As this dream slowly blooms into our reality and we get closer to the April 26, 2018 departure date, I know that I can work and live remotely around the world for a year. This is right for me. I just know.

Traveling to a new international city to live, experience, eat, drink and breathe the life of the locals are just perks of this decision I have made. What I find myself wanting to get out on [digital] paper is the why.

Why do I want to leave this beautiful life that I have constructed for myself in San Francisco? Why do I feel the need to get far away from my comfort zone and into an unknown, most likely uncomfortable zone? Why am I so open to facing the struggles of working remotely in different time zones and abandoning my tidy cubicle full of convenient gadgets and all the high-speed WiFi I could ever ask for in a consistent time zone?

I am seeking the why. So here it is, five times:

1. Because I want to prove that it IS possible to intertwine world travel and career

In which rule book does is state that to have a successful career, we must be confined to one city, one building, or one desk? I am not saying that successful careers can’t be built with these foundations; they most often-times are. However, this path is not for everyone and it’s not the only way to find success. There are countless tools at our fingertips that allow us to work and live remotely from anywhere in the world. Here is the secret: It’s up to us to stand up, to get up, and to start putting these tools into action.

In a future post, I will show you the resources and technology I use to make being a digital nomad possible. The goal is to inspire you and quite literally move you.

2. Because I believe this will in fact strengthen my career and guide me to my purpose in life

I believe to my deepest core that taking a year to have a different, alternative, yet organized and thoughtfully planned experience is going to strengthen my skill set and even lead me to my purpose in life, or something of the sort.

The people I meet, the situations I get myself into, the relationship I grow with Keith and the things I see and do and eat and drink will mold me into a version of myself that right now, I can’t grasp. I know that I will come out the other end of this remote year more educated and confident about what I want to do with my life and the purpose I hold in this world.

3. Because I need to feel uncomfortable to fully accept and appreciate my comfort zone

We often want what we can’t have. It’s natural, instinctual and possible to ignore but impossible to deny. I have salty, I want sweet. I get sweet, I want salty. I have a house in the suburbs but I want a cramped apartment in the city. I’m sitting in my tiny room I pay too much rent for in the heart of the San Francisco but now I want a driveway and a front yard and a free parking spot. You get it.

Often times, it’s not until I have experienced both sides of the spectrum that I realize what I truly need. I have comfort, routine and a network of friends that I can always rely on. My family lives an hour away from me. I am so lucky. Now I want to get rid of all my stuff, have no friends to rely on and live in an unfamiliar city that makes me feel homesick and alive. After this year, I believe that I will no longer feel restless around comfort and routine. Instead, I will embrace it and appreciate it on a whole new level.

4. Because I am drawn to the people, the places and the experiences this world has to offer

There are countless places, people and sunsets in this world worth running into. I was reminded of this when I was [literally] running into a Mediterranean sunset on the beaches of Tel Aviv last summer. I want to run into all of them, full force, for a year straight, right now. There is so much this world has to share.

I also believe that doing this will guide me to my purpose, or something of the sort. See #2.

5. Because now has never sounded like a better time

I am young, healthy, open-minded and tied to nothing. I am educated, have a stable career that allows me to work remotely and I hold a certain type of faith and confidence in my plans that are so pure and genuine it cannot be broken. It’s time to shake up my life like I’ve never done before.

If there is a better time I should take this leap, enlighten me. I’ll plan another trip ;-).