Have you ever sat at your desk, daydreaming about turning your wanderlust into a way of life? Lora Pope made that leap, and on The Pivot Point, she takes us through the shift from a secure government job to the unpredictable, yet liberating world of travel blogging. This conversation is a candid look at the emotional whirlwinds and the trials of forging a new path where her office is as mobile as she is.
Let's talk about the realities of a digital nomad life, beyond the Instagram-worthy snapshots. Lora gets real with us about the hustle behind the scenes—managing finances, securing visas, and carving out a community in every new destination. This episode is a masterclass in adaptability and resilience. For those of you curious about the nuts and bolts of maintaining a nomadic lifestyle, Lora's insights offer a treasure map to navigate the highs and lows of building a life on the move.
There's nothing like the rush of forging connections across the world, and Lora's tales from hostels to expat communities will inspire even the most hesitant adventurers to take the plunge. In this episode, we don't just explore the globe with Lora; we discover the courage it takes to smile at a stranger and the unexpected friendships that follow. Whether through her travel blog or the personal anecdotes shared here, Lora's experiences are a compass, pointing toward a life of discovery, connection, and the sweet freedom of living beyond borders.
Lora's Website : https://explorewithlora.com/
Lora's Instagram : https://instagram.com/explorewithlora
Are you loving this show? I’d be so grateful if you like, rate, review and share with a friend!
Catch the episode on Youtube to see photos and videos related to this story.
Want to spend more time with me? Join me in my 1:1 Coaching Container https://www.coachedbyjess.com/coaching
Explore more wellness conversations with me over on instagram @coached.byjess
Do you have a story that you would like to share on The Pivot Point? Apply now https://forms.gle/hxfmFb5RNJ7VBKQQ9
Have you ever sat at your desk, daydreaming about turning your wanderlust into a way of life? Lora Pope made that leap, and on The Pivot Point, she takes us through the shift from a secure government job to the unpredictable, yet liberating world of travel blogging. This conversation is a candid look at the emotional whirlwinds and the trials of forging a new path where her office is as mobile as she is.
Let's talk about the realities of a digital nomad life, beyond the Instagram-worthy snapshots. Lora gets real with us about the hustle behind the scenes—managing finances, securing visas, and carving out a community in every new destination. This episode is a masterclass in adaptability and resilience. For those of you curious about the nuts and bolts of maintaining a nomadic lifestyle, Lora's insights offer a treasure map to navigate the highs and lows of building a life on the move.
There's nothing like the rush of forging connections across the world, and Lora's tales from hostels to expat communities will inspire even the most hesitant adventurers to take the plunge. In this episode, we don't just explore the globe with Lora; we discover the courage it takes to smile at a stranger and the unexpected friendships that follow. Whether through her travel blog or the personal anecdotes shared here, Lora's experiences are a compass, pointing toward a life of discovery, connection, and the sweet freedom of living beyond borders.
Lora's Website : https://explorewithlora.com/
Lora's Instagram : https://instagram.com/explorewithlora
Are you loving this show? I’d be so grateful if you like, rate, review and share with a friend!
Catch the episode on Youtube to see photos and videos related to this story.
Want to spend more time with me? Join me in my 1:1 Coaching Container https://www.coachedbyjess.com/coaching
Explore more wellness conversations with me over on instagram @coached.byjess
Do you have a story that you would like to share on The Pivot Point? Apply now https://forms.gle/hxfmFb5RNJ7VBKQQ9
Welcome back to the Pivot Point podcast, where we explore the pivotal moments that shape our lives. I'm your host, jessica McGann, and today I have a question for you. Have you ever sat at your desk wishing that you were somewhere anywhere else? Perhaps you dream of making money from your fingertips on your laptop, from some exotic locations around the world. Well, you are not alone, because so does my guest today, and not only did she dream it, she's doing it.
Speaker 2:My guest today is Laura Pope, who's a travel content creator that's been traveling the world solo for over a decade. After returning home from a year-long backpacking trip, she decided to sell all of her belongings to travel the world full-time and pursue her quest of visiting every country in the world. She started her own travel blog in 2018 and is now a regular contributor to some of the most popular travel websites. Laura lives a nomadic lifestyle, always on the lookout for new adventures, hidden gems and dogs to pets. If you are a traveler, ever dreamed of long-term travel or have been curious about how to achieve a nomadic lifestyle, this episode is for you. Laura has lots of great insights for you, so, without further ado, let's dive in.
Speaker 2:Laura, I am so excited to have you on the podcast today because you are living one of my dream lives so I swear, there was such a period of time in my life where I wanted so badly I wanted to be a digital nomad and I was like dead. I was traveling and I was trying to become a travel blogger, couldn't figure it out, but there was so much juice in that life. I think I'm not alone in that and you're doing the thing. You are completely sustaining a life as a digital nomad.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I mean, it's definitely not an easy road to be a travel blogger, but it is a very rewarding one.
Speaker 2:Well, I'm excited to hear about your journey and how you got to this place. Perhaps you could tell us a little bit about your life before you started traveling.
Speaker 1:Well, I've always kind of been obsessed with traveling. I took my first solo trip of Rob when I was 19 years old. It looked like a working holiday in university and I lived in Ireland for a year and that was kind of like kicked off my travel blog. But then I was always kind of pushed back to you know, like oh, you have to go to university and do the normal thing. So like I did that, and then I graduated and then I got offered a job with the government the federal government, and like this town in New Brunswick and like what were you doing?
Speaker 1:Oh gosh, payroll. Yeah, it was so boring it was and like oh my God, and the town was small and everything about it was awful, except it was like a good paying job and I literally had zero work experience and I was a broke student. So I'm like you want to pay me like this much a year, like oh my God. I was just like excited, you know, because I wanted to give me a job. So I took it and I actually like was very successful in my federal government like career, like I moved up very quickly from like payroll to like I got in skeptic to like an HR advisor, kind of like development program. And then it was cool because I got to like live all over Canada. Like I lived first in New Brunswick, then Alberta, then I lived in Toronto where I met you, and so there was definitely perks to it.
Speaker 1:But yeah, I had sort of this like wander less the whole time that I had this like feeling that I should be doing something else and I would take a lot of vacations, like because I worked in HR, I knew all the rules of like leave we could take. So yeah, I was constantly, like you know, like on vacation, so to everyone, and then of course it's like all I would post online. So to everyone else they were like oh my God, you have a dream life, but I'm like not really, because I'm actually like so miserable three weeks of the year.
Speaker 2:I had three weeks of vacation each year.
Speaker 1:Three weeks technically, but like because of like statutory holidays and like I did like compressed workweek, so I had every second Friday off, so I would take. I was just so good at maximizing leave that I basically was taking like a trip every month, which is really like, really cool and like for people who, like I think it's amazing that you can do that in a way, but, like for me, I just wanted to travel full time, like it was a dream of mine.
Speaker 2:So I feel so impossible to coming from Canada because it's actually so expensive even just to travel within Canada. And also I want to go back a little bit. You're like you. You you moved Ireland at 19. And I, as a traveler myself, I just remember like not really getting exposed to travel here in Canada, like it's not. I remember feeling it wasn't our part of our culture to like in the UK or Australia or New Zealand. It's like there's something about the culture is like you go to like and you travel the world for a year or two and then you come back and you do all the rest of the things. What, how did you even like think to to move like that, to travel, to go out by yourself with your family full of travelers or like what even clicked in you to want to do that?
Speaker 1:And that's really strange because, like I mean, I did travel a bit like my like within Canada with my family and like I went on like a high school Europe trip. But it wasn't like I grew up traveling the world. But I grew up with like an obsession for traveling the world, like I used to have like a subscription to like National Geographic and I would cut out all the maps and paste them on my wall and it's just like all I ever wanted to do was travel. I think it's actually like I have a theory that it's kind of genetic, because everyone on my dad's side of the family is like that, like we're all really big travelers. My cousin lives in Japan, my sister live in Berlin for years.
Speaker 1:So, definitely like a genetic component to it.
Speaker 2:Okay you're a bit of a traveler family.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so maybe I got some inspiration from like my older cousins. But but yeah, and then basically I did go to university after high school and I was failing. I was doing like science because you know they're just like pick something you like and I'm like, okay, I like animals will do biology I, but I'm really bad at. Just because I'm interested in biology doesn't mean I'm doing it. So like I was failing like chemistry, like math, like I was basically on the verge of being kicked out of university. So I just told my parents like look, I want to take a year off to kind of figure out. This is like the right path for me. I found this like program where you can work abroad and thankfully that they were really supportive of it.
Speaker 2:So was that still in biology? This program in Ireland.
Speaker 1:It's no, it's not like for a specific thing. It's called swap students working abroad program. I think I just found out about a campus fair or something. It's just like you can get a visa for a year in certain countries Like I can't remember all of them, but there's a bunch at like a working visa if you're a student and yeah, that's basically, I think, the requirements.
Speaker 2:So you went and you did this exchange program, came back, got the corporate job, working for the government in HR, finding bits and pieces of time where you could go back out and get that travel fix, so to speak. What was the the aha moment, or the pivotal moment that led you to go? You know what I need. I need to be out of this environment.
Speaker 1:So it was definitely like a gradual build up of like I hate this, this isn't what I'm supposed to be doing, like I had this feeling. But it was really hard for me because, like I had, like I had it really good. I had a really good job. Like it was cushy, it was like allowed to take a lot of vacations but then pain well, which can be very hypnotizing, yeah, and like to you know, in Canada, like everyone's like oh, you have a government job like so secure, like it's like the dream right. So it's like very hard to just be like no, I don't want this. Like my parents thought I was like insane. So it took a lot.
Speaker 1:So basically, what happened is I decided that I was going to take a year off my job. So one of the perks of working in the government is that there's this thing called personal leave that you can take once in your career. Your job okay, paid for it, but your job is safe. So I had a few things happen in my life that kind of caused me to be it kind of put me in this like really depressed state, and then I decided, okay, screw it, I'm going to take this year off to travel. But the idea was that I was going to travel and get it out of my system and go back to my job. Of course that didn't happen, but that was like the original.
Speaker 2:So you were going through something, you were depressed, you were unwell and you were like taking a step back from work and maybe traveling was a way for you to heal during that time, and then, once you felt healed, you were going to go back. Am I hearing that correctly?
Speaker 1:Yeah, like basically I was going through like sort of like double grief at once and it was very hard. So, like I already didn't like my job and then I had taken a bit of like leave, like sick leave, cause I was just like so mentally unwell while I was grieving, and then I went back and it was just like after that, like it was just even more, like I just hated it even more than before and I was like I can't do this. But I knew about this leave thing. So I'm like okay, I, and because also, like part of it was that I had just like lost my boyfriend at the time.
Speaker 1:So that was kind of like I had this idea that I wanted to leave before, but I didn't. It never felt like the right time. You know, like it was always like oh, I have this going on, I have this going on. But after all those things happened, I was just like you know what, like there's really nothing to me here, like I might as well just go and take this year. Yeah, and it was incredibly helpful for healing and yeah, the plan was to go back.
Speaker 2:Where did you go during that year?
Speaker 1:I went, oh my gosh. I went so many places because I thought like I literally genuinely thought, this is the only year I'm ever gonna have to travel, so I must see everything. And then, if I had my time back, I would have gone a lot slower, though I don't regret it. But I started basically in Guatemala and I backpacked because I was on a tight budget. I had saved up money to travel for the year. I wasn't working like online or anything at the time.
Speaker 1:So it was not really like digital nomad lifestyle. Then it was more like backpacking. So I started in Guatemala and I went overland all the way to Argentina. That was like, oh, by yourself. Yeah, like all solo travel, I met a lot of people like along the way, as you do, I had very, actually very very. Lee was ever alone.
Speaker 2:And like a lot of.
Speaker 1:I would meet people, especially in, like Latin America. There's steps that like backpacker trail, so you know, I would like pick up friends and we'd go a certain distance together and then I would make new friends. Yeah, and then I actually spent my summer in Canada. I took the train across Canada. I won tickets, which was just like super serendipitous thing that happened to me. You won tickets. Yeah, I won Like it's so crazy. I won the URLs like 40th anniversary contest, the year that I was like traveling and I wanted to go across Canada that summer because I was in Vancouver for a wedding and I wanted to go to Newfoundland, where I'm from, and I didn't know how I was going to get there because I had was like four and it's expensive. Yeah, and they literally called me and they're like you won our contest. You can take round trip tickets anywhere in Canada. What? Yeah, that's amazing, I know. And they were super accommodating. I'm like can I go next week across Canada? And they're like, ah, okay.
Speaker 2:So you took a train across, like a via rail train, across Canada? Yeah, exactly, and was that so you did? Central and South America, and then you went back for the wedding and then came back. Was that the year or was there any anywhere else you went?
Speaker 1:Yeah, no that was a summer, like I started in the New Year, so like winter in South America, then I did summer in Canada, then I flew in the fall to Asia and I did like Sri Lanka and India, nepal and the Philippines. Oh my gosh, you went everywhere. Yeah Cause again I thought it was like the only chance I'd ever have to travel. So I was just going so fast.
Speaker 2:You weren't in the mindset of creating a life for yourself. You were like I need to live as much as I can right now because when I get home I'm going to be stuck at a desk working nine to five doing that life. And so you finished this amazing trip. What did it feel like to come back home?
Speaker 1:Um, not great. Definitely was hard and, like, I guess, prior to coming, so I had I did start my travel blog right before I started that trip, like at the beginning of 2018. And I did. I was technically blogging, though, but it was like for you.
Speaker 1:Oh yeah, it was just like a personal diary and like I wasn't using a spell checker, it was just. It's just like really embarrassing, like the old post, and I hadn't really figured out like the business of blogging before that, I guess, because I think it was like an option. Honestly, it's like a pretty new field. So even in like 2018, it wasn't super knowing, like that you can make money doing this.
Speaker 1:Whereas now it's much more knowing, I guess, and also like the influencer industry. Anyway, that's changed dramatically. But yeah, so I had this blog, but it was definitely not making any money. Barely anyone was reading it, thank goodness. And then, I guess, a couple of months before I went back, I started feeling like, oh my God, like I can't, I can't like go back to this, you know. So I started taking my blog a little bit more seriously. I'd like the near the end of my trip and I was like joining some Facebook groups and like trying to like figure it out, but again, like I was traveling so quickly that I didn't really have like the time to dedicate to learning it, because it takes a long time to set it up Correctly. So, yeah, so I went back to my job in January and, yeah, I was even then more depressed Well, not more. Like I had the traveling and healed me a lot, but I guess the disconnection feeling to my job was even stronger and I was basically like completely checked out at that point of it.
Speaker 1:And like I decided, like I went back and I was like I'm going to quit, like I'm, and I guess I'm going to pursue blogging. So I started taking like blogging courses and really like Anyways, I'm never going back in government, so it doesn't matter. But basically I was just working on my blog while I was at work, like I was, yeah, gave up my job, kind of thing, you were out of it, I was out of it. I completely checked out and then in June I quit officially and pursue, started pursuing it.
Speaker 2:Wow, I so relate to that feeling to have. I think this is something that's common for travelers when you travel for such an extensive amount of time and then you go back to where you grew up or where you started. And, at least for me, I remember feeling this sense of like I have changed and I have grown and I have seen so much, and now I feel like I am back in time almost because nothing else here seems to have changed and grown with me, and that gives a lot of travelers that travel depression, that post travel depression period of what's next. So what kind of emotional and mental hurdles Did you need to cross in order to keep going with your blog because you went from a secure, stable income to? I'm going to figure this out, I just know I'm going to figure this out.
Speaker 1:I definitely jumped off the deep end of it. I guess this really random thing had happened that I had been invited to like go on this press trip to Pakistan. That was like a month long, which is so random because at the time I had like 3000 Instagram followers and like still my blog wasn't very popular at all. I don't know. I actually I was a scam when they like reached out to me and it was for the month so like at that point I had literally used every possible amount of leave that you could, so I had like leave left and I was like I got to quit if I want to do this.
Speaker 2:So that was like part of like my motivation to and the pivotal change was that, like the moment where you're like this is possible for me, like would you say that that was the switch.
Speaker 1:I think like, yeah, that kind of period that I was back like the after, like between January and June, I started really focusing on like okay, how can I make money from my blog? And like I started taking courses and I made like a little bit of money and like affiliate marketing and I got invited on that trip. So I guess that was like enough security for me that, like, like most people wait until they have full time income. I was not making anywhere close to a full time income, but I had some savings and I knew that because I worked for the government. Like I had I knew if I quit, I was going to get part of my pension, which was some cash that I could use to kind of keep me going. So, yeah, I just took like a huge leap of faith but, yeah, basically, like those little trinkets of like wow, I can actually make money doing that was like enough for me to be like no, I can do this kind of thing.
Speaker 2:We're friends and family supportive of this change. Or were they looking at you like you were crazy?
Speaker 1:I think, like I would say they're supportive but most people just didn't understand it. Like a lot of people still don't really understand it. They're like wait, how can you make money? Because it just seems so dreamy, right, like you can get. Yeah, that's insane. Even I sometimes like, wait, is this legal Overall? Like my family has always been supportive of me, I'm very lucky like they. Yeah, they're like, as long as you're happy and you can support yourself, like we believe in you, kind of thing. My ex boyfriend at the time, or my wife at the time he then became a supportive, supportive. I remember him being like what am I going to tell my mom? Like that you're a travel blogger and I'm like yeah, what was that not the coolest thing to say ever?
Speaker 2:coming home from my travels and I genuinely, after living abroad for multiple years, I remember coming home being like everyone is going to want to date me. I am the coolest person ever. I had so much love for myself after so much travel. I thought it was the coolest person ever. No one wanted to date me. It was not that dreamy landing home, but I really felt like the coolest person because travel is like you are so cool. Doing what you do, you live a life that a lot of us, like you said, dream of.
Speaker 1:Yeah thank you, I know I felt the same way. But yeah, I find when you go home, like people are just kind of like so stuck in their own world, that like they don't even want to hear all your travels, and you're like, but I've seen all these cool things.
Speaker 2:Can I tell you all about them? How has travel and the ability to live wherever you want changed your life and your mental health, even?
Speaker 1:It definitely helped me a lot, like mentally.
Speaker 1:Like I said, I was really like grieving before I went on that trip and like I was just kind of stuck in this like cycle of depression living in Toronto and like working this job.
Speaker 1:And then, yeah, like when I started traveling and I just started meeting so many other people that kind of had these like different views on life and were living like alternative lifestyles, and it was just like this switch, I was like, oh, I feel like these are like my people, like I feel like I finally like fit in where I never felt like I fit in in Canada. And yeah, it just helped me a lot Like get over not get over the grief, but like work through the grief. And yeah, I mean I just feel like I'm so much happier when I'm abroad. And I think a lot of it has to do with like the community, especially like since slowing down and like becoming more of like a digital nomad versus backpacker. I really really love that community of people because I feel like we're all just kind of like on the same wavelength of wanting to, you know, see the world, while still like building up like an actual business and not just living off savings kind of thing.
Speaker 2:For anyone who's unfamiliar with that term, like what does it mean to be a digital nomad?
Speaker 1:All it really means is that you have a job that you can do online and you're traveling well working.
Speaker 2:And your job is. Your job specifically in this title is travel blogging.
Speaker 1:Yeah, like my job is travel blogging, which I guess is, like you could say, like the ultimate digital nomad job, because it really is traveling. But I mean, there's tons of people who just work very normal jobs that I need, especially since the pandemic and everything's gone online. So like, yeah, most digital nomads I would say just have, like you know, regular nine to five jobs. They're just living in a different country, which is so cool that you can do that.
Speaker 2:So cool that you can do that. I feel like a lot of people don't even know that you can do that. Like you can get a working holiday visa especially if you're in Canada Like we have really great relationships with so many countries to get a visa or get a working holiday visa. It's like actually quite simple a lot of the times from here, would you agree?
Speaker 1:Yeah, well, the working holiday visa program I think you can do until you're 35. But to be a digital nomad, you don't even like need that because, like I mean, each country is different. So, like, a lot of countries have not actually come up with like digital nomad visas where you can stay for like whatever, like a year, or sometimes it's up to five years. But honestly, like I don't really even bother with those because I just kind of but I guess I move around a lot more than most people because you can stay on a tourist visa right.
Speaker 2:Like six months, sometimes Like there's a lot of Asian countries at six months.
Speaker 1:Yeah, mexico is six months. There's a lot, so like, if you just like move like every six months, you don't really need to even bother with visas because there's no problem to like work remotely as long as you're not like working in that country. Disclaimer none of this is legal advice.
Speaker 2:Yes, absolutely. What has been what was like the biggest adjustment, do you think, to stepping into this new lifestyle for you?
Speaker 1:Really I don't know, it didn't like I have to adjust that much, like I feel like it was so natural to me that it just kind of felt, I mean, I guess like I'm trying to think back because it's been so many years now that everything feels natural to me. I guess the biggest adjustment I think for me was transitioning from backpacker to digital nomad.
Speaker 2:Like isn't transitioning to like not just straight traveling all the time, but like traveling and working and balancing that is like very still to this day is very challenging for me, yeah, people underestimate, like they see how glamour it is, they see the glamour shots in these beautiful locations, but everything it takes to get to point A to B from like the actual taking multiple buses, figuring out the transit systems in these towns and the fares and how it all works Like that is a whole other kind of struggle that a lot of times people don't see when they look at travel bloggers how much work actually goes into what you do and having to make time for that. What have been some of the biggest lessons and learnings that you have taken away from this lifestyle change?
Speaker 1:You just like elaborate, like on that question.
Speaker 2:You had to do and be a different person than your HR version of you in order to be Laura the nomad today. I guess I'm looking for what mental shifts or life lessons or points of use did you need to step into or take on or learn to get to where you are now? Does that make sense?
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, that makes sense. Yeah, I guess for me I kind of felt like there was like two versions of myself that existed when I was still working for the government and like literally, you know, because you know how my name is like L-O-R-A. Yeah, so my name is L-A-U-R-A and they wouldn't let me, like in the government, they made me spell it that way.
Speaker 2:Wait, they made you spell your name wrong.
Speaker 1:No, no, legally it's L-A-U-R-A. So they were like oh, legal way, like I haven't officially changed it, but like it's, I've been spelling it L-O-R-A since I was like 13. Anyways, it's a whole thing. It's kind of funny because it kind of became as like dual personalities, where like L-O-R-A was like fun travel Laura and.
Speaker 1:L-A-U-R-A was like boring, like nine to five, like responsible Laura oh interesting. Like when I took that like jump to get into this lifestyle, like I was just like, okay, well, like L-A-U-R-A, laura is like dead to me and I'm just like fully embracing like this other version of myself, that like I've always wanted to be. But yeah, like it definitely was like a lot of shifts and even still, like I still struggle with like my mindset shifts of like you can make money doing this, like I deserve to make money doing something I love.
Speaker 2:It's a constant. So what I'm hearing is it's a consistent, consistent practice for you to remind yourself that you're okay to be doing what you're doing.
Speaker 1:Yeah, absolutely, and I think also just being like a female entrepreneur, like we have a lot of like built-in things from society that like we shouldn't be able to like earn certain amounts of money. And it's crazy because like I know, like rationally that we should, but like I totally catch myself like I've had to do so much work just like on my money, mindset and stuff To keep going.
Speaker 2:What do you do to work on that kind of stuff? Do you work with a therapist or a coach, or is it community reading, like how do you maintain that?
Speaker 1:All of the above I would say I did do a course. I don't know if you know manifestation, babe, no, but I love manifestation.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so she's like a manifestation coach specifically sort of for like wealth and money and yeah, she actually has like a course on this whole thing like money mindset. So I did that and that really helped me and I did that with a group of blogging friends that I had met and kind of like all of it together. I would say community like for sure, is so important in the blogging world. I think that was where I really went wrong. The first year was that I was just like doing it on my own and once I started like kind of getting involved with the blogging, community was when I started more thriving in the industry because it's just like, yeah, like there's really no standards for it. It's not a normal job, so but the best, one of the best parts about it, honestly, is the community like all my best friends are travel bloggers now and it's just such an amazing group of people and everyone like supports each other and shares information and stuff. So that's really nice.
Speaker 2:That's awesome. Community makes a whole a massive difference. No matter what kind of change or transformation you're stepping into, having people by your side really really does matter how. And actually so many people, when they think about traveling by themselves, feel this sense of I'm going to be alone, I'm going to be alone, I'm not going to have any friends. That's going to be boring, like I can't do that, and what I'm hearing from you consistently through your story is you've never been alone, like you're not really alone at all when you're traveling. Is that fair?
Speaker 1:Yeah, no, that's absolutely true. I would say I'm more alone, like when I'm in Canada is actually when I feel the most alone. I believe that, yeah, yeah, no, I find it so easy to meet people traveling, especially like it's easier to meet people when you're a solo traveler. I know it seems so counterintuitive but honestly, the times that I've traveled with my friends, like it's like nobody wants to talk to us because they just assume or like we're just doing our own thing. But if you're a solo traveler, like people just approach you, like you just and you're also, I feel, a little more open to meeting new friends and like I really love that about the solo travel community or even digital in that community in general, like everyone's just open to like living experiences and trying new things and I love that. Because at home I felt like I was constantly like trying to drag my friends out and people were always like canceling me, planting me, and it just really, really irritated me.
Speaker 2:I find that people are like I mean, most of the time the best versions of themselves. They're just so happy, they're excited to go out and explore and no one's like shy or they're just like a community at these hostels. Do you have I know I had a trick for making friends because I was a solo female traveler myself. I know I had a trick for making friends at these hostels. Do you have any tricks or things that you lean on or go to when you're making new friends at new places?
Speaker 1:I wouldn't say I have like tricks, but it honestly took me a long time to figure out that you can just go up and say hi to people Like I used to be so afraid to just talk to people and then, yeah, I just eventually got to the point where, like I would go into a hostel and then just like yeah, if you see a group of people hanging out, just walk over and be like hi. That's what a hostel is. It's a place to meet other people, and I've never had anyone like be like what are you?
Speaker 2:doing.
Speaker 1:Yeah and they're like, oh cool, Hi, sit down. I mean, honestly, most of the time if they just like see you, like a smile goes a long way, they'll probably just invite you to sit down anyways. But yeah, it does take courage, Like literally. I went like years Luckily like I would meet people and they would kind of invite me.
Speaker 2:But it took me years to be able to build up the courage to approach people, which is really silly.
Speaker 2:It's not silly, like that's a huge fear that I'm sure a lot of the people listening are like, oh my God, I could never do that. And I feel like my networking skills are so much, so much stronger because of the years I spent doing that, of just getting used to talking to strangers and putting yourself into those conversations and getting comfortable with the small talk. I know for me I used to the sounds like aggressive. It's not actually, but I would like corner people in my dorm room, like if I saw that's where I would start is. I could put my bags down and I'd ask like oh, have you been like around the area? Like what would you recommend? And I would just start with that, just like, oh, I'm new here, tell me what you know. Or where are you going today? What are you doing today? Can I join you? And I would just kind of start with whoever's in my, my dorm room.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, no, that's definitely a good strategy. I don't really stay in hostel so much anymore Cause, like, I kind of moved away from like the backpacker scene. Yeah, it's easier to make friends as a digital nomad if you're cause there's so many strong communities and places like Lisbon or like here in, like Puerto Verde, mexico or Bali, like where there's just these already existing huge communities and there'll be like a Facebook group, there'll be multiple WhatsApp groups and there'll be events going on all the time. So, like, if you just go to like one of those events, you'll meet friends right away.
Speaker 2:Great hot tip you just dropped there into the podcast. Thanks so much for that. How many countries have you been to? Now? I've been to 71. 71 countries. Holy congratulations, that's massive. Do you have a favorite? I hate when people ask me this. I do have a favorite, but just wondering Do you have a favorite?
Speaker 1:I don't really. I don't like the question either. I mean, I guess Mexico is definitely has my heart, like that's kind of where I've decided to settle as my new home and travel from here. I adore this country so much. I also really liked Thailand. I was living there before this, but you know there's so many countries that I absolutely love.
Speaker 2:It's like picking your favorite new movie. It's like it's different for different things, like my favorite city is here, my favorite beach is over here. You know, it can be multi-faceted, japan.
Speaker 1:I did not have a favorite Pardon, I'm actually going to Japan like on Saturday oh my gosh, I'm so jealous.
Speaker 2:Have you been before? Is it one of your 71?
Speaker 1:I have been, but it was a very like short trip. That was kind of not great for. I won't get into it, but yeah.
Speaker 2:Just oh that's experience.
Speaker 1:So I'm really excited for this trip because it's for the Adventure World Summit and I'm going with the tourism board, so like, yeah, it's going to be amazing, everything's planned. I don't have to like worry about trying to figure out how to get around.
Speaker 2:The level of jealousy that I am experiencing right now is immense, because Japan is truly just. I didn't have a favorite country until I hit Japan and I was just like. It is so incredibly beautiful, the people are incredibly kind, the food is amazing. You're going to have an amazing, amazing time, laura. What do you hope anyone who's listening, who is maybe nervous to travel or nervous about stepping into a nomadic life, might take away from our conversation today? Or maybe a message you have for them?
Speaker 1:Just that you can do it, don't be afraid. I know it seems really scary to jump into it. I felt that way when I was 19 and I moved to Ireland and sometimes it can be really hard at first. I remember that trip. My first few days I was literally on the phone with my mom being like I want to come back. And then I met the first friend who I'm actually still in touch with today. I just saw her in Montreal. I remember it was like 15 years Anyways. Once I met one person, I was like wait, this is amazing. Once you kind of realize that there's other solo travelers out there and that you can make community, it's just getting over that initial hurdle of wanting to do it. But yeah, don't be afraid, it is an amazing thing and you will never regret it.
Speaker 2:And you actually now teach other people to do what you do, correct?
Speaker 1:Yeah, well, I have my travel blog, which is sort of like about the digital nomad lifestyle, so I have a lot of tips on getting started, how to find community, how to different remote jobs you can get started with. I have a newsletter as well where I send out different digital nomad tips and cool remote jobs that I see.
Speaker 2:That's so incredible. I'm going to have all of Laura's social media and her website and her blog and everything linked in the show notes. So if you're listening and you want to connect with her or see all of her adventures, you don't have to second guess. Just go to the episode notes and click the links and you can connect with Laura right now. Thank you so much for coming on and sharing your journey and I'm lit up. I'm kind of like I need to look at Skyscanner and go book a flight somewhere right now. The traveler in me wants to join you on the road sometime.
Speaker 2:If you enjoyed today's episode, please consider liking, subscribing and letting us know your thoughts in the comments below. It truly means the world to me to hear from you. New episodes will be available every Saturday, both on YouTube and wherever you get your podcasts. And if you would like to learn more about my work as a coach today's guest or have a story that you would like to share on the pivot point, check out the episode description for more information. Now time for the legal stuff. This podcast is presented to you solely for educational and entertainment purposes. I may be a professionally certified coach myself, but hosting a podcast is not coaching. This podcast should not be used in substitution of working with a licensed therapist, doctor, coach or other qualified professionals. Copy that Amazing. See you on the next episode. Nothing but love. Bye.