“A mind that is stretched by new experience can never go back to its old dimensions.”
― Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.

As I’ve been informally polling people about their retirement plans – especially in the wake of the pandemic disruptions – travel is a prominent theme.  It’s hardly surprising given that people have put many of their travel plans on hold these past 2 years.  In addition, retirees typically have both the time and the money to finally take some trips that they’ve been thinking about.

But, like my previous articles, I’d advocate that you begin to travel NOW rather than continue to postpone trips for a full retirement that happens ‘someday.’

Whether you call it retiring gradually, slowly, or by degrees…use some of the time to begin to travel and explore.  There are a wealth of benefits!

These don’t need to be multi-week European adventures; my wife and I extended a brief business trip of mine to 5 days exploring Austin, Texas and the surrounding area.  We met up with two different sets of acquaintances who live there and were happy and excited to tell us more about the area.

Travel, like the quote I chose for this article, brings you new experiences and new perspectives.  You can begin to discover where you might want to live and work during your gradual or full retirement.  Or perhaps you’ll cross someplace off your list after spending some time there!

My home is in Minnesota…and as you may have heard it’s COLD there in the winter.  So, with remote work and easy home-rental options I spend a portion of the winter in warmer climates.  Be creative and go for it!

We see new places and we meet new people when we travel.  Sometimes we’re out of our comfort zones in new locations in terms of what we experience, where we stay, or where we eat.  But that’s when we learn.

Plan a change of scenery and stretch your mind; you’ll never be the same!