Susan’s story: your dreams don’t work unless you do

Ever since I was a little child my big dream was to travel and to discover what is behind the horizon. However, I grew up in a very small village where traveling is something that you do once a year, and the rest of the year you must go back to normal life and work. I graduated from high school and took a gap year where I traveled around Europe, lived in Suriname for a while, and went on a backpacking trip around Thailand. This made me realize that this was the life I wanted but I had no idea how to sustain a lifestyle like that and everyone around me pushed me to go to university because only with a degree I could be successful. 4 years later I graduated from university and during those 4 years I worked as a waitress on the weekends and all my salary I saved up so I could travel. When I graduated the Covid pandemic started and the world went on a total lockdown, I felt defeated and stuck in my home country.

I decided to spend this time working even more and saving more. I invested my money back into myself and bought 2 courses which changed my life. These courses showed me that a life of full-time travel is possible, and I learned very quickly how to grow an audience on social media and how to start my brand. A few months passed by and there was a small opportunity to go to Bali with a very expensive visa. I was scared, the world was on lockdown, I didn’t know when I could come back home when I would see my loved ones again and I had to go all by myself. I decided this would be the start of the rest of my life and I went for it. 

What were the biggest lessons you learned on this life trip?

The biggest lesson for me is that you should never lose hope, your dreams should be your compass and you should believe fearlessly in your dreams. You only have one life, why would you waste it listening to other people? The only people you need to take advice from are the people who are doing something you want to do as well. I learned that the people with who you surround yourself are of great impact on your life. The most important thing in life is to love yourself, take care of yourself in all aspects: spiritually, mentally, emotional and physical. The more you take care of yourself and the more you educate yourself, the more things you can handle by yourself, and you will become unstoppable.

What are the most amazing things about living in Bali? Living the way, you live.

The most amazing thing is that everyone who lives in Bali has the same lifestyle. Everyone escaped the 9-5 life and is building something for themselves. You can work from your laptop the whole day, but you can go out and have a coconut on the beach for $1 which is the best work break you can ever imagine. The conversations you have in Bali are always about dreams, goals, passion, and business plans. Everyone supports each other, and everyone is down to travel all the time. You can grab your bike, ride for an hour and arrive in paradise.

What was the hardest or the scariest thing in this whole experience?

Leaving everything behind and step on a plane to a new place where I didn’t know a single thing or person. It only made me stronger, in the end, I know now I can handle everything by myself, and a lot of my fears disappeared.

Is there any new adventure or projects you are planning in the nearest future?

I am currently working a lot on my YouTube channel and my online digital products! For my YouTube channel, I am planning on traveling to a lot of remote and epic places which will be unforgettable for sure!