11 things I discovered backpacking without a computer or phone for 4 months

In the middle of 2013 I decided to go to Amsterdam for a week to cover a tech conference for the news site, TechZulu. I opted to travel without a computer or a phone. After a decade of being a work obsessed entrepreneur I needed an intermission.

When the time came to book the flight I reached out to the founder of BetaList, based in the Netherlands, who had featured my startup, SaveBusinessTime. He suggested I attend another conference in Prague the following week so I extended one week to two weeks.

On departure day I couldn’t find my iPod so that meant no music. I was terrified to embark on a techless life void of digital entertainment, but I had committed to this journey so I stuck to it and boarded the flight. I was surprised how easy it was to disconnect. Just hours after landing, far from my affair with my laptop, I felt more in touch with my core being. Arriving into Amsterdam I was scared being in a strange place where I knew nothing, but as I started asking for directions and finding my way around, I felt like I was finding myself again, the person I was before I became a slave to business and my computer. I was so happy that time online would be seldom and I wouldn’t be looking down as I walked the streets, but rather stay open eyes to all the beauty around me. Being there only a few hours my soul felt like it had come back home.

Soon my two weeks expanded to 1 month and after 1 month I felt there was a positive mental shift happening for me, but I was concerned if I left too soon it wouldn’t be permanent. Supposedly it takes 30 days to change a habit, so I changed my flight to return in two months. After two very short months of new friends, cultural discoveries, backpacking with 30 possessions, I simply couldn’t abandon this unplanned life and two months quickly turned into four months.

I hope, truly hope, I don’t become Al Bundy reminiscing about the ‘football days’ because what I desire for my life, my future, is to forever live a fantasy.

1. I LOVE LIVING WITH MINIMAL TECH
2. Being without tech enhanced my creativity and led to feeling calm, excluding when I found myself stranded and in the middle of the night and had to ask a prostitute for directions ☺
3. There are so many opportunities to connect with strangers that lead to adventures in Lake Bled, Slovenia, European romance, discovering the Christmas market in Strasbourg, France, evacuating a broken down train in Brussels, Belgium
4. Fantasies can not be planned; If you told me on Christmas I would find a Prince Charming, actually visit a castle with Santa Claus, go on a boat ride, drink fine champagne and see a medieval sword fight — I wouldn’t have believed you, nor could I have planned it
5. I enjoyed the quiet and didn’t miss music like I imagined I would
6. Reading a physical fiction book looking over the Croatian Sea is magical
7. Emails aren’t as urgent as they seem
8. I don’t actually need many possessions
9. Having a friend to lean on who won’t judge me when I’m afraid is essential
10. Strangers will give you their hearts to see that you are safe, at least in the European countries I visited they did

11. There is always time, it’s a choice

I’ll be writing a book about my 4 month journey. If you’re interested in receiving sample chapters when they are ready you can sign up here, http://lifevstartup.com