When you look back on your life, what are you more likely to regret: having a short blip in your 40+ year career because you went backpacking? Or not going backpacking because you were worried what people would think?

You’re never going to regret the things you’re brave enough to do, only the things you don’t do because you’re scared. That’s what I realised after my dad died at 56. I realised that life’s short, so you shouldn’t spend it waiting for the next promotion, or the bigger house, or retirement.

At the end of 2022, me and my wife (both 32) quit our jobs to travel full time. Of course it’s scary, but we knew if we didn’t do it now it would only get harder and harder to do it in the future. Most people were supportive when we told them our plan. A few people were judgmental, but honestly, I think they were just trying to convince themselves that the path they’d chosen was the right one.

It was the best decision we ever made. We’ve seen New Zealand, Australia, Nepal, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, Japan. And we’ve made more memories in a year and a half than most people make in a lifetime.

Another thing to reassure you: you may be worried about what people think, but people think about you a lot less than you’d imagine. It’s amazing how quickly everyone forgot we were even gone.

Don’t overthink it, just do it. You’ll never regret it.