What a time to be alive. We live longer, healthier, richer, safer lives in a world exploding with inventions and innovation in all aspects of society. Life expectancy has been on the rise for decades, we’ve made leaps in health care and medical advancements, and global poverty and malnutrition have been declining at previously unknown rates. Like every generation, we’re facing our own historic challenges. However, the benefits of the incredible accomplishments we’re inheriting are so great, you cannot compare this circumstance with any other time in human history. Nevertheless, at least in many of the regions considered the most developed, we seem to be further away from life as an experience than ever before. We’re bombarded by thousands of advertisements every day, spend hours staring at screens rather than the world around us, are more concerned with likes than with love, depression and burnout rates keep rising, and dopamine-addiction is becoming more prevalent all around us. How have we become so disconnected in a world that’s got so much to offer?
Sounds like food for a fascinating debate on the consequences of human nature in a world as dynamic and full of opportunity as ours. Personally, I believe a lot of the issue is grounded in life tending to choose the path of least resistance. While I’m intrigued to have this discussion and encourage anyone to reach out to me for it, I would like to use the moment for a plea to everyone reading instead. The plea for you to do it differently than the vast majority. To be more active, free, unorthodox, productive, constructive, engaged, conscious, and conscientious than the people you see around you every day on the streets. In short: be alive!
I too have spent presumably tens of thousands of hours scrolling through feeds, binge-watching series or movie trilogies, playing video games, reading news in the bathroom stall, watching TV, or sitting in front of my laptop for literally days in the process of building a career. I’ve also, at times, suffered the consequences: feeling drained and exhausted, unmotivated, anxious, or unable to focus. Drifting through life, gifting precious time to corporations that don’t have my best at heart but their profit. I’m not condemning our system – as outlined in the beginning, I believe it to be the driver of the most abundant and prosperous period in human history. Instead, I blame ourselves. If we want things to be different, we need to take responsibility and make a change. To not waste our time, to go out and experience the incredible beauty all around us, in nature, in our own and other cultures, in our relationships with friends and family, or in the purpose we attribute to our privileged lives.
After spending several years successfully building a business in the educational space, I took some time (I guess it’s called a sabbatical nowadays) to explore the planet and myself, and decide on my next attempt at contributing to what I would consider to be a better world. My decision to start The Occasionist was a dynamic process and it would take too much time to fully break it down here. However, I think it can best be summarized in a quote that has stuck with me since a quest to the highest peak of Africa, Mt. Kilimanjaro, in 2017:
“Don't ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.”
– Howard Thurman
I’ve always considered traveling a big passion of mine. What could be better than diving into new experiences, facing your fears and feeding your curiosity, being hypnotized by flawless landscapes and breathtaking nature, enjoying foreign culinary delights, and gaining perspective from people that live in entirely different realities altogether. This to me is the epitome of feeling alive. I’ll happily claim that I could point to a few trips and say that they’ve decisively impacted my life and me as a person. Yet it took me a little longer to realize I could turn this into more than just a hobby. So how do you turn your passion into a calling? Eventually, the answer to those kinds of questions tends to always be the same: just go and do it.
I knew that my product wasn’t going to be travel. It’s time spent living. Truly living. Transformative experiences that cause intense emotions and keep you stuck in awe long after your return home. There’d been a few instances in which I turned trips or certain components of them into a surprise for my travel companions and I loved the experiences such occasions turned into. I came across other ‘mystery travel’ providers online and quickly fell in love with the niche. In my mind, going on a trip and not knowing what’s ahead is the ultimate adventure. Liberated from expectations, no control of what you’re getting yourself into, forced to improvise and be spontaneous, open to anything about to come your way.
It’s been exactly a year now since starting The Occasionist and lots has happened to turn this dream into reality. We’ve built a team, established a solid network for our destinations, have booked dozens of trips already and are only getting started. While Mystery Travel continues to be the most exciting option we offer, we by no means limit ourselves to it. If you’ve got an idea for a special trip you’ve been dreaming of, approach us and we’ll make sure to get you on your way. If you’re looking for some inspiration, check out the destinations on our website or consult with us for suggestions based on your preferences. Even if you’re not looking to book through us but just need some advice. Nothing could be more rewarding to us than any contribution we can make to achieve our mission: to make you feel and act alive.
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