Scarcity vs wealth

Travel can feel exhausting if you approach it with the mindset of checking off every landmark in a limited time, eating at every famous restaurant, following every review, taking pictures of everything, leaving early and coming back late—trying to squeeze value from every single minute. Unless it’s a work trip, I think this is a scarcity mindset.

Travel has taught me that mistakes and imperfections are inevitable, but there are always new opportunities. You can always return to a place another time. You don’t need to take the same photos as everyone else. If you’re tired, you can rest. You can set the rhythm of your own journey without anyone dictating where to go or when. To me, this is a wealth mindset.

I believe that if we carry this wealth mindset, it reflects across every part of life. Take work, for example: you begin to see clearly what you really want from your career. You’re less distracted by others’ successes, and instead you celebrate them—because you know you have your own rhythm, your own opportunities, and your own timing. You don’t need to tie your self-worth to external validation.

This is what travel has given me: a sense of freedom.