Have you had it with the hassles of travel? Sick of problems at work? Well, maybe there’s a way to minimize all that stress.
Complaining about work and travel may be a national pastime, but I have a suggestion for staying positive about travel and life in general: listen to your inner kid.
I shared this message recently during a heartfelt presentation at the 4th Annual Los Cabos Holiday Party, which took place on December 15 at the Four Seasons Beverly Wilshire Hotel. In this season when many of us think of family, of loved ones, of children and grandchildren, I’d like you to think of the KID that lives inside YOU, and to recognize how happy your inner kid would probably be about where you are today. (You can watch the video of my presentation by scrolling to the bottom or clicking here.)
The invitation-only Los Cabos Holiday Party, hosted by the Los Cabos Tourism Board, was a stellar gathering of top travel industry professionals, including hoteliers, travel advisors, media, influencers and members of the entertainment industry. The event served as a festive “thank you” from the Los Cabos Tourism Board for a fantastic year, as the sun-soaked destination continues to strengthen its role as one of Mexico’s top vacation hotspots.
The event was also a chance to reflect on the resilience of those who work in the travel and tourism community, and I wanted to share an uplifting message to reconnect attendees with the passions that first got them into the industry, using humor and my own personal stories.
My travel-centric approach to life is culled from more than 20 years of experience as a travel writer for top industry media — and from life lessons learned as a child, which I recount in my “heartbreaking and hilarious new memoir,” Prepare for Departure: Notes on a Single Mother, a Misfit Son, Inevitable Mortality and the Enduring Allure of Frequent Flyer Miles (Vine Leaves Press, 2022).
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TELL YOUR OWN STORY! How to Tell Your Life Story with a Customized, Cool Personal Route Map
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In this video presentation, I share psychological travel tips and life tips about how to tap into your inner kid — as well as the wonders of travel — to stay happy and centered, even when your flight is canceled or your boss or clients are being jerks.
(Notice I say “inner kid,” not inner child.” That overused phrase evokes a boringly generic innocence that all children supposedly represent. I’m talking about the real kid inside you — the one who was a pain sometimes but knew what was fun and what wasn’t. Your inner kid knows what makes you happy and what matters.)
In my case, when I was a kid, I never really had a set path to guide me into any one career. I wasn’t one of those kids who knew how to study just the right things to launch themselves on some grand long-term career.
BUT my inner kid knew what I liked long before I consciously figured it out. So I followed my nature and followed my passions. I created my own imaginary airline — (it was called Chesway Global because my last name is Chesnut, and no one would ever fly an airline with a name as silly as Chesnut Global).
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FIND OUT MORE: The Airline That Never Flew: The Strange History of Chesway Global Airlines
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That kid is still inside me, and you still have that kid inside you.
I should also note that following your passions and listening to your inner kid requires a supportive environment.
I benefited from the supportive attitude of my mother, Eunice Chesnut. My book shows how parents can play an important role in supporting their kids. My mother never judged my interests, never told me that my dreams were silly or not worth pursuing.
Maybe you had parents like that too, and that’s helped you to get where you are today.
Or maybe you’re that kind of parent — or grandparent — right now, with your own kids or grandkids.
Or you may be supportive with your work colleagues.
To tap into what makes you happy, you must allow yourself to dream, to fantasize, to follow your nature. And you can lift others as others have lifted you. And, of course, it’s not too late to listen to your inner kid if you weren’t able to do that before.
Think of it this way: WHAT IF your 12-year-old self could take a look at where you are right now?
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DON’T MISS: What It’s Really Like to Be an LGBTQ Travel Writer Today
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In this rather unique video, I share the backstory about how I explored my passion for travel at an early age (including how I played flight attendant on abandoned school buses and impersonated a middle-aged, female travel agent on the phone to get free stuff from the airlines), and also how I learned to listen more to my inner kid while writing my book, and also how doing so has helped me see things from a different perspective when dealing with annoying work problems as well as the hassles of travel — especially air travel.
Prepare for Departure, by the way, has garnered rave reviews since its release in July 2022. Lisa Takeuchi Cullen, VP of the Writers Guild of America, East, says that “Like David Sedaris, Mark Chesnut weaves dark humor (as well as a healthy dose of 1970s nostalgia) into his clever prose.” Ken Shapiro of Los Angeles-based TravelAge West calls it “achingly beautiful, weirdly hilarious and always brutally honest.”
I’m a travel writer, travel blogger and Mexico travel specialist, and I love sharing travel tips to make your next vacation or business trip better. My new memoir was just published: Prepare for Departure: Notes on a Single Mother, a Misfit Son, Inevitable Mortality and the Enduring Allure of Frequent Flyer Miles. Please click and check it out!
Please feel free to share your comments, experiences and questions about Mexico travel and Latin America travel and vacations!
You can also follow my travels on Instagram and on my YouTube channel, so you won’t miss any of my travel tips or travel videos. ¡Buen viaje!
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