What is the first thing that comes to mind when you hear the term travel blogger? Most people think travel bloggers are permanently on vacation. That their lives are all Instagram photos and amazing experiences. But it is not all fun and games as a travel blogger. As a blogger, you are writing content, marketing the content, marketing the blog, setting up the blog, making sure the images load correctly, managing SEO, managing ads, and affiliate marketing and that is just the beginning. It is a constant juggling between work and play. Don’t get me wrong, having a job that allows you to travel and make a living is amazing. But just like every job, there are parts of travel blogging that are overwhelming and exhausting. Here are some things you can do to help you stay grounded and feel a little less overwhelmed as a travel blogger.

10 WAYS TO HELP YOU STAY GROUNDED AS A TRAVEL BLOGGER

 

1. Create a Schedule 

Freedom is great, but if you are anything like me you still need structure to be your most productive and efficient self. Create a schedule that works for you and then stick to it! If you wake up at 9:00 am on Monday wake up at 9:00 every day after. 

Insider Tip: My schedule is three days of work (plan out social media for the week, new posts, network, etc.) and then four days of travel and exploration (change locations, go on adventures, complete work away tasks, etc). 

Some other schedules may be: 

• One month of play – one month of work.
• Work from 9 am -12:00 pm every day and play from 1:00- bedtime.
• Travel and create content for 6 months then stay in one place for the next 6 months and plan out everything for the year. 

2. Be Social and Don’t Isolate

As a travel blogger it can get tricky balancing work and play. Most people around you, especially in hostels, are just there to play. As much as you will want to close yourself off and focus on work make sure to talk and make friends. Get involved with hostel events and stay social.

3. Cook Your Own Meals

I like this one because cooking your own food is something you would do if you weren’t traveling. Sometimes the process of grocery shopping, making your food and eating it can be a nice familiar feeling of home. It also helps you create a routine.

Insider Tip: Cooking your own meals will save you money. Find some people to cook together with and you can save even more. 

4. Journal for you!

I am always writing when I am traveling. One reason is that it’s my job but the other reason is that it is healing. Travel bloggers write for a living about their experiences. It’s fantastic but sometimes it can get tedious. Instead of just writing for the blog try writing for YOU. Journal with the expectation that no one will see what you write about. 

Examples: 

• Write a letter to yourself to read later. 
• Write a poem. 
• Journal about your emotions. 

5. Have a go-to support person

We all have that one friend who we can call at all hours of the night when we need someone to talk to. Just because you are traveling doesn’t mean you have to leave that person behind. FACETIME and other video chat programs are wonderful. USE THEM! Of course make sure to watch the time difference but also remember that your support person isn’t as far away as it might feel. All you have to do is pick up the phone. 

Insider Tip: I prefer to use Face time (iPhone) or whats app video calls, but Skype, Facebook video, Snapchat, and google hangouts work as well.

6. Keep a worry journal (notebook)

I use this one all the time. It feels like every night I will lay in bed thinking about all the things I have to do the next day. Instead of allowing my brain to go crazy, when I think of something I write it down in my worry book. 

Why it helps: It helps me get the endless list out of my head so I can relax and sleep.

It also organically creates the next day todo list and helps me wake up the next day ready to take on the world. 

7. Plan ahead (a little)

One of the best things of solo traveling is that I get to do exactly what I want to do when I want to do it. I can wake up one morning and randomly decide to go to a new island or mountain village. Flexibility is key when traveling but to a certain extent. Planning a little bit ahead can give your adventures more structure, save you time and save you money. 

Insider Tip: To create a nice balance between structure and flexibility, I will research general things to do in the countries I will be visiting. If I find a city that I like I write it down and find a potential hostel to stay at. Then I save that hostel to my Hostelworld app and move on. 

Once I am traveling my plan can change at any moment. But I still have an idea of the direction I am headed. When I come to a new spot, one that I have already sort of looked into, I will already have a hostel that I like saved and can simply book the room. 

This strategy helps me stay clear on what I am doing, feel more secure about where I will be sleeping and also leaves plenty of room to change my mind and do something else that day or week. 

8. Take Breaks 

It is tempting to travel constantly and always be looking towards the next thing. Instead of moving every 2-3-4 days try staying in one place for 1-2-3 weeks and create a routine. When I get tired I find a place to volunteer and stay put for 2-4 weeks. This helps me catch up on work, connect with friends, take a break from moving all the time and more. 

9. Build Lasting Business Relationships 

This one can feel a little harder than the other items on this list but it is just as important. If you can form lasting professional relationships you will start to create professional security. This helps a lot with stress and anxiety and it can turn into something that you rely on. 

Examples of this include: 

• A monthly article for a magazine or newspaper 
• Managing social media for an established business connection 

This professional stability will give you weeks a little more structure and help you build a reliable income. 

10. Talk to your community 

I think the most important thing for Travel Bloggers to remember is that they don’t know it all. Even if you have been doing this for years, there are still things you can learn. The best way to learn is to talk to other travel bloggers. Chat groups are the best way to connect with others who have similar experiences and or similar questions. Even though your colleagues might be virtual they can still give you that necessary professional support you would get in a 9-5 job. 

CLOSING THOUGHTS 

Overall, no matter your job you will always have good and bad days. It is important to recognize those days, accept them and then move forward. As travelers it can be easy to ignore the bad days because if you are traveling you shouldn’t be complaining. But just because you are traveling doesn’t mean that your feelings are any less valid than someone who isn’t. We all struggle sometimes the important thing is to not let that struggle control us.

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