Have you noticed how, in recent years, the idea of travel has gone from being a pleasant pastime to something like a general social obsession?
If in doubt, all you need to do is check out the relevant hashtags on social media platforms such as Instagram.
More than the desire to constantly travel, though, many of us at this particular moment in time find ourselves projecting most of our energies, effort, and ambition further afield than our own homes and immediate surroundings.
3 Reasons to Focus Your Energies Closer to Home
Here are a few good reasons why you might want to focus your energies closer to home, instead.
1. The deepest kind of self-discovery is based on an inward journey
One of the primary reasons why people want to acquire bigger homes, visit exotic new locales, get more expensive cars, and all the rest, is because of an impulse towards self-discovery and self-development.
While travel – for example – can certainly be a very positive and enriching experience, it’s unlikely that a journey abroad will fill you with great personal revelations in and of itself. In fact, various writers have argued that travel only leads to “self-discovery” insofar as it promotes introspection.
If you want to discover things about yourself, come to terms with your previous hangups and troubles, and set a new and more uplifting course for the future, it’s very likely that this will be best achieved by going on an inward journey instead of an outward one.
Spending some time in silence, and with your loved ones, and in your own home, may do a much better job of promoting self-discovery than turning all your energies outwards.
2. Building your dream where you are is often more affordable than trying to build it elsewhere
As of this writing, the global COVID-19 pandemic is still underway, and many people are worried about the potential implications of this for the future of the economy, the job and housing markets, and more.
Regardless of this particular circumstance, however, it is certainly the case that building your dream where you are is often more affordable – and achievable – than trying to build it elsewhere.
A Dormer loft conversion costs significantly less than a new home is likely to, for example. And if you’re looking to become happier or more fulfilled, you may just be better placed to build your happiness where you are right now, rather than trying to build it somewhere else.
3. Stopping to smell the flowers and appreciate what you already have is one of the greatest feel-good attitudes to nurture
According to the authors of the book, “The Molecule of More,” the desire to constantly search for novelty in life is primarily driven by the neurotransmitter dopamine. Actually being able to enjoy what you have, however, and to take pleasure in the present moment, is driven by a very different neurochemical system.
The bottom line is that constantly searching for “more” won’t bring you happiness in the present. And you can experience happiness in the present with what you already have.
By slowing down the pace of your life and developing the ability to appreciate what you already have, you will be uncovering one of the best feel-good approaches to life.