You probably won’t see members of my tribe in native dress. They might not look all that different from you. You might not be able to notice that they’re part of a tribe at all, but I can almost immediately see it in their eyes. I’m part of a tribe of travelers.
We are different than other people. We set our priorities towards seeing the world rather than finding that great apartment close to work or saving up for a new car. You may find them with their heads in a guidebook or adding new pins to a map.
Finding other members of your tribe can be difficult as there are few people who truly understand. While your friends and family may not be members of the tribe, they may do their best to support you. But once you do find the people that “get it,” you’ll be close for life.
Before leaving in 2011 for my working holiday in Australia, I had very few people in my life who I considered to be members of the tribe, always up for an adventure. People in my life may have been happy for me and my travels, but they didn’t want the same life as me.
That all changed on my second night in Sydney when I met a group of people that changed my life. I met fellow travelers who had moved to Australia permanently or were working holiday makers like myself. Even my roommates, Australian graduate students, had just returned from a jaunt in Southeast Asia.
They got it. They were part of the tribe. It was the first time in my life that I’d been surrounded entirely by people like me.
It’s important to have people like this in your life. People who get as excited as you do about an upcoming trip. Who inspire you to push yourself further than you would yourself. Who won’t say, “What about your job?” or “It must be nice to be able to just take off like that.”
They may live on the other side of the world from you. It could be months or even years between your last conversation. But you always have that bond and will try to meet up when you can.
So if you’re a traveler, do you know people like this? Do you have them in your life as support when you can’t find it elsewhere? Being part of the tribe is like being in recovery or anything else.
You need a group of people who have your back.
I love this post. I have a couple of different tribes but my travel blogger tribe are awesome. It’s so nice to talk to likeminded people about travel and upcoming travel plans. Before I started blogging I didn’t know anyone else who felt the same as me when it came to travel and it’s great to know I’m not alone!