Dinner and special time will be interrupted no more. To me as a Vagabond, these few steps allow me to focus on relationships more.

I’m actually planning to experiment life with no phone and only use Skype. Though I would actually want to keep a phone just to keep in touch with the special one. You might find me typing away at times still on my blackberry, though it is only very productive messages to a person who matters.

Benefits of Taking the 6 steps:

• Save Money (No need for a data plan, possibly reduced texting plan)
• 5 Extra hours of free time
• Focus on important tasks
• Focus on loved ones
• Less interruption in life

Cons of Taking the 6 steps:

• Not up to date on useless matters
• Not able to make excuses to participate
• 5 Extra hours of free time

Yes, take the next few steps for the unimportant matters in life, keep alert for the people you find important as you do now, or if you have ignored them, now you can focus on them like me.

Make the choice or pick and choose what works for you.

6 Steps and 2 minutes to an Extra 5 Hours a Day

One key item you need to apply with all this is:

“Make a decision today and take action, and apologize later.” It is not word for word from Tim Ferris. It is best to try something out instead of asking for permission. Just apologize later.

1. Remove access to email on your phone.

Depending on the type of phone you have, you will usually have email with a smart phone. A smart phone is an iPhone, Blackberry, Palm, Android and etc.

Many companies are requiring employees to carry around a blackberry with them now so they become 24/7, and some of these employees have struck back with lawsuits.

Removing your access to email will seem very difficult in the beginning. You are probably checking it every 10 minutes. You can test with auto responders informing the emailing offender that you only check your email twice a day due to a busy schedule and for them to call you if it is truly an emergency. Start checking twice a day on a computer.

This might seem crazy and you think your boss will get angry you didn’t respond to their inquiry right away or at 10pm at night. Well, it is going to take some training for your boss in this situation. Plus, who needs you at 10pm? I would say only those special to you. If people treat every business related matter as an emergency, those people NEED to learn to plan ahead.

2. Remove any social media related applications. (Twitter, Facebook, Myspace, Instant Messengers, etc.)

If you have these apps on your phone, you probably already waste enough time on the computer looking at which friends got drunk the weekend before, or those witty comments by your friends too hip to be defined.

Why do you need to know what your friends did if you are hanging out with them? Just ask!

It is just a huge time waster to consistently check for new information in social media. You can always do it later on a computer.

Instant messaging on a phone is a great time waster too. Waiting for their reply, typing out your reply, hours and hours can go by with nothing getting done. Reply back later.

3. Hide the Internet browser on your phone and do not use it.

I checked CNNMoney everyday on my phone to waste time. I didn’t even like the information they had, it was just a good time waster.

Just hide the Internet browser and only use it for occasions you really need it. When do you need it? When you decide to go to a movie with your special ones and you do not have a computer near you. Finding information you need in a REAL emergency like someone being hurt.

4. Disable notifications.

Don’t disable all your notifications. If your special ones are fans of texting you, you may want to be notified of those.

If you use your phone for your calendar, don’t disable those notifications. Just disable whatever is distracting.

I’m sure you found yourself checking your phone if you received a notification even if it didn’t notify you. It just becomes habit.

Just disable notifications and check your phone at intervals. This is a great solution if you don’t want to remove programs, you can always batch checking your phone at certain times.

5. Put your phone on vibrate forever.

There are so many benefits for vibrate, though the best con you can give me, “what if I miss a call?”

Sometimes it is actually good to miss a call. Though you don’t want to miss your special persons’ calls, so don’t train them that you wouldn’t answer their calls.

It is the calls from your boss, possibly high demanding clients, and other time wasters.

Most of the time, they think they are calling you with an emergency, though if they planned ahead, it would have not happened. The problem can be easily resolved if steps were in place before.

I actually started to ignore calls, these “emergencies” stopped coming to me and many times the person would find the solution themselves. They can also leave voice mails.

Though the special ones to me or you can still reach you because when your phone vibrates, it will usually be them. Text message or call.

Another benefit is not bothering others with a call or text during a meeting or other events where silence is required. Yes you can always change the settings for those times, though it is easier just to walk in the room and focus.

6. Ignore unimportant phone calls and text messages.

This is similar to the vibrate step.

What I call unimportant is anyone you do not deem special. A special person may be your spouse and kids.

Just stop answering calls, have them leave a voice mail and get back to the person when it is convenient for you, not them.

If the text is from an unimportant person, check it later and get back to them then.

Bonus!

7. Have your phone turn auto-off and auto-on

Only have your phone turn on or off at set intervals if you DON’T need to be on call.

If you have a sickly family member and they need to reach you just in case they need a ride, it is best to be reachable.

Having it turn on and off at set times means no one wakes you up and bothers you during sleeping time or after work.

For example, if you use your phone for business and personal, have it set off at 11pm before you sleep and on at 8am after you wake up.

If you don’t want to be on call after work, have it turn off at 5pm, and on at 9am.

The 7th step is similar to step 5 and 6 where unimportant people don’t have their calls answered right away. They have to leave a voice mail, email, or fix their problem themselves.

–

Now you have just freed 5 hours daily from your phone.

Spend time with those who matter. You are not looking at your phone anymore during dinner, and now look straight at the special ones.

Posted on January 26th 2010.

Enjoy this view. (Photo: ...-Wink-…)

What do you worry about when you travel? Your car? Your house? Your possessions? Where you will stay? Your safety?

I was looking to purchase a house a couple of months ago. I looked at it as a good opportunity to build equity and have roommates pay for my mortgage.

What I didn’t want was the head ache of having a bunch of stuff, the remodeling, the collecting of rent from roommates who don’t pay. It would also tie me down to the house until I could sell it, at a loss if sold early. It would also mean joining an earning treadmill I see a lot of people on.

Keeping up with the Joneses

As a college graduate, I saw how my purchasing habits changed when my income tripled in one year. My desire for certain cars changed. I was getting ready to buy a sports car, a BMW Z4 (luckily I was looking at a 2004 model year).

The maintenance, the insurance, the car payment, and the lifestyle upkeep would be even more than a new inexpensive compact car. I actually did the math, it would be about 300% more yearly cost than my current Honda. Insurance would be nearly 4 times the cost per year, the cost of the car would be nearly 70% more in purchase price. Maintenance would substantially more, registration in California is more, etc.

I would need to earn more to drive my car. I would need to wear nice clothes with my car. I would have to work more just to have this life style. Have you heard of the Joneses? Keeping up with the Joneses is a bad idea.

If you don’t know what I mean, I mean trying to portray a sense of wealth that other people try to portray as well. Usually done through possessions such as a house, car, clothes, and many other items.

The largest problem with this lifestyle is that most people portraying these lifestyles are not wealthy. Spending more than a person earns is the key to debt and a way to avoid wealth. I’ll write more about this later, spending less than earned.

This change above is something normal I’ve seen in a lot of college graduates. I’ve been thinking about what “normal” means for people for quite a while. I’ll write about this more later. I’m actually seeing a lot of other college graduates following this way of “Keeping up with the Joneses.”

One way I’ve seen this is the announcements many fellow college grads make on facebook. New job, new house, new expensive car, new phone, new marriage, shopping, and many other ways.

What does this have to do with traveling and worrying? Everything.

If you have traveled recently, did you have a limited time traveling due to a job? Did you have to worry about someone caring for your plants, your house, or your pets? Is your car safe in the driveway?

These are all worries about possessions. To me, a job is a possession itself, it weighs a person down. The company controls the persons whereabouts usually.

In college, and after I graduated, I moved more than most people I knew. Though some terrible places I stayed was because I didn’t want to move all my possessions. Meaning my possessions tied me to the place I was at because I didn’t want to move them, and I needed notice and planning to move. I had a large one bedroom apartment filled with my own possessions out of college.

I had:

• Huge couch set + single sitting couch seat
• Dining Tables and Chairs
• Coffee Table
• Desks
• Dressers
• Bed
• Nightstands
• All normal Kitchen Items
• All normal Bathroom Items
• Two Bikes
• Too much clothes I didn’t wear
• Multiple TVs
• Video Game Systems
• Two Laundry baskets
• Multiple Computers
• Two Guitars
• Camera
• Tent
• Multiple Backpacks
• Outdoor Gear (I had a ton)
• Gym Bag
• Desk Chair
• Huge collection of DVDs
• Huge collection of books
• Filing Cabinet
• 8 pairs of shoes
• Everything in-between

While this next list might seem bigger, if you look close a lot of the items are small. I didn’t extend the previous list because it would be way too long to list everything I use to have.

Now I have:

*denotes what I had originally

**denotes I plan to get rid of it soon + had it originally

• TV Tray** (it is my new desk)
• Outdoors Chair** (it compresses small)
• Small Desk Light**
• Two Backpacks* (One original)
• Sleeping Pad
• Sleeping Bag*
• Shredder**
• Fleece Blanket**
• Toothbrush and portable bathroom items*
• Laptop
• Camera*
• Video Camera
• Portable External Hard drive
• 4 of each clothing, pants, jackets, underwear, shorts, shirts, polo shirts** (keep some)
• 7 pairs of socks** (keep some)
• Gym Bag**
• 14 or so books** (keep some)
• Document holding item** (passport, title, etc.)
• Two tote bags** (keeping one)
• Portable Heater**
• Portable Fan**
• One Computer Mouse*
• Two Laundry Bags** (did not have originally)
• Portable Printer
• 3 pairs of shoes** (will get rid of one pair)

This is literally everything I own (except my car) listed. Right now everything fits in the trunk of my small hatchback. I don’t need to fold down the seats to hold all this and still able to have 5 people in my car. Check out some of my photos at my flickr account.

Before The Cleanup

After The Cleanup

As I began to travel, I will reduce my possessions to two backpacks. My 32L backpack and a messenger bag for my electronics. Yes, I plan to sell my car as well.

Why this reduction of possessions? To stop worrying about my possessions while traveling. Also for me, less is more. I can live my vagabond life free now.

When I first moved after college to a different state, it cost more than $1,000.00 to move. Now, moving expenses are based upon travel.

I canceled my renters insurance. The person asked me why I was canceling. I told them, “Because I don’t have possessions justifying the cost.”

I hope you enjoyed this post. I plan to write more in depth the process I went through to get rid of my items. I sold most of it.

Is there anything specific you want to hear about?

Posted on January 19th 2010.

Our friends determine who we are. (Photo: El Fotopakismo)

When growing up, my mom would be concerned who my friends were. I thought my mom was just being nosy. I’m sure many people reading this had the same situation before.

If you have kids now, you are most likely concerned who their friends are.

The reason for the concern of friends? Sometimes we are not able to explain it without thinking about it, though to put it in words, we are who our friends are.

I’m not saying we’ll only be as good or as bad as our friends, though we’ll be very near their level. Rich people can have poor friends and poor people can have rich friends, though it usually doesn’t mix. If we want to make success inevitable, shouldn’t we associate with the people we want to be like?

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again.

“We are who we are going to be for the rest of our lives after college or high school, except for two things, the people we meet and the books we read.”

I’m definitely going to repeat the important concepts a lot, to reinforce it into my head, and into yours.

I can tell you from my experiences, the friends I’ve had, and the friends my friends had, how similar they were to their friends. The friends who did drugs, their friends usually did drugs. The violent friends, had violent friends. The ambitious friends, had ambitious friends.

I think it is important being a Vagabond to at least have some friends who have done something similar before. They can tell you what works and what doesn’t. My friend recently graduated college, sold and gave away all his stuff and just drove off to a different state (I’ll interview him later).

It is actually very easy to meet these people. I’ve interviewed one named Karol, and he is a great guy writing his adventures, his tips and tricks and so much more.

You can meet a lot of people traveling or even join websites which have similar people. Couchsurfing.org is a great place to check out, there are people all over the world who get together to share their adventures.

The main course of the post though comes from Jen at Millionaire Mommy Next Door. I’ve been following her blog for a while now. Before she talked on TV shows or showed a picture about herself, I absorbed everything she wrote.

Before the housing bust, she sold her house and told people through her blog and to people she knew that renting is a better choice (until certain conditions are met and those conditions were years off at the point).

A lot of people didn’t like what she was writing, though she backed it up with very good data and views, and these same people still said it was a bad idea. In my previous post I said:

“People have envisioned amazing things and they become true while other say they were impossible. Some of these same people still say it is impossible AFTER seeing it possible. Run as fast as you can from these people, they are very toxic.”

I told you to run away from people who still don’t believe after they see the facts, again, run away from these people.

After selling her house at a high point in the bubble and started investing in various ways to have a net worth over one million dollars. Now she doesn’t really need to work and her husband can do whatever work he chooses. She lives with a less consumption lifestyle and the money she has earns through investments is enough for their lifestyle.

To me, Jen fits a great profile for a Vagabond. She is financially independent and thinks for herself. She is one of the people I look up to.

The following content comes from her post “Want To Be Rich And Happy? You NEED To Know This…” Check it out here. I’ve quoted the 8 methods, though I will include my comments about each part. Check out her blog, its one of my favorites.

Here is what Jen said about what you need to know to be rich and happy.

“Even if you learn ALL there is to know about money (how to make it, save it, invest it), if your relationships with others OR YOURSELF are dysfunctional, you will NEVER reach your full abundance potential.”

All of the following items are 8 conscious decisions you have to choose to be rich and happy.

Here are the 8 instant methods.

Here are some of the valuable lessons I’ve learned through the University of Hard Knocks:

We become the company we keep. Like attracts like. Be negative and you’ll attract negativity; be positive and you will attract positive relationships into your life.

The same as I mentioned earlier in the post. It is important to pick the type of people we want to be like in life.

Limit your exposure to toxic people. We all have them – friends, family or co-workers – that seem hell-bent on bringing us down to their level. Immunize yourself from their poison by maintaining healthy personal boundaries. Don’t be a martyr, learn to say no. When someone near you behaves badly, don’t engage with them — walk away if you must. Be a positive role model instead. Perhaps you’ll inspire them (when they are personally ready) by modeling a different, healthier attitude.

The phrase “walk away if you must,” is great. I never thought about just walking away from toxic people, though the results will be amazing.

Saying no is great too. Sometimes we may just waste time with toxic people to pass time and it usually ends up costing more in terms of ambition and attitude.

The last part about inspiring is great as well, I do well to have and portray a healthier attitude.

Envy and jealousy will get you exactly what you don’t want.Acknowledge these feelings, then release them and let go. Compare yourself not to others, but only to your best self.

This is said very well about envy and jealousy. I’ve seen many jealous boyfriends or girlfriends and it usually ends up pushing the other person even further.

I have been intimidated to inaction when I compare myself to others. This is really bad, saying I will fail before I even start because someone is well ahead of me is not a great way to think. Starting to only compare myself to my best self will push me to do better.

Don’t be pressured into humility. Definitions of humble include:

• cause to feel shame; hurt the pride of
• low or inferior in station or quality
• marked by meekness or modesty

These definitions don’t fit with a healthy, positive self-esteem, do they?

I use to be was very humble. Now if you talk to a lot of people I talk to, they would say I’m not very humble. Before I was also very negative and had low self-esteem. Now I’m very positive and have very high self-esteem. Do you notice any differences?

Choose to use different language. The language you use directs your actions and therefore the path your life takes.

• Avoid three dirty little words: try, can’t, and but.
• When someone asks, “how are you?” don’t whine back, “I stepped in dog puke getting out of bed this morning, then I burned my toast, and now I gotta suffer through a dentist appointment…”. Instead, respond with something that is joyfully perfect in your world like, “I just had thee best grilled cheese sandwich for lunch!”

Writing this post, I almost said try a few times, just like other posts. I consciously remove the word try from my vocabulary unless I’m trying (yea I said it) to make a point. When I try, I fail. I also avoid the words can’t and but consciously.

If language helps determine action, action helps determine feelings. I use to be a person who let my feelings determine my actions (when I was more humble), now I let myactions determine my feelings. I take action and move forward in my life and feel great everyday.

Limit your exposure to mass media. Pull the plug on bad news. Be selective – record uplifting, humorous and educational programs and keep the boob-tube turned off otherwise. I don’t know who was murdered, what poor child was abducted and from where, and who blew up how many people today, and you know what? I don’t want to know!

I’ve tried a media fast for many weeks before. I now avoid any newspaper and news articles. I don’t watch television, or even very many movies (unless I’m hanging out with a girl, yea). I’ll tell you my mind is more clear and my world is up beat and happy.

My step dad watches the news a lot and it pisses him off. He keeps watching and it keeps pissing him off.

A lot of things on the news we can’t change, so why hear about things which will frustrate us? If we want to change the world, volunteer time to help people. There are many volunteer opportunities in soup kitchens, building houses, teaching kids, and so much more.

Focus on the bright side of life. I promise – there is always a bright side! What you think about is what you will get. Practice this skill by keeping a gratitude journal.

What we think is what we are. We can fool ourselves in a positive way or in a negative way. We can think ourselves rich and grow rich.

Stop looking in the rear view mirror. Live your life from this day forward.

I would say only look back to learn from mistakes, though don’t dwell on what happened, it already happened. Also to live in the present, and prepare for the future.

A lot of people have told me “you only live once.” People have said this to me many times because I save a lot of the money I make, and the people who say it to me, spend all their money away.

Do you understand why they say it to me? To justify spending everything they earn and more. The reason I save? Because I prefer financial freedom and location freedom over consumption of products.

Think about your priorities. What is important for you? Financial Freedom or the new ______(fill in the blank)?

Posted on January 14th 2010.