Five Questions With Non-Conformist Chris Guillebeau
October 11th, 2008
Would you like to travel the globe while financing those trips solely through your online efforts and income? How about attempting to visit every country that the world has to offer?
Right around the time we started to make final preparations for the launch of Train for Humanity, I came across the aptly titled website, The Art of Non-Conformity, which belongs to Chris Guillebeau.
His site’s tagline is:
“Unconventional ideas for remarkable people. Along the way, I visit every country in the world and profile other nonconformists.”
Certainly after starting a business in the Caribbean, all of my travels, and a pre-mature escape from the corporate world I thought that I led a somewhat non-conformist life…but I don’t have anything on Chris.
After going through his archives and reading about various travels and adventures, one thing that immediately struck was the fact that Chris had lived and worked on the ground in Africa as an aid worker.
Before the launch of Train for Humanity I decided to email Chris to see if he would provide some feedback on TFH. Almost instantly I received a reply with some solid input and I have been following his adventure ever since.
I think most readers of MyTropicalEscape are living, or are working towards living, a life that is outside of the traditional norm and to that end, Chris has recently published an ebook, The Unconventional Guide to Working for Yourself, which is intended to help people create personal freedom via a very small business.
Below, Chris answers five questions that I had for him regarding the direction he has chosen for his life and how he funds his travels.
1. Does nonconformity run in your family? If no, what started you on your path…?
I wouldn’t say it runs in the family, but my dad was really good at encouraging me to do whatever I wanted. He encouraged me to try new things and not be afraid of failure. I think those are essential prerequisites for any unconventional lifestyle.
2. Wouldn’t life be easier if you just got a 9-5 desk job, earned a steady paycheck, and lived like a lot of other people?
No. At least not for me — some people are happy to embrace the 9-5 life, but I would be miserable doing that. Most self-employed people I know would gladly trade money for freedom. Obviously you have to make a living to some degree, but once you’ve had the freedom to make your own choices, it’s hard to go back to the cubicle lifestyle.
3. How do you fund your travels?
I support myself entirely through my own work. I create information products and occasionally consult for other small businesses.
4. What has been your favorite country to visit so far and why? What place will you never return to and why?
I don’t have a single favorite. I especially liked South Africa, the Netherlands, Ghana, Macedonia, and Hong Kong — but there’s usually something to appreciate (as well as something not to like) about anywhere you go. As to where I will never return, well, that’s a long list. It can be unpopular to say so, but there are a lot of countries that are deeply impoverished in large part because they lack good governance or because the foreign aid system has let them down. When I go to Africa, for example, I’m usually reminded that there are some things I really love about being there and other things that are a lot easier in North America.
5. What inspired you to write your latest ebook, “The Unconventional Guide to Working for Yourself?”
All of the emails! People ask every day about how I got started and what they can do to create a lifestyle that allows them to pursue their own goals and dreams. I don’t claim to have all of the answers — one of the things I try to be clear about is that there is no quick-fix system to any of this — but I hope the product will help get some people going in the right direction.
So you STILL Want to be a Travel Writer? Part Two of My Interview With New York Times Freelancer Cindy Price
May 24th, 2008
Yesterday I ran part one of my interview with Cindy Price who is a freelance travel writer for the New York Times. Below is the second installment.
What has been your most dramatic travel experience? What has been your most “creative” meal while on the road?
That’s a tough call. For sheer drama, probably going to Rome for three weeks when I was 19. I grew up in a family of six in Jacksonville, Florida, so we couldn’t exactly foot six airline tickets. Most of our travel had to be by car. We took a lot of trips to Orlando, chilled on the People Mover, then beat it home.
So Rome blew my mind. I don’t know what I expected – I was a sheltered American kid. I think I thought all the women would be squat and walking around with pots on their shoulders like those old Sicilian renderings you see at Olive Garden.
So you want to be a Freelance Travel Writer? Interview With New York Times Freelancer Cindy Price (part 1)
May 22nd, 2008
Editor’s note: I know that a lot of people who like to travel also aspire to write about their travels as a freelance writer. After Cindy Price, freelance travel writer with the New York Times, contacted me for some information about Culebra, I thought, “it would be really good to get her insider’s point of view on what it is really like to work as a travel writer…” So here is part 1 of a two part interview that I conducted with Cindy.
image source: screen grab cindyprice.net
How did you get into freelance writing?
Well. I desperately wanted to be a novelist, but could not manage to actually finish a novel. Or even a short story for that matter. But I loved to write, and so I got an internship at a magazine. Soon after, I started to publish but it took a long time for me to go fulltime as a freelancer. I’m not terrifically ambitious, either – so every once in a while I have to kind of give myself a kick to produce more work. More importantly, I do other writing projects on the side, which pay more. I’m not above doing odd jobs if they pop up. You have to hustle a bit, but the payoff is not having to go into an office. I read somewhere recently that freelance writers are like the migrant workers of the media world, which made me laugh. It’s possible to make a living doing this, but most of us have other sources of income.
Today at MyTropicalEscape I am fortunate to have online entrepreneur and top “Stumbler” Shana Albert. For most people who want to “escape the cube” or pursue personal freedom you still have to generate an income. Well, Shana has been quite successful with ABC Home Preschool and she runs a slew of other sites that help her to create passive income. I was quite interested to find out how participating in social media communities helps her to promote her various projects.
1. How have you been able to create your well known online profile in such a relatively short period of time?
Well known? That always blows me away when I hear that. I don’t really understand how my profile became so well known. For me the only answer I can easily come up with is that it must be because I love everything Social Media….. that I put my heart and sole into it.
It’s true… I absolutely love Social Media. I truly believe that I have been successful at it because I love it. There are a few Social Networking sites that I frequent and I spend most of my time at. I don’t try to use them all… if I did I don’t think I would be as successful at it. I offer something to each of the Online Communities I am a member of. I love being a member of these communities and I’m sure the other community members can sense that. I am totally genuine in all that I do as an online community member. I love Social Media and I believe that my profile is well known because my genuine love for it.
Escape 101 - Taking a Sabbatical or Career Break Without Losing Your Money or Your Mind
February 7th, 2008
A few weeks ago I was perusing the Four Hour Work Week blog and came across an interesting post about a book that had just been released, “Escape 101 - The Four Secrets to Taking a Sabbatical or Career Break Without Losing Your Money or Your Mind, which discusses the benefits that extended travel and sabbaticals can have on your psyche and career.
It turns out that the author of the book, Dan Clements, is a really great guy who happened to contact me a few days after I read the Four Hour Work Week post because I had left a comment about “escaping” the corporate world.
After the initial contact, and a couple of emails back and forth, I thought that Dan should absolutely be highlighted on MyTropicalEscape.com as his book gets to the root of why I started this site in the first place.
Below, please find a copy of the recent conversation that I had with Dan Clements regarding his book, “Escape 101 - The Four Secrets to Taking a Sabbatical or Career Break Without Losing Your Money or Your Mind.”
A conversation with Dan Clements:
- Your book was recently profiled on Tim Ferriss’4-Hour Workweek site. How are the concepts that are discussed in Escape 101 different from his book? How can Escape 101 and The 4-Hour Workweek complement each other?
Tim gets a lot of attention (and rightly so) for his outsourcing and use of technology, but the real genius of the book is the way it forces you to question your assumptions about work and lifestyle. In a similar way, Escape 101 is about asking yourself, “What if I didn’t have to go to work tomorrow?” Read the rest of this entry »
Ten Questions - Interview With Tina Su of Think Simple Now
February 3rd, 2008
Editor’s note: This is another interview in the ongoing “Ten Questions With” interview series. In the previous weeks I have featured top bloggers such as, Leo Babauta, Cameron Low, Skellie, Yaro Starak, Darren Rowse, and Michael Martin. Today, I am lucky to have Tina Su, of Think Simple Now, as a guest. Tina is a rapidly rising “pro-blogger” and she recently had a very well received guest post on how she gained 2000 subscribers to her site in one hundred and twenty days on ProBlogger.
1. What was the catalyst that started you on your path to personal freedom? How come so many of us are hesitant to take that first step toward serving our own happiness? Read the rest of this entry »
Do The Unthinkable - The Scott Rigsby Interview
January 21st, 2008
Editor’s note: It is truly an honor to publish this interview with Scott Rigsby who is an AMAZING human being by any standards.
When Scott was 18 years old the pickup truck he was riding in was suddenly hit by a passing 3-ton attached trailer truck, which subsequently dragged him 300 feet. His back suffered third degree burns, his right leg was severed off and his left leg hung barely intact. His life was seemingly over.
Over a decade of countless doctor visits and hospitals, 26 surgeries, additional amputation, depression, fear, and uncertainty, Rigsby had become a professional patient. An inevitable battle with prescription drug addiction followed, as did the loss of many relationships and trust. At one point, things got so desperate that Rigsby sold what little furniture he had just to pay rent. There was no steady income and no dreams for a stable or successful future.
In 2005 he decided to change his life and became determined to “Do the Unthinkable.”
image source: Mike McGill
A Conversation With Daniel Scocco Of Daily Blog Tips
January 16th, 2008
Editor’s note: Today I am posting an interview that I just did yesterday with Daniel Scocco, of Daily Blog Tips. Recently, Daniel had a guest post published over at Zen Habits, “One Simple Principle to Live By: Purity,” which drew a tremendous amount of feedback from Leo’s readers.
Daniel’s interview today is outside of my regular “Ten Questions With” posting schedule but since I just had the chance to talk with him, and in light of the Zen Habit’s post, I thought now would be a good time to post his thoughts.
