See & Experience New Things

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Last week I shared some of my biggest lessons from the NAFSA Annual Conference for professionals who work with international students.

But one of the biggest lessons I learned wasn’t even at the convention.

It was on New Orlean’s famous River Walk.

I had arrived closed to midnight the day before the conference started, so when I woke up I was super excited to see that the River Walk took me directly to the Convention Center.

As I left the hotel I saw a group of gentlemen who had already checked into the conference (you can always tell because they already have the conference lanyards around their neck).

I asked them if I could get to the River Walk by cutting through the parking lot directly in front of us.

They shrugged and said they didn’t know.

I was confused.

‘So how do you get to the conference?’

‘Oh,’ they replied, ‘we Uber.’

And right at that moment their driver pulled up and they started piling in.

Which left me standing on the sidewalk completely confused.

Here we were, in a brand new town, with a BEAUTIFUL, 15-minute walk to our conference.

And these guys ignored it to jump into an Uber and be driven to the front door.

Not to be discouraged, I found my way to the river and had an amazing walk to the first day of the conference.

And I took that walk, every day, along the river from the hotel to the convention center and back.

But here’s the thing- this isn’t about walking versus taking a ride.

It’s about being open to new experiences.

The guys that took the Uber to the conference were from Sweden.

They weren’t just from out of town, they were from a different continent.

And they chose to spend their time in the States in the back of a ride share, exactly how they did at home.

Look, I’ll be honest.

There were times on the River Walk that I felt a pull to look at my phone, to listen to a podcast, to ‘zone out.’

If I would have done this, I would have also missed out on the experience in front of me.

The experience I was having at the conference, the partnerships I was making, the lessons I had been learning.

It hit me then.

How easy it is to complain that we’re in a rut, when really we’re too distracted or too blind to take in the things around us that can change our perspective.

I came back home after the end of the week with a whole new outlook and mindset.

The people at Ubered probably felt, thought & behaved exactly like they did when they arrived.

We can’t do the same things, listen to the same music, ride in the same cars…

And expect things to change.

As Theo Vonn says, nothing changes if nothing changes, man.

So whatever change you want to see today, I encourage your to take action towards it.

Take that first step…

Have the courage to give yourself a new experience…

And make the changes you want to see in your own life.

Maybe that’s starting an exercise program.

Maybe it’s taking up a new hobby, like art or an instrument.

Maybe it’s studying in the United states.

If so, I can help- just reply to this message.

I hope everyone has a great week, and remember that you have the potential to…

Live Your American Dream.

Josh