Everyday at Under30CEO we try to help young people get what they really want out of life. For some it’s money, power, and fame, for others it’s time to spend with friends and family, still others embrace the journey and continue to search for what happiness might mean to them…
Last week my friend Marcella Chamorro who joined us in her home country of Nicaragua for our Under30Experiences trip, interviewed me for her new book Life Is What I Say It Is. When Marcella asked me what my definition of freedom was, I told her: “doing what I want, when I want, with the people I want.”
Does Freedom = Happiness?
While the above equation doesn’t always prove true, there is one thing that people want more than anything: excitement.
As a person who has worked really hard to achieve a lot of freedom in my life, I have had the opportunity to spend seven months abroad this year… and I’ll tell you– there was hardly a dull moment. My writing and creativity improved, my sense of self was challenged, my perspective on the world changed… I always thought it was cliche to think that travel can open one up to so many possibilities, but once I went abroad head-first, I finally got it…
So What Now?
While being abroad away from my friends, family, and business for the rest of my life isn’t sustainable, (remember: my definition of freedom also included: with the people I want) I still seek this inspiration and excitement in my life that travel has provided. But how do I keep it up? If this excitement is really what I want out of life, how do I keep it up?
Everyday I want to be challenged. I want to be pushed out of my comfort zone. I want to see new places and try new things. I want to be in a creative environment. I want new experiences. And I want the positive energy of ambitious young people around me.
Sounds like starting a business doesn’t it?
Yup, you guessed it; that’s why we are starting a travel business. You may have heard of the four Under30CEO trips we’ve run, which brought together awesome, entrepreneurial minded people in far off lands. Well, our assumptions have been validated and the young professionals from every continent who have attended agree. So, it’s time for us to officially spin off our Under30Experiences brand into a travel company.
We’re Not a Travel Company, We’re an Experience Company
The things above: new challenges, reaching beyond your comfort zone, seeing new places, trying new things, inspiring a creative environment, new experiences, and positive energy from ambitious young people is exactly what we’re trying to create. Not only for the personal and professional development for everyone who works at the company, but also for the attendees of our trips. It’s our mission to create this type of environment for young professionals, exposing them to the world, and letting Under30Experiences be the launching pad for their next big moves…
Let me stop the pitch there, and bring it back to value driven content you can apply to your everyday life.
The experience I had across seven countries in seven months was truly a lifetime worth of excitement. And my life’s goal? To pack in as many awesome experiences as possible. You might have heard me tell the story about the day I realized that entrepreneurship was going to be my vehicle to get these experiences…
I was 19, at the Collegiate Entrepreneurs’ Organization National Conference. I just had dinner at the same table as Herb Kelleher, Founder of Southwest Airlines, and Steve Wozniak, Co-founder of Apple. My mind was blown. I wandered over to reflect by the pool, when a student from Manitoba decided to tell me how this conference changed his life…
“I realized something this weekend,” he told me. “At the end of the day, life is all about experiences. Some people collect art, some people want money… but when my time has run out, I want my life to be about the accumulation of stories…and entrepreneurship is going to be my vehicle to do that.”
All to create more experiences for others.
We believe “life is all about the experience” and that the experiences we have in life make up who we are today. We hope that giving the opportunity to see the world and plot our generation’s next big moves will exhilarate a more creative, inspired generation.
To win a trip to Costa Rica please sign up to our members-only community at Under30Experiences.com.
Matt Wilson is Co-founder of Under30Media and Adventurer in Residence at Under30Experiences.
Follow @MattWilsontv
