The 10 Important Things I Realized on Vacation
Jul 17, 2025
I just took a 10-day trip to New Zealand and Australia with my family. Travel fills my heart, spirit and creative soul. Everything feels more alive. Time moves differently. Food tastes better.
Being in a new environment and out of routine got me thinking and I wanted to share:
Here are the 10 important things I realized on vacation:
1. We are all connected. People are connected in so many ways all over the world. We share the same planet. We share the desire to feel seen and to matter. We all experience learning, striving, feeling and failing. We are all limited in time. I was amazed to learn how many people in small remote towns in New Zealand were familiar with the fires that happened in my hometown of Pacific Palisades in January. They asked me about them when learning I was from there. That connection made the distance feel small.
2. We are more capable than we think. We can push through more fear and emotional (or physical) discomfort when challenged. And it is good to test that theory. We can take long hikes (even when we feel out of shape or our feet hurt). We can let ourselves be cold on a mountain top when we should have packed a parka and gloves. We can be challenged to communicate in other languages or adapt to other customs. We can jump into bodies of water that terrify us. Entertain thinking that makes us uneasy. We can challenge ourselves and we can solve challenges.
4. Break your routine to live fully. New actions create new results. When you break your routine you experience more aliveness and growth. You use parts of your brain that were on auto-pilot (or bored). You literally are getting out of your comfort zone and that can be rewarding and full of enjoyment.
5. Use your time well. We only have a limited number of summers...or winters...or seasons. And none of us know how many. So...use your time well. Stop saying "one day” and make a plan to do the thing you’ve dreamed of. Doing any version of it is better than doing no version of it. Start small and start now.
6. Foster connection with the people who matter. One of the top regrets of the dying is that they didn't spend more time with the people that matter to them. Listen to them. Connect meaningfully. Have fun with your peeps! They want that too. Vacationing with your people requires you to move as a unit, each managing the other’s needs. Who is hungry when, what activities each person wants. This can help form cohesion within the group. And when/if there is friction, repairing and resolving arguments creates connection too.
7. Stepping away from work is the best thing for work. At some point, everything needs to be unplugged in order to work again. So do you. Some of people's best ideas come when they are not thinking of work. See this as an investment in your greatness.
8. Kindness is universal. Striking up conversations with strangers in cafes or on buses can be so connecting and filled with humanity. Playing peek-a-boo with babies on planes. Talking global events with Uber drivers. When people all over the world show kindness in small gestures - holding a door, comping a cookie for the kid - it is life giving. So is being kind.
9. We are surrounded by good. This world is beautiful. There is gorgeous nature everywhere. There are people doing great things in every country. There are rainbows (7 of them on our trip!). Look for the good and feel you'll feel better about everything. đ
10. Even bad moments make great stories. Even the moments that didn't go as planned became funny or interesting stories. The scary tiny plane ride, the moment we thought we’d lost our son on a mountain, the money we lost on that one booking we had to cancel. It’s not all going to go perfectly and each incident becomes part of the adventure. We have great stories!
Vacations bring to light what matters: Connection. Presence. Good food. Relying on yourself. Using your time intentionally instead of just letting it slip by. And enjoying your life.
I think we need to break our routines more often. Not necessarily by getting on a plane, but by disrupting the autopilot we live on. By paying attention to what we're doing and why we're doing it.
I want to help you do this. Find the connection and confidence. Live fully, with intention and joy. I want you to Like Your Life - whether from your living room or the top of a mountain.
Here’s to liking your life…a little more!
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