I believe that when one travels, one does it with a purpose that involves taking the risk of going somewhere new, exotic, “dangerous.” This experience, in turn, will help you learn and gain more perspective. The time available to experience new places is limited, and the options that are being offered by travel companies are rigid and seem to be built around the availability of the boats, guides, or dates rather than the purpose and needs of the traveler.

When you travel with a purpose in a limited time, you need to be sure that your itinerary is flexible in rearranging it on the spot without missing out on the experience. The activities should be provided on-demand and as an easily configurable service.

Traveling With a Purpose.

You want to experience things that you have never experienced before. You want to taste foreign flavors that tickle your tongue with rustic and ageless recipes perfected throughout the centuries. You want to experience the freedom of a lawless yet peaceful country where the people welcome and expect no retribution for sharing their happiness with you. You want to be an adventurer and explore the endless Amazon jungle and swim with freshwater pink dolphins. You want to change your daily routine from typing on a keyboard and exploring the internet to feeling and seeing firsthand the wonders of the world.

So, find a purpose for your trip. If you are the type of person who likes cruises, then you should try to find a different purpose for your trip. Something more adventurous. After the second cruise, all cruises might start to blur together.

Are you into extreme sports? Then, find a country where you can push your comfort level to a new limit. Try whitewater rafting or a whitewater kayaking school. Climb a mountain, visit the Amazon.

You can participate in adventure races that range from a couple of days to several weeks. One of those is the Vuelta al Cotopaxi.

Traveling is all about risk.

Take a risk and get out of your comfort zone. That is the best way to gain perspective. See what Sir Richard Branson is doing. He can choose to be as stiff as Donald Trump’s hair, wearing suits, and never leaving a desk chair. Instead, Branson travels the world in search of adventure, which is helping him build Virgin into one of the hottest and most irreverent brands on the planet by bringing people with new and fresh points of view into the mix.

Traveling is all about learning

You can be smart, quick, and talented at any topic. You can be a business mogul, a smashingly successful internet entrepreneur, or an accomplished suburban mom. If you have not traveled to see other cultures, hear other languages, and taste different flavors. Your potential might be limited to your bubble, which can be a lovely one like Bill Gates’ bubble, but a bubble nonetheless. Bill did not know that poverty existed. Here is a quote from his speech when speaking at Harvard this year.

I left campus knowing little about the millions of young people cheated out of educational opportunities here in this country. And I knew nothing about the millions of people living in unspeakable poverty and disease in developing countries. It took me decades to find out.

Bill Gates.