WHAT IS NO RISK NO REWARD AND WHY NOW?
Travel is a great way to explore new places and learn about different cultures. It’s also a FANTASTIC way to challenge yourself and touch the lives of people around the world! My international travel journey started in 2001 when my mother took me to Morocco. That experience in a new place with a beautiful culture forged my love for travel! My imagination is now open to think beyond what I have been taught to believe in my American comfort zone; now I travel to see and experience for myself the people and wonders of this great world in which we live.
In 2014, I created a bucket list of things I want to do, see, experience, and accomplish during my lifetime. The most exciting addition to my list was an around-the-world adventure. I imagined I'd travel to over 15 countries and have experiences like visiting the slave castles of Ghana to pay homage to my ancestors, bathing and caring for elephants in Thailand, exploring the underwater world of the Great Barrier Reef, and trekking the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu.
Traveling has always been my passion, but “life” and “adulting” kept me from my most ambitious travel goals such as visiting faraway destinations that require more than the standard 2-3 week vacation. Since there would likely never be a "good" time to go on the round the world journey, I decided to MAKE TIME. And I am so glad I did! The trip was a glorious adventure in personal growth and calculated risk-taking that involved researching, planning, saving, letting go, facing fears, and following my motto of Dream, Plan, Do! As much as I have traveled with my family and friends, I had never taken a solo international trip, and I had never spent more than a few weeks at a time outside of my home state of Tennessee. By following through with my plan and charting a path for myself even though the way wasn't always clear, I proved to myself that I can survive and flourish on my own as a solo female traveler in wondrous new places. I proved to myself that I can do ANYTHING I can dream and put into action.
Now I continue to share my experience to empower and encourage other solo travelers to dare to claim their dreams and take the necessary actions to live out those dreams. There are many people who live with regret, but I hope my journey will embolden others to pick up their passports and go for it! Just like when I jumped from a perfectly good plane 14k feet above Earth, I want to show people that if I can face my fears so can they. Once you take the leap of faith, you learn that the reward by far outweighs the risk.
And that's how No Risk No Reward began.