I came across this passage in Po Bronson’s “What Should I Do With My Life” on fearisfailure.com while going through Timothy Ferriss’ Lifestyle blog (www.fourhourworkweek.com/blog). At a time when everyone seem to be extra concerned and nervous about their job security, many have asked me, “why did you quit your ‘prize’ job?” I think the following pretty much summarizes the driving force behind my current endeavors:

At home, at work, at school, there are always a ton of external inputs coaxing you in the direction you’re already going. Deadlines, parents chirping in your ear, friends wanting you to go out. Your life has a momentum. Traveling can take you away from all those influences, quiet their din, and allow you a kind of silence to consider who you are as an independent entity. It can be uncomfortable if you’re not used to it. You might come face to face with the fact that there’s not much brainwave activity upstairs without all those influences to react to. “And when you start to think that you haven’t been the pilot of your life for a long, long time, you have no other choice but to hear what your soul is saying,” wrote one young man who found the courage to quit business school while traveling across Asia. “Am I the person I think I am if nobody is there to tell me who I am?”

Being uncomfortable is good. If you remain comfortable, you remain more or less yourself. The quickest way to make yourself uncomfortable is to travel alone. I found a high correlation between traveling alone and milking the rock. It takes courage to change your life. Sometimes, doing so, you feel all alone in the world. You can get used to this scary feeling by traveling alone, being by yourself for long periods of time, having to talk to strangers, having to get yourself from one city to another. You become accustomed to it. The fear of being alone will no longer stop you.

It also helped to travel without a plan. This was particularly true for young people who’ve segued from high school to college to a prize job they were recruited for without taking any great leaps of faith. They’ve never been off a path. With each step, they’ve known where it was likely to lead, even as they pretended they might opt out. They’re uncomfortable with the prospect of not being associated with a respected school or company, since they’ve always had that. Traveling without a plan is a way to rehearse the improvisational approach, and opens your mind to the sense of adventure. You learn to trust the laws of chance. Perhaps, when you get home, you’ll be willing to do the same.

When you subdue these fears, they no longer guard the gates, and you invite the truth into your life.