Hello from Zermatt, Switzerland!
For those in the States, a happy Thanksgiving to you and your loved ones! Even though we are not physically present, my wife and I had some great video chats with our families — we are thankful for them!
In the previous newsletter, I shared ideas on Social Factors — belonging, trust, and play. Humans are a social species, so these factors affect the rate and depth of learning; getting these right means more effective learning!
I also recently published a long-form essay on learning; here is the link: That’s How Learning Works?!?! A Comprehensive Model for Understanding the Learning Process.
This newsletter will focus on the challenges and opportunities of learning through travel; although traveling can be challenging, traveling can also bring learning and personal growth!
Here is Belcher’s Model for Learning (yes, I’m continuing to send this image in every email — returning to the same image with more information is how we create strong conceptual models! What do you remember from previous emails about the Model for Learning?)
Ideas
After teaching for 15 years at schools in South Carolina and Singapore, my wife and I (with our girls) decided to take a sabbatical year. Our girls were born overseas, so we wanted to spend more time with friends and family in the States — plus take other trips throughout the world. I know that we are incredibly fortunate to have these opportunities; we are thankful for the time together.
Traveling has a large opportunity for learning, especially in places that are not familiar. You have to understand the environment, negotiate space, monitor yourself, and constantly evaluate options to make decisions. All of this takes energy and effort, which can be overwhelming — but can drive learning and personal growth!
Challenges
Even though traveling can be great, there are challenges.
Being tired, both physically and mentally. In your normal routine, you have automated many of the daily tasks: How to get places, when and where to eat, activities, sleeping arrangements, and many others. Traveling takes you out of the automation, forcing you to make decisions about every part of your day. Making a bunch of decisions — especially if you are negotiating those decisions with other people — takes effort and energy, which can make you physically and mentally tired. One trip earlier in the year was a nine-day driving trip; we stayed in six different places during those nine days. We were constantly packing and unpacking, plus trying to figure out what we were doing each day — which made us tired. The first part of learning that goes away when I’m tired is “Sensing and Focusing,’ which makes me less aware of myself and others. I get a bit snippy with everyone; when this happens, I know that I need to get some rest.
Unexpected events. In regular, daily life, there are not many unexpected events; the routine is the routine, with minor variation. However, traveling is full of unexpected events. You planned to go snorkeling, but there is a storm. You planned to see a concert, but you got sick. There are many other unexpected events, each causing a change to whatever you wanted to do. Unexpected events can create a bunch of negative thoughts quickly, which can overwhelm your working memory. Being overwhelmed can narrow your focus to only the negative, which will limit your ability to bring any positive outcome to the event.
A mindset that “every day of travel has to be a perfect day.” Because you are taking time away from your normal routine, there can be a pressure to have every day of travel be the perfect day. This mindset is limiting because most days will not be perfect; these days will have physical and mental challenges. Part of the beauty of travel is having and meeting challenges, which requires a change in mindset: From “every has to be perfect” to “let’s see what adventures we have today.”
Opportunities
Through the challenges of travel, there are opportunities for growth.
A sense of accomplishment. Going along with the point about mindset, one beautiful part of travel is the sense of accomplishment when you handle unexpected events. You are proving to yourself that you have what it takes, which increases your sense of self and gives you a storehouse of experiences on which you can draw in other challenging situations. In addition to the positive aspect of handling an event individually, handing an event with other people draws you closer together. My wife and I have solved many unexpected events — both small and large — during our travels, which puts us on the same team and increases our trust and respect for each other. We are also showing our children how to solve problems, giving them opportunities to increase their confidence and handle events well.
Wonder and awe. My wife and I have been reading The Anxious Generation (highly recommend!) by Jonathan Haidt; one of the sections discusses spiritual elevation and degradation. I believe strongly in the spiritual elements of life — one way that travel can elevate the spirit is through wonder and awe. The easiest way to do this is through natural settings: A beautiful sunset on a beach; the stillness of an old-growth forest; or, walking through enormous mountains. Zermatt is on the Swiss side of the Matterhorn, so each day we are greeted by the Matterhorn and other massive mountains. I am constantly in awe that these beautiful mountains exist, which elevates me to a higher spiritual dimension.
Connection with yourself and others. By changing your daily activities away from the normal routine by traveling, you open space to connect with yourself and others. Those “interstitial moments” on an airplane or in a car are places where people feel comfortable to share deeply, creating beautiful connections with others. The space also allows you to observe your traveling companions at a deeper level, helping you understand the other people more deeply. I have learned so much about my wife and children through these small moments, which has made our family unit more connected — creating a beautiful dynamic!
Questions
- When was the last time you left your daily routine?
- How did the last trip affect you?
- What are ways traveling has caused you to learn and grow?
- During the next trip, how can you be more intentional about learning?
- How have you made connections with your traveling companions?
Learning happens best when we share what we are thinking, so I would love to hear your answers! Also, you can use these questions as conversations starters with friends and family — hearing their answers would be great!
If this newsletter resonated with you, please share on the socials and with someone who you think would also benefit; I would greatly appreciate any help in spreading these ideas!
Thanks for reading this newsletter — and all the best!
Nathan
