Canadian Nomad

You have a schedule?  Aren’t you on vacation?  You are a gringo in Guatemala after all.

As I arrived in Xela, Guatemala, I knew I was going to be the odd one out.  I had a plan after all.  First vacation, then rebuild my life from the ground up.  I sat down in a coffee shop  with a pad of paper and wrote down these words from memory by Annie Dillard:

“A schedule defends from chaos and whim.”

Followed by:

Priorities:

Physical – Exercise 4+ times per week

Business – Work for 2 hours a day on income producing ventures

Learning – Study Spanish for 2 hours a day

Social – Go out for at least 3 hours a day to meet local people

Personal – Write in personal blog for 1 hour twice a week, and business blog at least 1 hour per week

Financial – Check finances 1 hour per week

Planning – Plan for tomorrow for 1 hour every day

Eat – 3 square meals per day

Sleep – 8 hours every night

Reward – 1 exciting or interesting trip or experience per week

Interesting, eh?  Then I went into Google Calendar and built a plan around these priorities.  At times it has been hard to stick to the plan, but it has generally been quite rewarding.  I have gotten quite a bit done, and have had time to enjoy the local culture.  One area that caught me off guard was the local custom of setting off firecrackers at 6:30 am to wake up their loved ones who are celebrating a birthday. In a city this size that is every day.  Naturally this is followed up by loud music for a couple hours, ensuring that no one around can possibly get back to sleep.  It has taken a while, but I have adjusted my schedule for earlier nights and earlier mornings because of this.

An upside about spending an hour every day planning for tomorrow means that I get more done in the day or hours provided and that the quality of that work is superior.  The Pareto Principle and Parkinson’s Law working so well together

Tags: Annie Dillard, Firecrackers, Freedom, Guatemala, Language Learning, Pareto Principle, Parkinson's Law, Personal Development, Planning, Priorities, Rebuilding Life, Schedule, Xela
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At the turn of the millennium I went on a 3 month trip across Western Europe, touching the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Austria, the Czech Republic, Switzerland, Italy, Greece, France, Andorra, Spain, Ireland and the U.K. Since then I have been pinning to get out on the road again. So here I am, nine long years later and it is more an emotional necessity then a mere wish or dream. My bags are packed and the date has been set. Since I returned one of the concepts that has always circled around my head was the idea of crossing the equator, as if it was a line that needed crossing.   Likewise I have had the desire to build a location independent business – a business that can be run from anywhere.

Two authors that have fueled this desire are Tim Ferriss of The Four Hour Work Week fame and Tynan from his awesome blog. Both have given me the tools needed and the knowledge that it can be done.

“For the past 33 years, I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: “If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?” And whenever the answer has been “No” for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something… almost everything — all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure — these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose.” Steve Jobs’ Commencement address (2005)

I first came across this quote in The Four Hour Work Week, but have since played the entire speech to myself and friends over and over because of how profound it is regarding how I want to live my life. So I have given notice, given away most of my belongings and put the rest in storage and before too long, October 15^th, I’ll hit the road to South America. Ideally I’ll be able to find a place in various countries, settle down, learn about the people, culture and language while also finding time to work and earn Canadian dollars before moving on to the next place.

Keep an eye here if you want to be kept up to date on my travels, information about work and travel and any other little tidbits that I find relevant to this lifestyle.  Thanks for reading!

Tags: 4HWW, Canadian Nomad, Crossing the Equator, Four Hour Work Week, Getting Away, Life Nomadic, Personal Development, South America, Steve Jobs Commencement address, Tim Ferriss, Travel, Western Europe, World Travel
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I’ve been delaying the inevitable. Writing my first entry.

I’ve been looking up blogs about blogging, really just procrastinating.

The thing that really just made me stop to write right now instead of in the all too illusive “future” was an article “How to get in the Mood to Write” by William McCamment.  It talks about how just the act of writing can get you into the mood of writing. I’d never really thought about it, but as I type away, I have to agree that I am now in the mood to write, even though I wasn’t before.

It is interesting that since leaving high school I believe my writing abilities have dropped.  Likely it just comes down to that small thing called practice.  Kinda like learning the piano or French.  I know I haven’t really lost them to lack of use, but they are rusty and would need some solid polishing off to get back to where I was before.

Before, before what?  I’d have to say moving out on my own and accumulating debt.  Debt is somewhat like chains that force you to work long after your initial need to purchase is gone.  Like a gift that keeps on giving.  I’ll be writing about that topic too as it is one that has been close to my heart for the past several years.

Thank you for taking the time to read my blog.   I hope I can deliver when it comes to giving you interesting articles about my life, travels, thoughts, and personal development.  Talk to you soon!

Tags: Accumulating Debt, Money, Mood Of Writing, Personal Development, Writing
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