At Travel That Matters, we believe travel is one of the very best ways to foster connection in our world. Connection with one's self. Connection with other cultures. Connection with nature. Connection with your traveling companions and the new people you meet.
At the beginning of April 2020, when it was clear we would not be traveling for a while, we decided to keep connection alive virtually via a 30-Day Connection Challenge.
For 30 days (except Sundays), we got showered and dressed and put on makeup and went "LIVE" on our Facebook business page. We'll be the first to admit, some days were better than others, but our commitment to fostering connection kept us going and helped us get through a challenging time. We hope we were also able to bring a little bit of sunshine into the world and make people smile (even when Angela made Anne cry ... in a good way).
If you weren't able to join us, or you'd just like a reminder of each day's challenge, we've included the list below. For more detail on a particular challenge, you can check out that day's video on our Facebook and/or YouTube playlists.
Travel That Matters 30-Day Connection Challenge
Day 1 - Reach out to someone you haven't talked to in a while.
Day 2 - Focus on compassion.
Day 3 - Have fun with photos.
Day 4 - Try meditating.
Day 5 - Connect with/share your spiritual heritage (inspired by Passover/Easter).
Day 6 - Get out in nature.
Day 7 - Dress up like you have somewhere to go.
Day 8 - Focus on finding balance.
Day 9 - Question your perspective. Do you have the whole picture?
Day 10 - Perform a "Random Act of Kindness" and share your ideas with us.
Day 11 - Connect with your playful side.
Day 12 - Connect through food. Share your favorite travel-related food experiences. Try to cook a new dish from a destination you love.
Day 13 - Connect with curiosity.
Day 14 - Make a playlist of songs that make you smile and share it. (Here's our Feel Good playlist on Spotify.)
Day 15 - Seek out and share GOOD NEWS.
Day 16 - Focus on gratitude.
Day 17 - Share something about yourself ... in the form of your favorite travel souvenir.
Day 18 - In honor of Earth Day, share your environmentally friendly practices, especially related to travel.
Day 19 - Share appreciation for someone in your household.
Day 20 - Connect with health through movement. Share your favorite at-home workouts.
Day 21 - Support a local restaurant by ordering takeout or delivery.
Day 22 - Connect with your feelings.
Day 23 - Watch your favorite feel-good movie with your household … or have a virtual watch party. Take it up a notch and do an airplane-themed dinner/movie.
Day 24 - Reorganize something … even if it's just a folder on your desktop.
Day 25 - Connect with your imagination/creativity.
Day 26 - Plan a game night … real or virtual.
Day 27 - Connect with your inspirational side. In the video, we share five ways to help inspiration find you.
Day 28 - R-E-S-T.
Day 29 - Connect with your inner explorer and imagine your most desired travel experience.
Day 30 - Happy Cinco de Mayo! Choose one or more of your favorite challenges from the past 30 days and bring them into your life going forward.
Which challenges were most inspiring or fun or helpful to you? We'd love to hear!