“ScIreland” was the first trip in my “Transformation Travel” program. I personally led this excursion, assisted by my husband, Randy of ThisIsTrue.com. We were accompanied by a tentative traveler — Anne.
As you may know, I am a High Performance Coach. High Performance is succeeding beyond standard norms consistently over the long term while maintaining well-being and positive relationships. That leads to the ongoing feeling of full engagement, joy, and confidence that comes from consistently living from your best self. I guide entrepreneurs to transform their lives from adequate to excellent using the High Performance framework.
Transformation Travel was born out of my experience on the Camino de Santiago, a 500-mile pilgrimage across northern Spain last May. It took 35 days, and I carried everything I needed on my back (except food: that was purchased along the way, or provided by the hostels that line the route). Transformation Travel isn’t just a trip to look at the sights. It’s a trip to help you face, with the help of a guide, fears, anxieties, and unknown issues that can crop up, especially when traveling.
Along the way, I saw the pilgrims deal with their lives, their fears, and their problems. Everyone did it differently and with varying degrees of success. The fears and problems faced can include not knowing what to do with your life, dealing with past abuses or unhappy relationships, and uncertainty about upcoming transitions. Some of the fears were presented by the trip itself: where will I sleep tonight, can I find food that fits my diet, what if I get lost or hurt/sick, or not knowing the language.
Lesson Revealed
One of the things I learned while walking was that by being out of your home environment and daily routine, combined with the talking to other pilgrims and forward movement of walking each day, many participants had what I call a breakthrough. Especially when guided by an experienced coach, such breakthroughs help facilitate reaching the life you want, and the clarity to get more.
This was one of many trips to come. You can also consider the trips to Japan in early December 2019 and China (details still forming, but will include the Yellow Mountains, Silk Road, and Great Wall) in Spring 2020. Future trip ideas include Juneau Bays to Glaciers, Machu Pichu, and one or more of the (US) National Trails.
The Difference…
“ScIreland” wasn’t a typical guided tour. It was personalized and small. We weren’t on a bus with five dozen other people. We weren’t rushed around the country with a different city and bed each night. The trip was a slow-travel, deep dive approach, as promoted by Jen Sparks in her book, Slow Travel. It was personalized to the cities and locations that fit with the concept of experiential travel, with the transformations I knew were possible when we had the time and space.
This also wasn’t a cookie-cutter trip. It was carefully crafted with time built-in for introspection so we could connect with our thoughts and feelings about what we are seeing each day and with what the intention of the day was. Free time was interwoven with the scheduled time. What a perfect combination for growth.
I handled the details of where we stayed and how we traveled from point to point. Fellow travelers had it made with the perfect combination of elements to find their path to the life they want, moving through the fear, confusion, or transition they were facing.
Beyond Sightseeing
Sure we enjoyed various sites and activities on this trip. Additionally, I guided the others through a carefully and scientifically designed curriculum each day to help them move forward into the life they want, helping them to replace old bad habits with new, supporting habits.
Each evening we debriefed from the day’s experiences and explored a lesson topic to set the intention for the next day — something to process during your day as you move through your experiences. The conversations were stimulating. The participants commented at times with reactions like “I’ve never thought of that before.”, “That’s deep!”, and “I need to think about that.”
The group coaching, combined with the travel elements, help each of us to transform our lives from adequate to excellent — to experience more joy, clarity, and energy.
The Specifics
Included: Inter- & intra-city transportation, lodging that ranged from guest house to boutique hotel, breakfasts, and tour/excursion costs.
Not included: Flights to and from “ScIreland”, beverages/alcohol, other meals, and snacks.
Packing List
- I highly recommend traveling lightly so you don’t have to wrestle with your luggage.
- Given the changing weather patterns here, wear layers, and make one of them a waterproof cover. Randy and I took galoshes to put on over our walking shoes — lightweight and waterproof – but never needed them.
- Bring Euros and Pounds with you for your purchasing ease. A credit card with no international fees is nice, too.
- Regarding charging your electronics, bring a Type G adapter and be prepared for 230v/50Hz electricity, which most phone, tablet, and laptop chargers can handle without any changes to settings — but confirm the operation of yours.
As we get closer I share more about how to pack light, yet have plenty of layers at the same time.
Next Steps
If you missed out on this fun and want to join me on a future trip, start your application here by giving me some information so we can talk on the phone. This will be a multi-step process to make sure you will fit into the style of the trip.