We’ve all heard that no man is an island, but sometimes we have to function like one. This is especially true when travel is concerned. Depending on what type of traveler you are will depend on how detailed your are in planning out your trip. Some of us like to have every thing perfectly outlined, while others just show up to see what happens. It doesn’t matter which type of traveler you are – or even if you fall somewhere in between – but what does matter is how you handle problems. What do you do when troubles arise? Better yet, do you have situational independence when traveling?
Situational independence is about more than simply expecting the unexpected, it’s about being prepared to handle every possible situation that could happen while you travel. This doesn’t mean that you have to go out of your way to extensively craft out a million different plans for a million different emergency situations. What it does mean, though, is that you should think thoroughly and critically about how you would handle any number of bad situations in the incident that they do arise while you’re traveling.
Situational independence is about keeping a cool head in the event that even the worst of the worst happens. In other words, don’t panic! Are you mentally equipped to handle the situation at hand – independently – without having to call for backup from your family or friends? Have you given enough forethought and laid out a mental plan for the emergency at hand? If not, can you take a minute to breath, then calmly and logically think the situation through and then enact a plan?
Having situational independence when traveling will not only afford you peace of mind, but it should also reveal just how much you are actually capable of handling on your own!
Thinking Critically about Situational Independence: What are your necessities?
Travel is one of the most rewarding undertakings because of its natural inclination to challenge us in a multitude of areas as humans. It requires a lot of thinking, planning, and research: How cheap can I find the flight I need? Where will I stay when I get there? What do I actually want to do, see, or experience? Obviously it causes us to take action as we put our plans into place and commence actually traveling. We get creative. We prepare to explore. We anticipate having a lot of fun.
If you’re thinking this actively and critically about your travels to begin with, most certainly should you apply those same thinking skills to potential emergencies on your travels. Least of all, give extensive consideration to even minor things that could go wrong. Don’t misunderstand, it’s not about being paranoid or putting a damper on your adventure. It’s about equipping yourself mentally with the tools to handle any type of problem should it arise.
In thinking critically: consider what are your necessities? Ultimately, you need food, water, sleep, and shelter. Those are your basic survival needs as a human, but also when you travel. Everything can be funneled down to your necessities. So in the event that something happens are you able to take care of your most basic needs? Did your AirBnB host or hotel cancel your booking? Where will you sleep now? Did you lose your wallet? How will you pay for food?
Would either of those instances suck? Absolutely they would! So, could you not only calmly and collectedly think about a solution, but could you also get yourself out of this terrible situation without it ruining your trip? Those are the types of things that should be taken into consideration.
Now consider this: let’s say that you actually did lose your wallet. Maybe it fell out of your pocket somewhere between the airport and your hotel. You’ve already paid for your room, so sleep is no problem, but how will you access your funds? How will you eat until you can sort out the problem? “I’ve got it!” you think to yourself. “I’ll see if I can work for a meal tonight – I’ll bet someone at that mom and pop restaurant next door will help me – and I’ll figure out how to have some money wired to me asap.“
There could be multiple solutions to this problem, but the point is that you’re thinking about things critically, getting creative, and taking care of the absolute NECESSITIES first.
No melt downs allowed! Staying calm will help remedy your travel hiccups and achieve situational independence
The last thing you want to do is walk out of an airport in a foreign country without your wallet, cellphone, or bag and have a meltdown.
Seriously, we cannot emphasize this enough, stay calm when troubles go down. And always keep this one tidbit at the forefront of your mind – sometimes things can wait. While certain situations will call for immediate action, sometimes you can slow way down – give yourself time to think things through – and then you can proceed to fixing the problem. However in either instance REMEMBER to stay calm. When you panic your mind becomes muddled. You’re flustered and when you aren’t thinking clearly sometimes you can make a situation worse or make getting a solution more difficult than it needs to be.
The last thing you want is to walk out of an airport in a foreign country without your wallet, cellphone, or bag and have a meltdown. If you struggle with panic or anxiety take a minute or two to either freak out or sort it out. Regardless, calm yourself so that you can start thinking clearly about how you’ll solve the issue.
This is also why thinking critically and creatively about potential problems is a healthy approach to travel. If you’ve already prompted your mind to consider different possibilities it won’t come as such a shock if it actually happens. It will also help you to distinguish between BIG and SMALL problems. Is it a really serious issue like a lost passport? Or did your hotel simply bump you from your reservation? Mountains shouldn’t be made out of mole hills and and actual mountains can always be scaled with the right equipment.
Keep a cool head, be mentally prepared, and you’ll be able to achieve situational independence when traveling. It’s all intertwined.
Actually being prepared vs. being mentally prepared
Practical travelers have more fun. We’re firm believers of this! From knowing how to pack efficiently and minimally to things like navigating public transportation systems in other countries are all enviable skillsets. Even practical survival skills can be important when you apply them to travel. It’s simple things like performing first aid. Do you know how to build a fire? Can you read a map? While exercising those pre-travel thoughts for mental preparation will save your life in a scrape, so will actually being prepared for physical trials. A fantastic way to successfully achieve situational independence when traveling is by growing your own personal repertoire of life skills.
For instance…
Pretend that you’ve successfully packed everything into one bag for three weeks out of the country. Outstanding! Few people understand how to pack all their essentials into one bag for an extended trip. But now let’s say that your flight was delayed and the last shuttle from the airport to your hotel left 30 minutes ago – crap! Now what? The taxis are all really overpriced and you’re on a strict budget. “Well, I only have one bag… and my phone says that my hotel is only one mile away. I guess I’ll just have to walk,” you decide.
You reach your hotel with a sigh of relief, exhausted and out of breath. While packing all you needed into one bag for the trip was a win, you still managed to stuff way too much into that bag. It’s much heavier than you realized and carrying that pack a mile down the road has you left tired and sore. You also realized that you aren’t quite as in shape as you should be – that trek really has you winded!
What skills could be added to your repertoire that would make this situation better? A few, but things you can physically control are what you pack and your fitness. No, we’re not picking on you, these are things that we are constantly battling with ourselves. We’re not perfect! We’re average just like anyone else. These are just practical assets to have that will make your travels more enjoyable. More than that, they can help you have situational independence when traveling.
Prepare now; try challenging yourself
Coupling mental with physical preparedness is the ringer for success. Practically you can take care of your body and strengthen it. You can take a course in first aid and CPR. You can even join your local hiking and camping group to gain some outdoors survival skills. The possibilities are endless. All the while you should continue to mull over the many aspects of being prepared in your mind. “Constant vigilance!” as Mad-Eye Moody put it.
If you’re really daring you could test yourself at home. THIS IS ONLY A SUGGESTION AND SHOULD NOT BE ACTED UPON UNLESS YOU FEEL SAFE IN DOING SO – YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR YOU.
So if that is you, try hopping in your car and driving. Drive for hours away from home. Don’t look at your map, don’t worry about where you’re staying, just throw a few essentials into a bag and go. Now, could you successfully find a safe area to pull off at and stay for the night once you’re tired of driving? If you can’t then can you find a populated rest area to park your car and get some sleep? Could you located the nearest campgrounds? What’s for supper? Could you find your way home without using your digital maps if you really needed to? If you found a cool town and want to stay a while can you figure out where all its points of interest are without using your phone?
As we said, stay safe. If you feel like driving blind is too much of a risk maybe pick a location you’ve always wanted to visit in your own country and drive there, but don’t bother to book a place to stay. Don’t do any prior research about where to eat and what to see. Just go. Figure it out when you get there, mentally prepare for good and bad outcomes, and see just how far you get. You might have more fun than you realize if you give yourself a little bit of a challenge.
Not every situation is “make it or break it”
Situational independence when traveling does something more – it helps shed light on our shortcomings. You should also think critically about your travels as a whole. Ask yourself “How prepared was I really?” or “What did I learn from that situation?”
Not every problem you encounter will be a “make it or break it” moment. Sometimes you will have those times where how you handle the situation is of utmost importance. Other times they can be treated as a learning experience. Keep an open mind throughout everything. This will make all the difference in handling troubles as they arise.
Be prepared to try. Be prepared to act. Be prepared to fail. Be prepared to learn. Be prepared to grow. As humans we often limit ourselves, but these are instances where we can find out what we’re made of. Don’t be afraid. Show yourself exactly what you’re capable of handling! That’s what you do when troubles arise. That’s how you have situational independence when traveling.
Thanks for reading! If you’ve had problems while traveling and thought of a creative or simple, but effective, solution to solve them and feel like sharing please write to us in the comments. Or send us a message. As travelers ourselves we’re always trying to learn and we’re grateful for any advice shared!
** DISCLAIMER. All of the travel hiccups we described were fictional, but possible. IT IS UP TO YOU TO MAKE SMART CHOICES. If something doesn’t feel safe to you don’t do it! We are not suggesting that you handle any of those problems in the way that they were described, but simply trying to get you to think a little outside the box in how to solve problems. That’s what critical thinking is, but certainly don’t put yourself into harms way. BE PREPARED, BE WISE, BE SAFE – ALWAYS!
