If you’re like me, you might also be a bit hesitant to go abroad and learn a foreign language. Going abroad is no easy feat for a mom of a 9-month-old, stepmom to a 12-year-old, committed wife, full-time entrepreneur, marketing freelancer and amateur athlete. Just getting out of my own house is a tough task, let alone going overseas!

Since beginning to work with Derek Capo at Next Step China, I have felt a gradual shift in my perspective on the world and my hopes to do more traveling. When I was a teenager, I was considered a seasoned traveler having been to several countries in Africa, South America, Europe and North America. Since that time, my wanderlust has dwindled significantly. I’ve settled into a comfortable rhythm with my California life, working 80-hour weeks doing what I love, living the American dream, owning my dream house and having a family of four, plus a lovable English Bulldog. On the surface, everything is perfect. A little too perfect.

I want to go to China. I want to learn Chinese.

Now that I voiced my dream, it’s just a matter of HOW and WHEN. Being able to do the things on your wishlist is not impossible, but you do need to make an effort towards making them into reality. Here’s how I intend to make this dream of mine into reality.

 

• Begin a travel savings account. For most of us, money is a major factor to take into consideration when we want to go abroad. One small step I decided to take was to begin a separate savings account where I can set aside 1-3% of my net income towards going abroad. It may not sound like much, but it will add up over time.

 

 

• Begin learning bits and pieces of Chinese. So, I cannot go out and hire a Chinese tutor to teach me Chinese right now. But, there are a lot of online learning programs that I can explore to get started. One of my favorites is YangYang Cheng’s YouTube Channel, where I can learn bits and pieces of Chinese. If you have any additional suggestions, I’m all ears!

 

 

• Talk to others who have traveled overseas when they had a young family. Lately, I’ve been reading a lot of travel blogs, like Travel Tot, Nomadic Matt and The International Wanderer. I am learning about how to travel with a young family, how to make the most of my travel budget and what opportunities there are to explore new horizons with little ones.

 

 

• Discuss this dream with my partner, my family. This is a topic that I’ve chatted with my husband about, and he’s very supportive of my dreams. He’s not yet ready to travel outside the United States, but when the time is right, we’ll do it together.

 

 

• Make a timeline. Timing is everything. Deciding when to do something is just as important as deciding what we want to do. Right now, my timeline is set for going abroad in 3 years, by my 31st birthday. Now, I’m working backwards to figure out how I’m going to get things in place to make it a reality.

 

 

• Do one thing each week to get me closer to my dream. This is essential to do and helps me not to lose sight of my goals. Each week, I have a to-do list where I keep track of what I’m doing this week to move towards each big goal on my life list. I find that this keeps me very motivated and excited about my goals, even if I cannot do them all right now.

 

What about you? Do you have a dream that seems nearly impossible for you to achieve at this stage in your life? Maybe, you want to go to China, learn a new language or just volunteer abroad! If so, write me at [email protected] to tell me all about it!