A perhaps inevitable part of planning any new venture is facing the fears, anxieties, and uncertainties that arise.
Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines fear as "an unpleasant often strong emotion caused by anticipation or awareness of danger". In listening to episodes of the Keep Your Daydream podcast, I have been struck by how many of the adventurers talk about fears they had to overcome. One traveler responded to a question about what was hard about traveling the world by answering that it wasn't the travel, it was the starting to travel that was hard. Another adventurer spoke of weighing the worst case against the best case; that is, alongside "What if this goes wrong or that goes wrong?", consider "What if everything goes just as I've dreamed?" Many of them spoke of the necessity of finding people, either in their local community or the online community, who would speak encouragement to them.
The fears that have come up for me have been along the lines of "What if Doug's employer isn't interested in employing him part-time on the road?" "What if we invest everything in this new life and it doesn't work for us after all?" "What if one of us becomes sick or disabled and we can't handle life on the road any more?"
To encourage myself, I've tried to consider counter-thoughts: "What if Doug's employer is happy to accommodate his schedule exactly, or what if Doug finds a new employment opportunity that is unexpectedly satisfying?" "What if we plan ahead to hold some assets in reserve, then end up loving life on the road and use the extra assets for later upgrades?" "What if we research and purchase adequate health insurance, remain fairly healthy for years, then settle into an RV park more permanently if necessary?"
Another counter to fear is having friends who are encouraging and excited, and family we can trust to be there for us in any difficult times.
Then there is anxiety, which Merriam-Webster defines as "a strong desire sometimes mixed with doubt, fear, or uneasiness". Will I be able to get the house cleaned out without being overwhelmed? Will I be able to learn how to capture and edit video to document our travels? Will I be able to learn enough RV maintenance to be prepared for full-time travel?
Anxiety really erupted for me as we emptied out our local storage unit prior to moving more of our belongings to a larger, climate-controlled unit . Currently, we have bins and boxes stacked in our living room, waiting to be gone through and divided into toss/donate/keep & store. That's bad enough, but our entry area has our older daughter's pile of belongings to be moved to Boston; our family room is filled with items for a yard sale and also our younger daughter's crafting table and supplies for her to sort through; our bedrooms are full of clothing and personal items to be dealt with; and our basement shelves are stacked with boxes and trunks of paperwork, photos, and memorabilia. It feels very overwhelming, and I'm anxious about getting all that dealt with sooner rather than later, as our landlord might like to be able to show the house to prospective tenants!
Finally, there are the uncertainties: those things which are "not known beyond doubt", according to Merriam-Webster. I have a bad habit in many situations of preferring the known, even the known bad, to any unknown, even if it might be good. In looking at our finances, and our decision to change our lives prior to retirement age, we've had to consider whether it might make more sense to have a smaller rig for a couple of years before moving to our dream rig. Having been so certain I knew what our plans were for selecting and purchasing a rig, suddenly all that feels up in the air. Now there is a ton of new research to do and multiple options to consider! I find it hard not to be anxious (there's that word again!) about these uncertainties.
So what is the hopeful takeaway? Fears, anxieties, and uncertainties are a part of life, whether I stay in place or hit the road. I have feared being trapped in an unchanging life; I have been anxious for my daughters as they grew up; I have been uncertain about what the next day might bring, much less the next year! Writing about these helps cut them down to size; talking to friends about them helps share the load and reminds me we all need encouragement; listening to others' examples of perseverance is inspiring; reviewing my own life reminds me of the fears and anxieties and uncertainties that have faded into the past, either unrealized or dealt with if they came to pass. Looking forward, I will work to focus on exciting possibilities that can outweigh any fearful worries!
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