As we embark on this New Year, I am thrilled to start producing new content for The Zeg. After two years of posting, I took the time to live, travel, and reflect on life. I look forward to sharing new destinations, experiences, and books with you in the coming year.
Every year people list their new year resolutions and what they look forward to in the future, but it would be interesting to list a few things I have learned about life and travel in the past year. Here we go!

Snowboarding
At the beginning of 2022, I wanted to learn to snowboard. After fumbling my way down a mountain on skis, I figured I would be more successful snowboarding on one piece of wood instead of two. After taking several lessons, I learned the two fundamentals of snowboarding being able to navigate the board by turning on your front and back edge in an “S” formation. Descending down the slopes on my back edge was easy to master; however, conquering front-edge domination proved to be a little more challenging. My instructor gave simple instructions: Bend your knees, lean forward, and drive your toes into the ground as you turn. Sounds easy but I realized leaning forward with the chance of falling was my biggest fear. Spending a day going up and down the mountain and falling numerous times, I realized that falling didn’t hurt. How many times have I failed at something out of fear of falling? Once I made that connection, I could move past my fear.

What’s the cost of being right?
There have been countless times I’ve engaged in civil discourse with people on topics ranging from life to politics, with me knowing I am right and they are wrong. This year I realized everyone has to live in their truths, and it is not my job to convince them otherwise. I had to ask myself if I was willing to lose friendships or fall out with family members to prove a point. And the answer is NO.

Status Matters
After many years of traveling, I finally learned and benefited from being loyal to one airline. In the past, I would fly on any airline that would get me to my destination, and if I received any points or credits didn’t matter to me. It’s been great crisscrossing the planet with airline status. From the complimentary drinks, priority boarding, and business class upgrades; flying has become much more enjoyable.

The best way to say “No”
We all have been in situations where it has been challenging to say “no.” Can you come to this event? Will you do this for me? I need this or that from you. You may often find yourself put on the spot, scrambling for a tactful way to decline. I have found it is best not to agree to do anything that doesn’t bring me joy, and when I refuse a request, my simple reply is: “That doesn’t work for me.”

Cheers to a New Year of Travel and living life to the fullest without regrets!